cycling Archives - Page 5 of 5

Walking and cycling on Auckland Harbour Bridge a step closer with approval of Skypath

Yesterday’s Governing Body meeting was dominated by the censure of the Mayor. But also on the agenda was a very significant and exciting project that has strong public support. In a confidential session the council voted to move the project to the next phase allowing council officers to work towards a formal agreement with the Skypath trust and their backers.

The Skypath presentation is available here including details of the proposed construction and a range of impressive design images . Ben from Cycle Action Auckland also spoke in support of the project and highlighted that it is a critical link for walking and cycling. More details on how the path will connect at each end on Transport Blog.

I had a last minute call up to speak on behalf of the Waitemata Local Board (standing in for our Chair Shale Chambers who waited 3 hours to speak) to confirm the backing of the Board.

I noted the Board’s long term support for the project which is included in our Local Board Plan and emphasised that we are now keen to move on to the details which will address the concerns raised by the resident associations. There is no doubt that it is a transformational project that has the Board’s full support to be taken forward to the next stage.

Congratulations to everyone who has worked so hard to get to the project to this point in particular Bevan Woodward from the Skypath Trust.

Removal of trees on Great North Road for SH16 widening

I provided this update in my September Board report to our the Waitemata Local Board meeting on 10 September

Auckand Transport and NZTA are seeking the Board’s land owner consent to remove 6 large pohutakawa trees at the intersection of Great North Road and St Lukes Road (opposite MOTAT) to provide for an additional lane for traffic approaching the west bound SH16 onramp.

At an all of Board workshop in August 2013 attended by officials from NZTA, Auckland Transport, Council parks officers and consultants to the project we discussed the reasons for widening the road and the proposed mitigation (the photo shows the trees currently and the same area in 5 years time).

My personal view is that the case for the widening has not been made. The modelling by NZTA and AT suggests the intersection will reach capacity by 2026 with delays of 7 minutes at the peak. However I am not satisfied that they are using the new EEM (economic modelling manual) from NZTA that states default traffic growth assumptions are no longer to be used and real evidence for their predictions must be produced.

“Discontinuation of a default traffic growth rate (travel demand predictions) – The current ‘default’ travel growth rates (1-3%) generally do not accurately reflect the current situation in New Zealand and we are discontinuing these. Funding applications will therefore be required to provide evidence that any assumption of the future growth is realistic.”

It is most likely that the 2026 numbers used to justify destroying the trees are based on an assumption that the traffic is going to grow. There are options available to NZTA and AT to provide the lanes required within the current road width which need to be pursued. The other option is to wait to see if the predictions are correct.

I am also not satisfied with the cycling facilities that have been proposed for the intersection. There are some improvements with an off road shared path across St Lukes bridge however the cycle lanes are not continuous nor safely connected to the existing network.

Draft Ponsonby Road Masterplan consultation underway

It is really exciting to see the draft Ponsonby Road Masterplan printed and ready for feedback. I introduced the idea to set up a working group to develop a draft to the Waitemata Local Board last year. Since then Tricia Reade and I have championed the project through to a beautifully presented draft, packed with ideas to transform Ponsonby Road. We hope the draft will provoke robust discussion and feedback.

The working group made up of iwi, community representatives, stakeholders and the Ponsonby Business Association met over the last 5 months to develop the draft. It was a unique partnership approach to developing a plan that was able to build on previous community initiatives. Through the process we were also able to learn about the Māori heritage of the area. (The Council commissioned report on Māori heritage values and opportunities from in order to better engage with relevant Iwi for the project area is available here)

The draft identifies specific outcomes and provides concepts for all modes of transport, arts and culture, the streetscape and key sites.

Public consultation on the draft masterplan begins on 24 July and will continue until 4 September.

Have your say online

Community open days

Wednesday, 31 July, 11am-2pm, Leys Institute Library Ponsonby, 20 St Mary’s Road, St Marys Bay
Wednesday, 7 August, 11am-2pm, Whitespace Gallery, 12 Crummer Road, Ponsonby
Saturday, 10 August, 10am-3pm, Leys Institute Library Ponsonby, 20 St Mary’s Road, St Marys Bay
Wednesday, 28 August, 5.30pm-8.30pm, Ponsonby Community Centre, 20 Ponsonby Terrace, Ponsonby

Public meetings

Thursday, 15 August (6.30pm-8pm) Leys Institute Library Ponsonby, 20 St Marys Road, St Marys Bay

For more information, or to order hard copies of the feedback form, phone 301 01 01 and ask to speak to Alana Thurston.

Letter to the editor: Cycling myths

Peter Calder’s excellent opinion piece on cycling last week ( $10 billion for transport but how about bikes? ) provoked a typical letter to the editor along the lines that cyclists should be registered and are bludgers.

I fired off a quick response to the NZ Herald and was surprised to see it published today:

The view that cyclists do not deserve to be on the road because they do not pay for them is based on a myth. Cyclists along with everybody else contribute by paying taxes and rates. It is time for Aucklanders to embrace the huge economic, environmental and social benefits to be realised from investment in cycling infrastructure

Opening of the new Coxs Bay Bridge and Boardwalk

I remember when the original boardwalk was built by Muldoon’s PEP workers in about 1983. Since then I’ve used this route heaps but was always weary about falling into the creek especially more recently as the boardwalk deteriorated. So it is great to see the boardwalk replaced and upgraded to a width of 2.5m to create a proper shared path. This is a Waitemata Local Board funded project that is the start of our Greenways network. The connection from Coxs Bay to Grey Lynn Park and then on to the NW Cycleway is our priority route (the Greenways Plan will be on our July agenda).

Photos from the opening today

Melbourne – cycling around the world’s most liveable city

In early March I travelled on a private trip to Melbourne with the Velociteers who performed at the Melbourne Bike Fest. I took the opportunity to check out why Melbourne is considered to be one of the world’s most liveable cities.

The first thing that struck me was the number of people using bikes for transport especially young women. Melbourne suffers from similar issues to Auckland with car- centric city design, excessive speeds and road congestion. However unlike Auckland there is connected bike infrastructure that makes cycling pleasant and safe. It wasn’t perfect but there has clearly been investment in a whole variety of different approaches to encourage cycling – painted green cycle lanes, shared paths, contra-flows, traffic calming, intersection treatments and separated or “Copenhagen” lanes.

The Melbourne public bike hire scheme introduced in 2010 has also increased the visibility of cycling. Over the four days I was there I used the service for all my trips. I found it to be convenient, cheap (registration is $2.40 per day with the first half hour free ) and took me to where I wanted to go around the city centre. I was able to make the compulsory helmet requirement work by taking over my own helmet and being willing to carry it around between trips. (Not an option that suits everyone – although helmets are for sale for only $5).

However experiencing the Melbourne bikes also convinced me that in Auckland we should not make a public bike hire scheme a priority until we can offer connected and safe routes.

Other aspects of Melbourne that I appreciated were the number of water fountains as part of the street scape reducing the need for plastic bottles and the ban on smoking on the beaches.

[A version of this post featured on the Cycle Action Auckland website generating a number of comments about prioritising a bike share scheme]

Safe systems approach to road safety

Conference report back: Attendance at the Trafinz Conference Auckland 8/9 October

Reducing the True Cost of Road Safety

Introduction

I attended the Trafinz (New Zealand Traffic Institute) Conference 2012 on behalf of the Waitemata Local Board with funding from the Board’s professional development budget (Early registration of $390 +GST and return bus fares from Grey Lynn to Takapuna).

I found the conference to be invaluable for my role on the transport portfolio and my ability to contribute to quality decision making. The conference made me challenge my understanding of road safety and to ask questions about the responsibility I need to take as a politician in pushing for good solutions that will reduce road fatalities and injuries. I took away a completely new understanding of road safety in particular the application of “safe system principles”.

This report highlights the speakers of particular relevance.

Introducing Safe Roads – what will it take? Dr Soames Job, Road Safety Expert

Dr Soames introduced me to the concept of a “safe systems” approach to road safety for the first time. A concept that will be very familiar to transport professionals.

The question to ask is not what caused the crash but what caused the injury or death. The old model is wrong as it looks to find a percentage of each factor to blame. When in fact in every case it is 100% the road, 100% the vehicle and 100% the driver. If you can fix one of these conditions you can solve the problem.

The challenge is where to focus efforts and where to commit resources. What we can control is the safety of roads and the speeds. It is far harder to control vehicle design and almost impossible to control people. Humans are irrational, emotional and have an optimism bias so we should end the pretence that people’s errors can be stopped.

From this understanding of the issues Dr Soames made a number of specific suggestions as to how we can achieve safe roads that are relevant to the Waitemata Local Board area.

In metropolitan areas the focus should be on the vulnerable road user not on vehicle occupants. This means reducing speeds, providing for separation of users and good urban design. The safe system principles are about reducing the energy absorbed by the body to survivable speeds.
Prioritising safety over traffic flow. Traffic flow is too influential in spending and key decision. To calculate BCRs pedestrian time doesn’t count only drivers which is harming the extent to which we cater for the vulnerable road user. Voters blame government (politicians) for delays but not for deaths. The media also focus on traffic flows. We should NOT be prioritising traffic flows over fatalities
Focus on speeds. Need to convince the community that speed is critical to safety (If you drive 65km in a 60km zone double the risk of critical injury). In particular we must see the value of speed management and that it is not about revenue raising

Dr Soames gave the example of France where the death toll has lowered far quicker than NZ because 500 new speed cameras are added each year (in NZ there are only 40 in total)

In another presentation about combining safe system principles and road safety education in schools Dr Soames outlined why safe systems are not adopted:

We blame the victims. There are good psychological reasons for this. We don’t want to be a victim. Almost inevitable outcome of personal responsibility
“People must take personal responsibility for their own safety” is the get out of jail free car of road management used by politicians and operators
Community attitudes supporting risk & victim blaming – deaths are considered an inevitable and acceptable outcome for our mobility

He recommends the use of education to create demand for road safety. We also need political demand for safe systems and a refusal to except that any death is inevitable.

Children’s Travel in the Urban Environment Associate Professor Claire Freeman, University of Otago

How to make a city safe for children

Reassert children’s right to be in the urban environment – right to be seen
Make it normal to use active transport
Reduce car dependency
Skill development
Realistic safety assessment of the dangers
About getting everyone on the street
Reassert local as a living space

Public Health effects of Transport Policy Dr Alex McMillan

I have already reported on a shorter version of this presentation from the Cycling summit but I think it is worthwhile to highlight again some of the key points from Alex’s work to develop a simulation model that assists with understanding the integrated social, health, climate change and benefits of a range of policies and procedures that could increase commuter active cycle transport

Basically if we take a combined best practice approach which involves building separated infrastructure we would achieve a 40% mode share by 2050 with a BCR of 20 ( it is a myth that people do not cycle because of the weather or because Auckland is too hilly). It all comes down to our funding priorities.

Role of Local Government in achieving road safety in NZ Cr Andy Foster, Wellington City Council President TRAFINZ

Andy presented a number of comments in conjunction with Dr Soames Job.

Key points

Swedish approach – if it works – just do it
The weakness of the Government’s safer journey’s document is that it has no targets
Road safety is everyone’s responsibility
Are we investing in the right place? – imbalance between investment between local roads and highways
Safe systems is the way to go but we must be willing to mandate a safe system
We should lower speed limit until it is safe. Need to reverse the onus – accepting traffic flow over safety
Further education needed for other safety measures like wearing seat belts.

Conclusion

The conference delivered a hard message to transport operators and politicians that we must collectively take responsibility for road safety through a “safe system” approach. This means challenging some of our assumptions about what causes crashes and where to find solutions. We should not just accept that fatalities are inevitable but should have a zero goal.

One of the clearest roles we have is to insist on lowering the speed limit until it is safe and not prioritising traffic flows over safety. We must also insist on road builders building better roads that encourage safer speeds with space for all users.

Monthly Board Report October 2012

Covering activities from 1 September to 30 September 2012

Portfolios

Transport (West including Regional portfolio) with Greg Moyle
Community (including Regional portfolio) with Tricia Reade
Chair, Grants Committee
Member of the Isthmus Local Board Joint Funding Committee
Positions: Grey Lynn Business Association, Newmarket Business Association (alternate)

Portfolio reports

Transport

Waitemata Local Board capex priorities

At the Board’s September business meeting Local Board Agreement transport priorities 2012/13 were endorsed as the key projects to be scoped for delivery through the Local Board Transport $10 million Capital Programme where these projects do not form part of Auckland Transport’s 2012/12 work programme. In September I worked with Auckland Transport and members of the transport portfolio to identify which of these key projects to submit as proposals to Auckland Transport for the Waitemata Local Board’s $469,789 share of the Programme for 2012/13.

The following Local Board Agreement transport proposals have so far been submitted to Auckland Transport for an initial assessment:

1. Pedestrian intersection improvements ·

Kitchener/Bowen/Victoria St West
Victoria Street East/Nelson Street
Beach Road/Fort Street/Britomart Place/Emily Place intersection

2. Installation of advance cycle stop boxes with feeder lanes

Karangahape Road eastbound at Symonds Street, onto the Grafton Bridge ·
Great North Road, eastbound coming onto Karangahape Road

3. Streetscape Improvements in Teed/Kent/York Streets,Newmarket

4. Traffic calming – creation of a slow speed zone for Freemans Bay

These proposals have been submitted by the Transport portfolio for an initial assessment by Auckland Transport. Once the forms come back with the initial assessment, the final proposals will be placed on the Board’s agenda for endorsement in November.

Good for business workshop

Substantial progress has been made by Auckland Transport on the “Good for business” workshop with international expert Rodney Tolley. The workshop is aimed at our business associations and business leaders so they can understand why investment in streetscape infrastructure that encourages walking and cycling is good for the local economy The date for the workshop has been confirmed as 28 November.

Cycling Summit

I attended the inaugural Cycling Summit on 5 September hosted by Auckland Transport, NZTA and Cycle Action Auckland aimed at expanding collaboration across Auckland and to learn about innovative projects. 18 speakers were given 5 minutes to present I was impressed with the level of activity, collaboration and the significant commitment of many organisations and individuals working to increase cycling. Many of the presentations were relevant to our Local Board priorities and projects.

I was particularly interested to learn from Alex Macmillan, Auckland University’s School of Population Health who has identified that if we take a best practice approach to cycle infrastructure by ensuring every arterial has bike lanes and all local roads have traffic calming that we could ensure a 40% mode share with a $3 billion investment over the next 20 years. If we continue on the current path of just completing the Regional Cycle Network we are only likely to achieve 5% by 2050. ‘

Freemans Bay School bike track

At the cycle summit Bike On NZ Director, Paul McArdle spoke about the development of bike tracks in schools and the success of the project in getting kids on bikes since it was started three years ago in Hawkes Bay. Sport Auckland and Bike On NZ are collaborating to install 8 bike tracks in 8 Auckland Schools. Freemans Bay School has been identified as the preferred school for our area with the enthusiastic support of the school principal. I intend following up with members about how we can best contribute to this fantastic project which will have wide community benefits .

Greenways

Also at the cycle summit Richard Barter presented on the Puketapapa Local Board greenways project. Our own greenways project is developing well with fortnightly workshops that have been looking to identify a grid of at least 10 routes with additional extensions that will connect all our open spaces with high amenity, safe walking and cycling facilities. ‘

Community

Community Grants Committee

The Committee met for the first time this financial year to consider applications to the first round of funding from our Community Grants fund of $80,000 per annum. The recommendations from this committee meeting were made to the Board’s meeting on 11 September.

Unitary plan

Along with Tricia Reade I am taking a particular interest in the engagement process for the Unitary Plan. We know there is wide spread community concern about what is proposed for the unitary plan and want to ensure there is a genuine opportunity for meaningful input into the draft plan to be released in March 2013. The first opportunity for stakeholder engagement is at a workshop on 4 October. A public meeting is also scheduled for 18 October. I have also attended 3 workshops throughout the month for board members looking at the first drafts of the planning maps and rules. There is a lot of information to get on top of and I have found these workshops to be very informative.

Other issues relevant to the Community portfolio

A range of meetings and presentations were attended during September relevant to the Community portfolio – these are listed below.

Other board activities

Solid waste bylaws hearing

The Council’s consultation on the Solid Waste Bylaw proposals to meet the council’s obligations under the Local Government (Auckland Transitional Provisions) Act 2010, Local Government Act 2002 and the Waste Minimisation Act 2008 closed on 3 September. The bylaws will come into force on 1 November 2012. Following on from a bylaws workshop I finalised the Board’s submission with member Dempsey (a copy of the submission is attached to the agenda). On 28 September we presented the submission to the hearing panel chaired by Cr Rafills. A copy of the presentation is attached (Attachment C).

Grey Lynn Park

The Grey Lynn Park Advisory group met on 3 September. We discussed the make up of the group and the group’s charter. Members of the group agreed the charter is still relevant and would very much like to continue with support from the Parks team. I volunteered to update the group’s charter to reflect the new Council structure. I assisted with the delivery of flyers to advertise our community fruit tree planting on Saturday 15 September. A variety of fruit trees were successfully planting by locals and board members with assistance from Simon Cook, Arboricultural Advisor.

Better Local Government Reforms

On 5 September I joined the Auckland Council delegation speaking to the Council’s submission on the Local Government Act 2002 Amendment Bill at the Local Government and Environment Select Committee Hearings. I spoke after the Deputy Mayor Penny Hulse. There was a short item about the presentation on Checkpoint Council weary of changes to local government act Radio NZ on 5 September 2012. A copy of my presentation is attached is here

Local Board workshops and meetings

Chairs weekly meeting with officers on 3 September (following a week of filling in as acting Chair)
Chaired the Grants Committee meeting on 3 September
Grey Lynn Park Advisory Group meeting on 3 September at the Richmond Rovers Clubrooms
Local Board workshops 4, 18 (part only) and 25 September
Meeting to discuss the events policy on 4 September
Unitary plan stakeholder engagement proposal meeting 5 September
Meeting with Charlotte Cuffe on 5 September to discuss Waitemata Local Board Events Fund Applications in preparation for the Board’s September business meeting
Local Government Act 2002 Amendment Bill select committee hearing on 5 September (see attached presentation)
Local Board Community Development Portfolio holders cluster meeting at the Kitchen on 5 September
Upgrade session for a new Local Board member laptop
Regional Policies for the Draft Annual Plan cluster workshop on 10 September
Greenways workshops on 13 and 27 September
Unitary Plan cluster workshops on 6, 13 and 28 September
Transport Funding Priorities meeting with Jonathan Anyon (AT) and Eva Lawrence 10 September
Grey Lynn Business Association Board meeting on 11 September ·
Draft unitary plan mapping session with Tricia Reade and planning officers (providing an opportunity to study the Unitary Plan maps in more detail) ·
Waitemata Communications update 11 September
Local Board monthly public meeting on 11 September in Grey Lynn
Meeting with the Mayor for Chairs and Deputy Chairs of the Waiheke, Albert-Eden and Waitemata Local Boards to discuss the Annual Plan process on 14 September
Introducing the new generation of kiwi-kids – Evidence from the Growing Up in New Zealand longitudinal by Dr Susan Morton, Director at the Centre for Longitudinal Research hosted by the Reseach, investigations and monitoring unit
Monthly catch up with officers from Community Development and Partnerships Central on 19 September
Solid Waste Bylaw briefing 20 September
Accessible board follow up – meeting to go through their high level thoughts and questions and finalise plan and confirm budgets on 25 September
Resource Recovery Centres progress meeting with Warren Snow on 25 September
Monthly transport portfolio catch ups with Auckland Transport on 27 September
Solid Waste Bylaw hearing – presentation with Christopher Dempsey on 28 September

Events and functions

I attended the following events and functions during September:

Third anniversary celebration of the 40km speed limit on Ponsonby Road organised by Walk Auckland and Auckland Transport on 1 September
Newmarket Business Association AGM dinner for Board members (at the invitation of the NBA)
Cycling Summit hosted by NZTA, Auckland Transport and Cycle Action on 5 September
Cycle Action’s Associates Breakfast at the Art Gallery on 6 September
Parnell Heritage AGM on 6 September
Royal NZ Ballet’s production of Cinderella at the Aotea Centre of 8 September at the invitation of the Mayor (tickets and after show drinks sponsored by Tower)
GLBA monthly networking drinks on 12 September ·
Grey Lynn 2030 meeting to discuss setting up an Urban Design group at the Grey Lynn RSC
Community orchard fruit tree planting in Grey Lynn Park on Saturday 15 September
Zonta Awards dinner at the Barry Court Hotel on 17 September ·
Spoke on behalf of the Board at the suffrage day celebrations on 19 September at the Suffrage monument in Khartoum Place
NZ Park(ing) day on Ponsonby Road organised by Walk Auckland
Ponsonby Market Day on 22 September
Tweed Run organised as part of the Ponsonby Road 40km speed limit celebrations
Silo Theatre’s production of Private Lives at Q Theatre (at the invitation of Q Theatre)
Cycle Action Auckland’s AGM on 27 September
Heritage Festival 29 September – 14 October
Launch of the Heritage Festival at the Voyager Museum on 27 September
First Electric Tram event on 29 September
Celebration of the Campbell Free Kindergarten with a presentation by with a presentation by Conservation Architect Bruce Petry on 29 September
Auckland Boat Show (at the invitation of ATEED)
Richard Heinberg “Life after Growth” presentation on 30 September – the quest for a more resilient, sustainable, and healthy future hosted by the Post Carbon Institute, Grey Lynn 2030 and the Sustainable Business Network.