Bicycle Network: Metro Routes

King St signal phasing inadequate for large volumes of riders

The SMH reports that the phasing has been set with 5 seconds for riders. Compare this to the Napier Street plans.

King Street open today

4 May 2009 King Street opens today.

King Street opening imminent

The King Street bike route will be open to riders in the next few days. The photos below show before, during and after. Further down you will find the story of the campaign. This route is the first of many high quality CBD routes for bike riders in Sydney. A significant and hidden part of the project is that all the services - gas, electricity and so on - have been moved away from under the bike route. Any works involving the services will now disrupt the road but not the new streetscape and bike path.

The route is a two way path 2.5m wide similar to the system used successfully in Paris for many years. We believe it will transform riding in Sydney.

 

 
Work is well underway - November 2008

The photo shows from the left the footpath behind the fence, the two way bike route, a kerb and then the trench where the trees will be planted, separating the riders from the one way traffic on the right.

Work begins

May 08 Photo shows view from from Sussex Street up King Street, showing works to the south side of King Street. Council aims to complete footpath refurbishment to the south side on King Street prior to World Youth Day. The construction of the cycle lane (on the north side of King Street) will commence after World Youth Day.

Council awards tender for King Street lanes

 Report of the Finance Properties and Tenders Committee - 31 March 2008

The Committee recommends the following:- ITEM 7.9 TENDER - KING STREET UPGRADE AND CYCLEWAY (S048068) It is resolved that:

(A) Council accept the tender offer of Tenderer “A” for the King Street upgrade and cycleway; and

(B) Tender Evaluation Summary, Attachment C to the subject report, remain confidential in accordance with Section 10A(2)(d) of the Local Government Act 1993.

(Note - At the meeting of the Finance, Properties and Tenders Committee, this recommendation was moved by Councillor Mallard, seconded by Councillor McInerney and carried unanimously.) 

Clover Moore gives a start date for the King St project

Feb08 The Lord Mayor has written to Bicycle New South Wales with a commitment to begin construction of the King Street project in April. See letter opposite.  Well done everyone who wrote. A facility like this in Sydney will make it much easier for everyone else in Australia to make the case for better bicycle facilities. Use the link below to send her a thank you and well done!
 

Welcome to the first joint campaign by Bicycle New South Wales and Bicycle Network Victoria.

We are all calling on our members to support the Lord Mayor of Sydney and the NSW Minister for Roads in this important matter. The King/Clarence Street bikeway has national significance. With a high quality Paris style lane in the centre of Sydney it will hard for others around the country to say ‘it can’t be done’.

Excitingly these routes are proposed to be 'bi-directional facilities', separated from the carriageway. A bi-directional facility is a two way bike path in the road reservation similar to those used successfully in Paris and Montreal for example.

The image to the right shows how King St could look.

It’s time for us to act.

Oct 07 Bicycle NSW and Bicycle Network Victoria are asking members and supporters to write to Premier Morris Iemma,  Lord Mayor Clover Moore and Minister for Roads Eric Roozendaal  to express our support for the project and encourage them to complete these important cycleways in the proposed timeframe.

We encourage Sydney and NSW residents to write. This project will have a high impact on the ease of riding in the CBD and will, we believe, get many more people riding and encourage other Councils around the state to follow suit.

We encourage people from around Australia to write. A breakthrough project like this in the centre of Sydney will reverberate around the country. With a high quality Paris style lane in the CBD it will hard for others to say ‘it can’t be done.’

Please make your letters positive. It has been a long and frustrating wait but with your strong support the Premier, Minister and Lord Mayor will have the confidence to act.

We suggest that you write in a tone that is clear, polite and firm. Abusive letters rarely get a response and are usually counter-productive.

Let's get Paris style lanes for Sydney

The City of Sydney plans to build a number of cycle routes in the CBD as part of Sustainable Sydney 2030.

The NSW Government has a range of positive commitments to bike routes as part of the Cross City Tunnel Project.

A high priority is to link the Harbour Bridge path from the north with the Anzac Bridge path from the west. (See overview map on right)

The proposed alignment – heading from the west to the north – is:

1. Anzac Bridge to Pyrmont Bridge
2. Western Distributor path to corner of Sussex and King
3. King St to Clarence Street
4. Clarence Street (under review) to the Harbour Bridge path.

Of these four sections the most urgent in need of improvement are:

• King to Clarence Street
• Clarence to the Harbour Bridge.

The Cross City Tunnel contract included a number of ‘conditions of consent’ that identified bicycle routes that would ‘take advantage of the opportunities afforded by reduced traffic congestion’.  This project will fulfill a number of commitments made in the contract, particularly Condition 67. 

The City of Sydney and the NSW Government are committed to the project. There is a design for the King Street section and the City of Sydney and RTA are working together on the Clarence Street design.

So far so good.

It has taken a long time to get to this point.

When the century clicked over, the City of Sydney was confronted with increasing traffic demands and limited road space and was one of the few metropolitan Councils in Sydney without a bike plan.

Happily the City of Sydney has now created and passed a good plan: The City of Sydney Cycle Strategy and Action Plan 2007-2017.

The Cross City Tunnel was completed in 2005 and it will be satisfying to see the outstanding conditions of consent coming to fruition.

The City of Sydney and the NSW Government already have plans approved for bi-directional facilities on Bourke Street which are expected to be completed by early 2008.

The King St bike route design has already completed one round of public consultation. A further round is now underway. Construction is proposed to begin in April 2008 and be completed by September 2008.

This landmark project needs your positive support to ensure its completion. 

The image above shows a two-way cycle lane in Perth while the photograph below was taken in Montreal, Canada