The City of Melbourne will hit the brakes on the installation of separated bike lanes in the city centre after a backlash from businesses and residents.
About 19 kilometres of protected bike lanes have been built in and around the CBD over the past two years, with a further 71 kilometres planned by 2030, but the lanes have been criticised by some traders and delivery drivers who say they increase congestion and make it difficult to park.
Cyclists make their way along a narrow bike lane along Collins Street. Credit:Joe Armao
“Council will consider pausing the bike lane rollout in the Hoddle Grid over the coming year,” a council spokesman said on Thursday.
Lord Mayor Sally Capp admitted that the negative reaction had played a major role in the council’s decision.
“A big part of the feedback about bike lanes is that people felt they were taken by surprise,” she said.
“Because the city was so empty we took that as the opportunity to do capital works like bike lanes because we wouldn’t cause disruption when people came back. But then when people started coming back they said, ‘Hey, what are these new things?’”
Capp said the council needed to make improvements on how it communicated changes and the rollout was well-intentioned.
She said protected bike lanes took up 1 per cent of the city’s total road space and there were 50 roads leading into the city for cars.
“Managing transport systems in cities is really complex and getting the balance right is difficult,” she said.
“It’s not always popular but it’s absolutely necessary and bike lanes are a fundamental part of transport systems in cities.”
Capp said if the city did pause the rollout it was still on track to meet its targets for its protected bike lane program under its Transport Strategy 2030.
The spokesperson said the council would now prioritise bike lane upgrades on popular corridors into the city including Arden Street, Macaulay Road and Royal Parade.
Victorian Chamber of Commerce and Industry chief executive Paul Guerra welcomed the pause and said some lanes such as the newly installed separated bike lane on Exhibition Street should be removed.
“This sounds like a sensible decision,” he said. “We hope the review will also include some of the existing bike lanes and our view it’s time to reset, recalibrate and really make appropriate plans.”
Bike Melbourne spokesman Nik Dow said the council had already failed to build bike infrastructure that was supposed to have been delivered this financial year.
“The bike lanes that are being rolled out have been in the city’s transport plans for years,” he said. “It’s very disappointing. I think the city needs to grow a spine.”
Analysis by planning firm Urbis to be released by the council on Friday found that 45 per cent of people used public transport to get to the city, 41 per cent came by car, 9 per cent walked and 4 per cent rode a bike.
Urbis forecast that public transport will continue to be the most significant economic driver for the CBD, delivering $35.4 billion by 2026.
The contribution of cars is projected to drop by $4.4 billion to $7.5 billion, while cycling will add up to $3.5 billion annually.
The analysis identified walking, cycling, scooting and public transport as the most efficient ways of moving large volumes of people and key to bringing more city workers back.
Councillors will consider progress on the city’s implementation of its transport plan and the findings of the Urbis report at the Future Melbourne Committee meeting on Tuesday, June 7.
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2022-06-02 19:00:00Z
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