Tolerance between cyclists and pedestrians is the key to safe footpath sharing in Adelaide, says a suburban mayor who has just seen how riders cope in busy cities in Japan.

Prospect Mayor David O'Loughlin has spent more than a fortnight observing cyclists, often on footpaths, while visiting Tokyo, Osaka and Hiroshima.

He told 891 ABC Adelaide he saw people of all ages riding bikes safely and no evidence of problems between cyclists, pedestrians and drivers.

"I looked carefully over two-and-a-half weeks to see some evidence of altercation or injury, chaos ... and saw nothing other than people just going about their business and riding bikes," he said.

"Generally people would just ride any old where on footpaths — quite busy footpaths, and I would suggest to you as busy as any in Adelaide.

"They would just ride slowly and meander around people — people had priority, people on foot that is."

Mr O'Loughlin said parents often had children balanced on their bikes and few people wore helmets.

"I even saw people riding through shopping malls and, again, doing it quite respectfully — and mothers with children balanced front and rear riding at walking pace, incredibly well balanced I have to say," he said.

"There's a lot of tolerance for both forms of transport [riding and walking]."

Age no barrier to safe riding in Japan: mayor

The Prospect Mayor said there were many older people slowly making their way along footpaths on bikes.

"What we saw is anyone who is able, was able to choose to ride," he said.

"We saw old people riding along to go to the shop or to go to the park or the temple [and] saw younger people.

"The police in the local prefectures are all on bikes — didn't see many police cars at all, saw a lot of police bikes and all the posties deliver the mail using bicycles as well."

Japanese cyclists show courtesy and ride slowly on footpaths, says Prospect Mayor David O'Loughlin. ( ABC News )

He said speed was not the aim for those who rode in busy Japanese cities and bikes seemed to provide a faster journey than walking or driving.

"People sit upright on their bikes, they're not bent over in a racing pose," he said.

Mr O'Loughlin said pedestrians seemed not to have to keep any particular watch out for riders, who courteously steered around them, at two to three times walking pace.

"Just to look and see how people deal with these issues in other countries, it opens our minds up to different ways of doing things at home," he said.

New cycling rules took effect in South Australia this week, requiring drivers to keep one metre or more clear of cyclists on roads, allowing riders to use footpaths and permitting drivers to cross double lines on roads to avoid cyclists, provided it was clear to do so.

Adelaide City Council is considering changes to bike lanes in the CBD, in part because of traffic congestion and safety concerns for cyclists.

Lord Mayor Martin Haese said the long-term aim for the city was to have an extensive cycling infrastructure.

"Let's get this right ... and let's do something which stands the test of time," he said.

A city council design report said short-term improvements for current bike lanes would cost about $100,000.