Cycle Aware Palmerston North

Deputation to Works Operation Committee

Response to Transportation Planning Officer’s report (not yet sighted).

As part of City Heart, the inner ring is being 4 laned. The next stage is Ferguson St, in the vicinity of Foodtown - Princess St. Council plans include 4 lanes for motorised vehicles, parking bays and tree planting. However no provision is made for cyclists.

As part of the City Heart Information meetings earlier this year, Chief Executive Paul Wylie assured several meetings that cyclists would be provided for, and that the inner ring road would be constructed to the standard of Fitzherbert Avenue. He expressly mentioned providing cycle lanes, and further consultation with cyclists.

At the November 18^th 2003 Cycle Advisory Group meeting, Roading Manager Graeme Tong informed the group that the plan for the Ferguson section of the inner ring road would not have cycle lanes. CAG had had no previous information on these plans, other than informing the Chair of CAG that plans were not yet drawn up.

Cyclists will continue to use this route, as the logical bypass of the central city. By not providing for cyclists, the danger will be increased, not decreased. Provision should be made to avoid conflicts and accidents.

This roadway is currently a logical route for cyclists around the square - no other provision for cyclists is being made.

Increasing motorised traffic flow on this road will create a greater hazard for cyclists, so cycle lanes should be provided.

The provision of off-street parking, while not providing for cycle lanes, seems bizarre. Why will it be too dangerous to provide for a cycle lane, when it is fine for cars to manoeuvre at slow speed into and out of parks?

The Transit NZ draft Cycling Design Guide (available on their website), which is to accompany Austroads as the guide to engineering design to ensure adequate provision for cyclists, makes it clear that streets that are so important for connectivity, and which have the volume of vehicles that the ring road does, should have cycle lanes. How will cyclists access businesses on the ring road? How will children on bikes get to the intermediate school from areas to the east of the school?

And how will cyclists have the option (and benefits) that motor vehicles have of skirting the CBD via the ring road? Let's remember that (as intended by the City Heart designers) the area within the ring road is to be a low-speed environment with lots more vehicles moving in and out of all the additional car parks (and coaches depositing crowds of visitors on our retailers' doorsteps). Not all cyclists will want to go through the Square when travelling between places outside of the CBD.