Ire over cycleway changes

A Dunedin cycling advocacy group has criticised the continued use of a consultant involved in the bungled South Dunedin cycle network.

Spokes Dunedin chairman Robert Thompson said the group was "not terribly impressed" consultant GHD was used on the design of the Otago Peninsula cycleway.

That came after Dr Thompson attended  a Dunedin City Council public forum this week to raise concerns about changes to Portobello Rd on the peninsula that dropped a cyclist-only lane on part of the route, leaving only a shared cycle-walkway he said would lead to conflict between cyclists and walkers.

The council said yesterday GHD had  been involved in only the early stages of the South Dunedin project.

The project’s problems included the construction of traffic islands impassable by fire appliances and school buses.The islands had to be removed.

But council acting transport group manager Richard Saunders said GHD had "a minor involvement very early in the South Dunedin project but were not responsible for the final outcome".

Regarding the change to the design of Portobello Rd once it was widened, he said vehicle safety was an important aspect of the work, and cyclists and walkers could still share a space set aside for them, as they did on Portsmouth Dr and on the west side of the harbour.

Dr Thompson said Spokes had been involved in the peninsula project for some time.

Its design had started with a shared cycle-walkway and traffic lanes.

After consultation in 2013 a proposed design emerged for a separate walking space, cycle lanes and lanes for vehicles.

"The ideal scenario was a two-metre footpath and a separate three-metre bidirectional cycleway.

"The cyclists have their own space, the pedestrians have their own space and the cars have their own space."

But representatives fromSpokes attended  a meeting on the issue last week in Portobello, "only to find they were showing a complete revision of the basic layout that had been decided in 2013".

To their dismay, the on-road space  for cyclists in the preferred design  was narrower than what had already been built.

In the design, the cycleways were described as "shoulder" areas of the road.

"It was so far below NZ Transport Agency standards they’re not actually allowed to call it a cycle lane.

"They know it doesn’t meet any kind of minimum standard."

Dr Thompson also raised concerns at the public forum about consultant GHD doing the design work for the scheme.

The same consultancy had been "engaged for a large fraction of the seriously flawed South Dunedin cycle network design phase", he said.

  Past cycleway mistakes were a result of  council staff acting in good faith on poor advice from consultants who did not fully understand the Dunedin context, and did not have expertise in cycling design philosophy, he said.

However, Mr Saunders said it was not true the same company was being used.

"We were a little disappointed by that comment."

GHD had a minor involvement in the South Dunedin project.

"My feeling is it is not really the sort of comment we would expect from a group that is looking to engage with the council in a constructive way," Mr Saunders said.

He had full confidence in GHD, which was selected after a robust tender process.

Regarding the design that included cyclists riding on road shoulders, Mr Saunders said the idea was to improve the road for everyone on the network.

"It is a difficult corridor to work in because of how narrow it is.

"One of the key objectives of this piece of work, and something that’s come through very strongly in the feedback, is the driver experience along there needs to be improved."

The earlier design did not meet the safety objectives that  were a condition of New Zealand Transport Agency funding for the project, Mr Saunders said.

"Yes, it’s a compromise design, and we need to compromise on a number of things, for vehicles, pedestrians and cyclists.

"We think if we continue that all around we will end up with a fantastic asset for the city."

While public consultation had ended, the council was still considering feedback received via its website and discussing the issue with stakeholders, and would make a final decision on the design in the new year.

Dr Thompson said the cycle-walkway on Portobello Rd would be only 3m wide with a drop to the harbour on one side and a concrete barrier on the other, both of which cyclists would have to avoid.

He said GHD was involved in many aspects of the South Dunedin project, and "we were not terribly impressed by what we saw coming from them". GHD did not respond to a request for comment yesterday afternoon.

david.loughrey@odt.co.nz