Spokes chairman Jon Dean told the meeting there was widespread support for the project, but the design had to work for all road users.
Late last year, after the Dunedin City Council organised a consultation meeting on a new design, Spokes raised concerns about the project.
The design dropped a cyclist-only lane on part of the route, leaving a shared cycle-walkway the group said would lead to conflict between cyclists and walkers.
An on-road space for cyclists was on the shoulder areas of the road.
Spokes said a 3m wide cycle-walkway with a drop to the harbour on one side and a concrete barrier on the other was not safe.
The council said at the time the road was narrow, and needed to be safe for all vehicles.
The earlier design did not meet the safety objectives that were a condition of New Zealand Transport Agency funding for the project.
At last night's meeting, Otago Peninsula Community Board chairman Paul Pope said the new design had come as a shock to the board.
Different communities on the peninsula had different needs, with some home to older residents, and others home to children who used the road to walk to school.
''People on the peninsula want this project to happen,'' he said.
One person at the meeting said as a road cyclist, she would rather use the shoulder area than the cycleway.
Another described the new design as ''risky''.
Mr Dean said after the meeting it was clear people wanted the cycleway to go ahead ''sooner rather than later'', but it needed to be fit for purpose.
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Comments
A shared walk / cycle path can be safe, but only if bike riders treat that area with respect. Riding a bike does not have to be treated as a race. Bike riders can learn to share. It is simple really.