Ashburton Cycle Trail Vision Gears Up

Monday, 24 February 2025, 9:33 pm
Article: Jonathan Leask - Local Democracy Reporter

The wheels are once again in motion again to develop an cycle trail across the Ashburton District.

Ashburton District Council invited four track builders at the end of 2024 to submit quotes to investigate and report on options for a circular trail around the district.

Compliance and development group manager Ian Hyde said he expects the report to come to the council before the end of June.

It will cover trail options and recommended routes, commercial opportunities, pricing estimates, and will recommend the potential next steps to the council.

Christchurch-based consultants Xyst, who have experience developing other trails in the South Island, are preparing the report.

The council had budgeted $25,000 for the investigations in the 2024/25 budget.

Hyde said the report will cost $35,260, with the additional money coming out of existing budgets.

The council intends to create a community group to oversee an overall masterplan and to create subgroups to be responsible for sections of the trail.

“Community members have already started organising themselves and the council will support them by helping join the different projects together.”

A key factor to be considered is that there is no further funding budgeted in the long-term plan to progress the project past the options report.

“If additional money is needed, the request would come back to council for consideration,” Hyde said.

A cycle trail had previously been looked at by the Braided Waters Cycle Trust, following then Prime Minister John Key announcing a $50m cycleway fund in 2009.

Ashburton missed out on the funding but the project was still pursued with the Trust established and granted $80,000 by the council in 2010 for track development.

The Trust had planned for an around 150km trail to go from Rakaia to the Highbank power station, to Methven via the Rangitata Diversion Race, then through Staveley to Mt Somers and back down the Ashburton North Branch River stopbank to Lake Hood – a series of day trips between townships.

Work on the trail development ground to a halt following the Canterbury earthquakes.

It was the catalyst for the Ashburton River and Lake Hood trails, tracks either side of the Ashburton/Hakatere River, being developed.

The Trust wound up in 2021 and gifted the remaining $102,443 in its accounts to the council to distribute in a grant fund for bike trails in the district.

The Trust’s project files on developing a trail are in the council’s possession and will be utilised in the process, Hyde said.

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