NSW: More cycleways, streets to shut, footpaths widened

[find_bruce]

Interesting that, once again, the NSW planning minister is pushing to widen footpaths and increase cycleways More cycleways, streets to shut, footpaths widened under NSW's COVID-19 plan

It sounds great. Sadly though the bucket is just 39% of a Tibby Cotter at $15 million, from which

NSW councils can apply for grants of up to $100,000 for immediate pilot projects, such as widening footpaths and creating cycle lanes, and up to $1 million for longer term projects such as extra crossing points and trialling lower speed limits.

Hopefully it is a step in the right direction, but we can look forward to the squawking from the usual suspects.

[tpcycle]

I read it as "More cycleways AND streets to shut, footpaths widened", which is much more in keeping with the track record of the NSW government (and then they'd find a way to only shut cycleways and not streets). Unless they've changed their stripes then I'd put this in the Bread and Circuses file along with the Harbor Bridge steps plan, all the various NSW cycling plans, etc, etc.

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-07-25/ ... nt/8739250

I can still see that swarmy disingenuous **** Duncan Gay at the bottom of the steps sprouting twaddle in front of the media, I should have zoomed down the steps and crashed into him when I had the chance.

[tubby74]

can we start with the 3 parking spots on liverpool street that mean the official cross city cycle way dissappears for one block on a one way street? eradicate as many symbols of duncan gay's hatred as possible

[find_bruce]

I would not accuse anyone of being too cynical when it comes to government promises - experienced is a better word - with a government promise and $3.50 you can buy a cup of coffee - assuming you can find an open cafe.

What I find interesting is that it is coming out of the planning department (who should have a clue, but see above) via councils & roads whi have always been interested in trucks & cars. Outside of the CBD, whatever the RTA is called now only has authority in relation to major roads & its councils who get to do the rest.

[AUbicycles]

There are a few ways to look at this news.

1 - Positive... at least something is happening.

2 - Realistic... the Government usually spends money on infrastructure will mean $100,000 will buy one paving stone.

3 - Optimistic... $100,000 is a lot of money and when it is not wasted (with every 'man and his dog' trying to get a slice of the pie) it can go a long way. Street closures, line marking and signage for 'non-structural' infrastructure changes can significantly impact infrastructure without laying down a lot of new concrete.

4 - Concerned... the mention of the Tibby Cotter Bridge is an example where the NSW State Government dipped massively into the Pedestrian and Cycling Infrastructure budget and took this money away from genuine infrastructure and refused to disclose details and budget while promoting this infrastructure that was simultaneously publicly criticised by all significant cycling advocacy groups. The legacy of ex-minister Duncan Gay which was unfortunately continued by inaction and disinterest by MPs who followed is a good reason to treat any transport and infrastructure news from the NSW Government with caution.

[mikesbytes]

We shall see what improvements happen, that wouldn't of happened anyway

[fat and old]

City of Melbourne has announced similar. I’ll keep an eye on this and see what we get. I’m one of those parasites Bruce mentioned, but it’s in my favour to get more for less.

[mikesbytes]

Clover Moore is really happy with the decision https://www.facebook.com/clovermooresyd ... 322495995/

[g-boaf]

Few prospects for anything to happen.

Most likely is that the faceless men of the LNP will engineer a revolt and install different leadership, giving the money for new road projects.

[LateStarter]

Interesting that, once again, the NSW planning minister is pushing to widen footpaths and increase cycleways More cycleways, streets to shut, footpaths widened under NSW's COVID-19 plan

It sounds great. Sadly though the bucket is just 39% of a Tibby Cotter at $15 million, from which

NSW councils can apply for grants of up to $100,000 for immediate pilot projects, such as widening footpaths and creating cycle lanes, and up to $1 million for longer term projects such as extra crossing points and trialling lower speed limits.

Hopefully it is a step in the right direction, but we can look forward to the squawking from the usual suspects.

Another comparison could be to the $10 billion, $16 billion, $25 billion or what ever it is this week cost of WasteConnex but perhaps given that there are 128 councils in nsw the $100,000 represents $781.25 per council, a few tins of paint but not enough to actually apply to the road. Not really the dawn of a new era?

PS, meanwhile the UK Transport Secretary Grant Shapps says, " he would be setting up a £250 million emergency fund to encourage what he called "active travel". Mr Shapps said the money was the first instalment of a £2bn package for cycling and walking, part of a £5bn investment announced in February.

https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-52689372

Seems to trump nsw's $100,000?

[39x25]

Copied from SMH:
====================================
The new paths will be rolled out to the west, east and south of the CBD on:

Bridge Road / Pyrmont Bridge Road at Pyrmont;
Pitt St North in the CBD;
Moore Park Road in Paddington / Moore Park;
Dunning Avenue at Rosebery;
Sydney Park Road in Alexandria / Erskineville; and
Henderson Road at Eveleigh.

Plans are also being considered to deliver temporary cycleways on Oxford St in Paddington/Darlinghurst, King St, College St and Castlereagh St in the CBD, and King St in Newtown.
====================================
So all of these are long overdue highly used roads for bikes.
my fear is that they will all be temporary and be reversed as soon as the car lobby gets back on the post pandemic "recovery" train.
Even the announced so call permanent ones can be easily torn up later on as is the case of College St.

Would be ideal to get across the city east west via King /LIverpool and north south via combination of Castlereagh/Kent/College. This would finally get a workable protected bike path network through the core of Sydney CBD. These must be done end to end and not the current halfarsed "solution" which involves plenty of unnecessary risk for those that does not want to take them.

This will also encourage the food delivery (ebike) riders to travel less on footpaths endangering themselves and pedestrians as we have seen an explosion of these gig riders **Cough Pedaling Cough** weaving through pedestrians while having very little experience or skill in handling bicycles in any situation.

[familyguy]

More a chance to finally install something that should have been done anyway. Finally, someone using the argument "well I'm not seeing any cars so these roads must therefore be underutilised and not required!" for good, not evil.

[g-boaf]

Copied from SMH:
====================================
The new paths will be rolled out to the west, east and south of the CBD on:

Bridge Road / Pyrmont Bridge Road at Pyrmont;
Pitt St North in the CBD;
Moore Park Road in Paddington / Moore Park;
Dunning Avenue at Rosebery;
Sydney Park Road in Alexandria / Erskineville; and
Henderson Road at Eveleigh.

Plans are also being considered to deliver temporary cycleways on Oxford St in Paddington/Darlinghurst, King St, College St and Castlereagh St in the CBD, and King St in Newtown.
====================================
So all of these are long overdue highly used roads for bikes.
my fear is that they will all be temporary and be reversed as soon as the car lobby gets back on the post pandemic "recovery" train.
Even the announced so call permanent ones can be easily torn up later on as is the case of College St.

Would be ideal to get across the city east west via King /LIverpool and north south via combination of Castlereagh/Kent/College. This would finally get a workable protected bike path network through the core of Sydney CBD. These must be done end to end and not the current halfarsed "solution" which involves plenty of unnecessary risk for those that does not want to take them.

This will also encourage the food delivery (ebike) riders to travel less on footpaths endangering themselves and pedestrians as we have seen an explosion of these gig riders **Cough Pedaling Cough** weaving through pedestrians while having very little experience or skill in handling bicycles in any situation.

They are apparently pop-up cycleways, they are not going to be permanent. I get annoyed at some of those food delivery riders too. I'd had some near misses where they've come flying out onto a cycleway without watching (and I couldn't see them until last minute). Fortunately I'm on a light and fast bike and have some decent fitness so they can't just put the electric power down and ride away so easily.

[mikesbytes]

Copied from SMH:
====================================
The new paths will be rolled out to the west, east and south of the CBD on:

Bridge Road / Pyrmont Bridge Road at Pyrmont;
Pitt St North in the CBD;
Moore Park Road in Paddington / Moore Park;
Dunning Avenue at Rosebery;
Sydney Park Road in Alexandria / Erskineville; and
Henderson Road at Eveleigh.

Plans are also being considered to deliver temporary cycleways on Oxford St in Paddington/Darlinghurst, King St, College St and Castlereagh St in the CBD, and King St in Newtown.
====================================
So all of these are long overdue highly used roads for bikes.
my fear is that they will all be temporary and be reversed as soon as the car lobby gets back on the post pandemic "recovery" train.
Even the announced so call permanent ones can be easily torn up later on as is the case of College St.

Would be ideal to get across the city east west via King /LIverpool and north south via combination of Castlereagh/Kent/College. This would finally get a workable protected bike path network through the core of Sydney CBD. These must be done end to end and not the current halfarsed "solution" which involves plenty of unnecessary risk for those that does not want to take them.

This will also encourage the food delivery (ebike) riders to travel less on footpaths endangering themselves and pedestrians as we have seen an explosion of these gig riders **Cough Pedaling Cough** weaving through pedestrians while having very little experience or skill in handling bicycles in any situation.

In recent years we have had great difficulty getting bike paths on state controlled roads. I'm assuming that some of these roads are state controlled

[hunch]

Old Drunken was going to narrow the footpath in either King or Market a few years ago I recall, it would be hilarious if a new College St one was installed and we could then have the Parrot fulminating on Sky with near zero audience.

There was something on the news - I think last week - about a bike lane in Leichardt being ripped up by RMS to accommodate Westconnex rat-runners. Wasn't paying great attention, but Darcy Byrne was opposed, supposedly submissions were closing in a few weeks....nothing pops out at me.

[mikesbytes]

Like this?

[g-boaf]

https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/fro ... 54uep.html

The temporary pop up cycleways are going to need to be changed to permanent ones. And we need more of them across the wider Sydney area.

Otherwise people won’t ride. Simple as that.

These cycleways have to be wider, fast ones that minimise the stops, making it easier and faster for people to ride where they have to go. Nothing is worse than endless stop starts, they take up time and energy.

On my afternoon commute I probably add another 15 minutes waiting for traffic lights.

[find_bruce]

The ability to safely cross the CBD is also important, but remains missing, even with pop ups

[mikesbytes]

The ability to safely cross the CBD is also important, but remains missing, even with pop ups

That would be King st and Liverpool st if those links are ever built. There's a plan to complete Liverpool st on the western side but I've not seen a plan to fill in the key missing bit on the eastern side of Liverpool st, which is one way so we can't ride east on Liverpool st. King st has the same problem when you want to ride west.

What I wonder about these missing links is why its so?

[LateStarter]

"..Community outrage over removal of parking spaces for pop-up cycleway..."

https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/com ... 553id.html

Seems a bit late to be rushing to save the usual sacred sites (car parking spaces) as the work starts today !

"Works on the temporary bicycle route on Moore Park Road, Paddington, are due to begin on Thursday "

[mikesbytes]

"..Community outrage over removal of parking spaces for pop-up cycleway..."

https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/com ... 553id.html

Seems a bit late to be rushing to save the usual sacred sites (car parking spaces) as the work starts today !

"Works on the temporary bicycle route on Moore Park Road, Paddington, are due to begin on Thursday "

They could of lobbied for one lane to be closed so they can retain their parking

[g-boaf]

Looking at the SMH, they are writing about the very slow return of patrons to public transport as a result of the virus and people realising they can work from home.

Perhaps that’s the sign to start putting more into cycle ways instead?

[LateStarter]

Looking at the SMH, they are writing about the very slow return of patrons to public transport as a result of the virus and people realising they can work from home.

Perhaps that’s the sign to start putting more into cycle ways instead?

Except the SMH report goes on to say "While public transport remains quiet, the city's roads have filled quickly, with traffic down just 7 per cent across the last week of June. And for the month of June, traffic was down just 5 per cent on last year's level."

So with traffic back to 95% even though large parts of the economy are still dozing we can look forward to even more in coming months, so much for our hoped for car free (or at least car reduced) future. No doubt NSW Liberals are already using these numbers to justify a shift of funding from unused public (and active) transport to more deserving tollways.

PS I am not really seeing much more cycling on Sydney streets, despite a few "popup" cycleways announced and some of them being painted there hasn't been much change to encourage more.

PSS. Although my LBS still has a 2-3 week wait for servicing, don't know where all these new/returning bicycle riders are doing their riding?

[fat and old]

Yeah, in Melbourne we had/have a massive increase in cycles, but a massive decrease in PT use and vehicles back to normal. The PT users who had to move around took the car.

[mikesbytes]

My experience with the Sydney inner city suburbs is that whenever they put in a bike path there is an increase in cycling even if that bike path doesn't connect. I haven't had the chance to evaluate the popup cycleways but I have evaluated the new path along Campbell st St Peters and it is getting participation.

Some things to take into consideration;
1. It's winter and new cyclists are more likely to start cycling when the weather warms up
2. A lot of people are working from home so no need to commute
3. Some premises have temporary closed their end services, ie when the commuter arrives at work there isn't a shower