Article: What Brisbane cyclists need

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What Brisbane cyclists need

What Brisbane cyclists need
March 16, 2011 - 5:07AM

With today marking Ride2Work Day, Bicycle Queensland's Ben Wilson details what's changed - and what needs to change - for cyclists in Brisbane.

Brisbane is a city changing for the better. We are taking greater advantage of our assets: the river, the city, the bay foreshores, our parks and bridges. Integral to that is the growth in cycling - for transport and for fun.

Bikeways are the conduit to making Brisbane "Australia's most liveable city" (remember that one?), and more recently "the new world city".

Cycling is a congestion beater, saving billions in infrastructure costs. Some bikeways that have been in place a decade or less are helping boost cycling to up to 10 per cent of all trips in suburbs such as West End, Toowong and New Farm. This in turn takes thousands of cars off the streets – a win for all.

Both the state government and city council have had major 'spends' on cycling – with around $50 million going into Brisbane cycling infrastructure over recent years.

But spending on cycling is still just a small percentage of the state's total transport spend of around $3 billion.

When the Dutch government of the 1970s was confronted with spiralling oil prices, they invested 10 per cent of their budget on cycling – a massive amount of money but one that has reaped dividends as it has established the Netherlands as the cycling capital of the world.

About 30 per cent of trips there are done by bike, saving billions in transport infrastructure and health costs.

Some things that have improved in recent years for cyclists in Brisbane include:

    * we now have five bridges built either specifically for cycling and walking, or with bikeways attached to them.
    * the 'Copenhagen' style bike-lane in George Street was step one in making a spine through our city where bikes are separated and safe. Bicycle Queensland has long advocated both a north-south and east-west spine to make the CBD accessible for cyclists. That could mean a full separated bike-lane along George and Adelaide streets, for instance.
    * the 40km/h city speed limit has been another great leap forward.
    * bike parking has improved immeasurably over the last decade, with the Cycle2City centre in King George Square. However, more casual-use racks are clearly needed in the CBD around the ends of the Mall and on intersections.
    * the CityCycle scheme is just over half-installed, with hundreds of users a day which should increase 10-fold when it is fully installed and understood by the public.
    * other major projects underway include an upgrade to the Bicentennial Bikeway from Toowong to the City, the southeast bikeway along the M1 from Garden City to the CBD.

But what else is needed? If I could wave a magic wand, the five major projects that the cyclists of Brisbane are crying out for are:

1. The Gabba to Goodwill

A separated bikeway along Stanley Street from the Brisbane Cricket Ground to the Goodwill Bridge. This would create a connection where a massive hole now exists – getting in the last two kilometres from the east through Woolloongabba to the city.

2. The Northern Corridor: Shaw Road, Kedron to the RNA Showgrounds and beyond

The northside of Brisbane lags a long way behind the south and west in good safe routes to the CBD. The Kedron Brook bikeway covers a lot of ground from west to east, but it's designed as a recreational bikeway. A 'veloway' from Shaw Road towards the City would go through Wooloowin and Albion, cross Enoggera Creek and go through the redeveloped Ekka grounds to link under Bowen Bridge Road to Gilchrist Avenue.

3. The North-West Corridor: From the Kedron Brook bikeway to the Royal Brisbane Hospital

Kedron Brook Road is a key connector, but a reallocation to separate cyclists from motorised traffic is needed. Further out, cyclists need safe routes towards the CBD from suburbs such as Everton Park and McDowall.

4. Bulimba to Teneriffe bridge

A pedestrian and cycle bridge linking the inner-eastern suburbs of Hawthorne, Balmoral and Bulimba to Teneriffe and New Farm would connect two of Brisbane's vibrant precincts and open up access to the Valley and CBD from the east.

5. Reinstate Riverwalk

Brisbane lost a jewel and an icon in the January floods. Bicycle Queensland urges council to rebuild Riverwalk as soon as possible, and redesign it to withstand a similar flood event. Our riverside links are vital for the cyclists and pedestrians of Brisbane.