Bicycle Network: Directory

Mornington Peninsula riders - drafting of council Budget 2013/14 underway

05 March 2013. As you read this Council is preparing its draft 2013/14 Budget. The time to act is now for more bike infrastructure funding!

As a ratepayer and rider now is the time for Council to hear from you if you want more funding to improve the local riding environment.

Click here to tell your Council to invest in bike infrastructure (E-mail contact for Council provided) in the 2013/14 Budget.

Bicycle Expenditure Index (BiXE) 2012

15 November 2012. The Shire of Mornington Peninsula’s BiXE rating for 2012 is $15.13. This is above the Outer Zone council average for 2012, which is $5.65. This is based upon council spending of $2,279,225 and population of 150,682.

Relevant bicycle related investment for the 2012/2013 financial year includes but is not necessarily limited to expenditure upon the following projects/programs:
• Point Nepean Road (Wattle Pl to Bartels Street)
• Dundas St (Toagarra Street to Avon Road)
• Old Mornington Rd Stage 2 (William Road to Nepean Highway)
• Point Nepean Road (The Loop to Hughes)
• Jetty Road (Point Nepean Road to Keogh Street)
• South Road (Adams Avenue to Lonsdale Street)
• Victoria Street (Marine Parade to Seaview Avenue)
• Elizabeth Street (Main Street to Tanti Avenue North Side)

Additional spending sourced from external grants and funds may apply, but that is outside the scope of BiXE reporting.

The Shire of Mornington Peninsula achieved a five-year BiXE average of $11.70. This is above the Outer Zone council five-year average for 2012, which is $5.80.

See full BiXE report available here.

VoteBike - Local Council Elections 2012

27 October 2012. Local council elections are being held in Victoria on October 27 2012. Bicycle Network Victoria is once again running VoteBike that allows you to engage with potential candidates on local cycling issues. We will collect statements from candidates about their commitment to cycling in Mornington Peninsula and publish them on the VoteBike Facebook event page for you to comment on.

Bicycle Network Victoria has identified the following key projects for the City of Mornington Peninsula that need the support of local councilors: 

• Frankston Bypass/Peninsula Link -Support external links to the path from the bay and the Frankston central area near the station and activity Centre.
• Mornington Path Link - Continued support of this path is needed.
• Esplanade to Sorrento - Linking Safety Beach to Sorrento with lanes along the Esplanade would provide riders with a transport and recreation route.
• Ride2School - Continue to provide safe routes to schools foster healthy transport options for kids and reduce peak morning traffic congestion by up to 20%.

To view candidate statements for Mornington Peninsula go to our Find a Candidate page. Or to comment on candidate statements as well as voice your support for particular local cycling projects, visit our Facebook events page for Mornington Peninsula.

VoteBike allows you to have your say and make sure your vote counts for improved cycling conditions in your local area.

Mornington's liveability budget

24 June 2011. Mornington Peninsula Shire has released a draft "liveability budget" which will triple investment in shared paths and footpaths to $1.5 million in 2011/12, producing an extra 13 kilometres of new paths.

The allocation breathes life into the Mornington Peninsula Bicycle Strategy 2010 – 2014 released last year.

The Shire has linked mobility to liveability and will provide more options for travel by foot and bicycle in order to increase exercise opportunities, reduce car dependence and increase opportunities for appreciation of the local environment.

Livability is related to the social and environmental quality of an area.  In terms of transportation systems, livability may include having access to local destinations (shops, recreational areas etc.) without having to get into a motor vehicle.

A prerequisite of a livable transportation system is appropriate levels of investment in bicycle infrastructure.

The Bicycle Strategy identifies current Shire-wide bicycle infrastructure as well as deficiencies in the bicycle network.  Aims of the Bicycle Strategy include:  

• To provide a range of bicycle facilities on and off road that link Mornington Peninsula communities to public transport, activity centres, recreation areas and provide access to other regions.
• To actively pursue bicycle links to Mornington, Baxter, Somerville and Rosebud as part of the bicycle paths constructed in conjunction with the Peninsula Link (Frankston By-Pass).

The Bicycle Strategy also states that the Shire is actively pursuing the Baxter to Mornington shared path link and freeway reserve land allocation for future expansion of the Peninsula Link bicycle shared path network.

Whether in an urban, peri-urban or rural area, transportation systems with a focus on livability must incorporate a variety of transportation modes (foot, bicycle and motor vehicle). There are a variety of users to be catered for including pedestrians, bicyclists and motorists. Livable transportation systems, of which bike riding is a central constituent, play a crucial role in helping to achieve broader community goals.

BiXE 2009: City of Mornington Peninsula

Mornington Peninsula Shire has a BiXE 2009 of $16.12 which is the highest of the Outer Councils and well above the Outer Council average of $5.78. The BiXE 2009 is a welcome improvement on its BiXE 2008 of $1.82. Mornington Peninsula has achieved a 3 year average BiXE of $5.98.

Mornington Peninsula City Council has opportunities to invest funds into cycling infrastructure such as:
• Improving and closing the missing links along the Bay Trail
• Complete the Bay Trail gaps from Sorrento to Safety Beach
• Closing the missing links across the Pathways network. This could be a major recreational and tourism asset for the shire and the people of metropolitan Melbourne.

Council updating Bicycle Strategy

22 September 2008. Mornington Peninsula Shire Council have been busy doing research on what riders want improved across their network.

Historically this Council has been a leader in effort and funds for cycling in the area.

With the growing tourism attractions and high intensity riders venturing further south from Beach Rd, rider numbers have been steadily growing.

You can give your feedback by writing to council. Remember to keep it positive and if possible, be specific

Council commits $10 million dollars

Jul 04 Mornington Peninsula Shire Council has set a new benchmark for local councils and the State Government by committing $10 million over the next two years for shared path linkages in the shire.

This is more than five times the Victorian Government's commitment to shared paths. Congratulations to the shire for commitment which acknowledges the tremendous benefits of cycle paths to the health and wellbeing of the community.

From the June/July edition of Peninsula-Wide, the shire's community newsletter:

'More than 80km of paths - the equivalent of building a path from Sorrento to Melbourne - will be built to provide safe access to schools, shops and services in a number of townships across the Shire. The linkages will also add to the experience and enjoyment of recreational users by "joining up" a number of important shared trails for cyclists and pedestrians.

'Mayor Anne Shaw said Council would borrow the funds over two financial years. "The cost benefit of advancing the construction of more than 80km of shared path linkages and accelerating the program by 15 years, outweighs the borrowing costs," she said.'

Bicycle Network Victoria has written to the council congratulating them on the initiative.

If you want to see more or improved bike facilities in the Mornington Peninsula or want to show your support for their Shared Path Network initiative please email Council at custserv@mornpen.vic.gov.au.

Hon Robin Cooper proposes bike ban on The Esplanade

Bicycle Network Victoria opposes a proposal by the the State member for Mornington, The Hon. Robin Cooper, to ban bicycle riding from the Esplanade between Mount Martha shopping centre and Safety Beach. Mr Cooper proposes the ban "in the interests of both bike riders and motorists ... as a matter of public safety" in his July 2004 'Cooper Report' to residents of the area.

It must be said that Mr Cooper does ask that if "a realistic engineering solution" is available "it must be brought forward and implemented without delay". But he does not seem interested in pursuing such a solution and seems to favour a ban on bicycles. See Robin Cooper's website for more.

We believe the proposal is short sighted. The Esplanade is a popular cycling route, especially on weekends. Alternate routes such as the Nepean Hwy are more dangerous, more hilly, less scenic and more circuitous. This section of road is amongst the most scenic on Port Phillip bay and it would be very hard and expensive to successfully implement a ban on cycling. We believe motorists are not unduly delayed by cyclists as they are relatively easy to overtake due to their slow speed and small size. Asking cycling them to be banned on safety grounds is no answer to unsafe driving behaviours.

There are other options open to making the road safer including:

• widening the road to create cycle friendly shoulders
• creating more opportunities for passing slower vehicles, including cyclists
• signage indicating the presence of cyclists on the road and warning people to slow down and share the road with cyclists
• lowering the speed limit of the road.

We urge all cyclists who oppose a ban on cycling to write to Mr Cooper at robin.cooper@parliament.vic.gov.au. Please remember to send us a copy of any correspondence to campaigns@bv.com.au.