29 May 2014
More southern suburbs’ cycleway meetings coming up
Community meetings are planned in Berhampore and Newtown next week so people can find out more about the process planned
to come up with the most promising and viable ways to make cycling improvements work through this part of the city.
The meetings will be a chance to ask questions and learn more about the 18-member citizens’ advisory panel that is being
set up to ensure to every possibility is thoroughly considered and all the thorny issues are canvassed. They are on:
• Wednesday 4 June, 6pm–8pm, St Anne’s Parish Hall, 22 Emmett Street, Newtown
• Saturday 7 June, 3pm–5pm, Berhampore School, 105 Britomart Street.
Councillor Andy Foster, the Council’s Transport and Urban Development Committee Chairman, says cities around the world
are investing significantly in transformative cycling infrastructure.
“This is a really important part of being a great, safe place to live and work in, for all ages. We should not
underestimate the value of having a good quality cycling network in attracting visitors and competing for talented
prospective residents.
“As part of our wider plan to make the city more cycle friendly, we want to make changes which will make it easier and
safer to cycle between the city and the southern suburbs and also allow more people to make short trips by bike in local
neighbourhoods along the way,” he says. “We believe high quality kerbside cycle lanes are the way we should be heading
on key routes where roads are wide. In other places – like the section between Wakefield Park and John Street – finding
solutions is a much more complex task.”
They could involve changes to Adelaide Road – routes via the golf course and streets to the west or east of Adelaide
Road – or other possibilities, all of which have different pros and cons.
Cr Foster says a citizens’ panel, guided by a professional facilitator, is a recognised way to get well considered
community input. Its members will be a mix of people – some from particular interest groups, some who live in the
immediate neighbourhoods and some who come from other suburbs that will in time face similar proposals and challenges.
“It’s very important we have a diverse range of Wellingtonians involved because finding effective ways to share our
roads and public spaces more safely and fairly, and make changes that are in the best interests of the city, affects us
all. The citizens’ panel is being set up specifically to avoid being dominated by those with strong opinions or vested
interests.”
The membership of the panel is expected to be confirmed in the next week or so and it will meet for the first time in
mid-June. Over the following six weeks, panel members will make visits to the area, read a range of reports and studies
on possible options, and spend more than seven days hearing from people and groups with ideas and concerns. The public
will be able to sit in and watch while people and groups make presentations to the panel.
The panel will make a recommendation on the options it thinks are best, probably at the end of July.
“We have a very large number of options, different routes, different designs, and the panel will help narrow these down
so we can take the promising options out for wider formal public consultation later in the year,” says Cr Foster.
At that stage there will be detailed information available on the pros and cons of each option and people will be able
to make suggestions and raise any related issues they want to.
As well as the meetings coming up next week to talk about the citizens’ panel and next steps for the Berhampore/Newtown
area, more drop-in sessions are planned in Island Bay.
The Council’s Transport and Urban Development Committee recently opted for the safer of the two options under
consideration for The Parade – kerbside cycle lanes that meet international standards. Council staff have been asked to
do detailed design work, including more consultation with local residents.
Both drop-in sessions are at the Wellington South Baptist Church hall at 284 The Parade:
• Wednesday 18 June, 6–8pm
• Sunday 22 June, 2–5.30pm.
ENDS