Bike Plan...put outer suburbs on the map!
The city is in the midst of preparing a new Bike Plan to promote cycling in Fremantle. You might remember my dismay when I discovered that the consultants who had been commissioned to draft the plan had not included Samson or Hilton in the study area! After this was fixed these suburbs were included in the process. I’ll let you know when the draft plan becomes public. I submitted a number of proposals especially relating to connecting Samson and Hilton into Fremantle [see below]. In addition Councillor Massie and I have also proposed that North-South bike paths be built on the Stock Rd reserve. There must be plenty of other cycling blackspots you know need fixing so let me know.
Bike lanes through intersections
“Bike lanes through intersections” was the most highly desired improvement cited by respondents to Question 11 on the Community Survey Questionnaire. This probably reflects both the fact the majority of cyclists (around 70% according to information from the BTA) are commuters riding part if not all of their journey on the road; and the fact that the lack of bike lanes through intersections is a critical weakness in our current provision for cyclists.
Typically our bike lanes just fizzle out as they approach an intersection, only to restart after the intersection. Consequently we tend not to provide on-road bike lanes precisely where and when cyclists need and want them the most. Below are some examples of this problem at important intersections in our city:
Winterfold & Stock: Both the east and west bound cycle lanes on Winterfold St evaporate upon approaching the Stock Rd intersection. In both directions cyclists trying to ride straight through the intersection face the danger of being struck by vehicles turning left. In fact the lane markings for both east and west bound traffic encourage this conflict.
Meanwhile east bound cyclists, even once they’ve crossed Stock Rd, face a dangerous and extremely poorly designed road layout. Simultaneously the road layout demands that two lanes merge into one, allows for busses to full out into the traffic flow, followed by a left turn lane surrounded by protruding curbs/nibs that create a cyclist pinch point.
South & Carrington: The bike lanes do not extend eastwards over Carrington St on either side of the road. This essentially cuts off this bike route from the Hilton shops, the very destination that it should be serving. The remodelling of the intersection where both Paget St (lights) and Victor St (restricted access) reach South St offers the opportunity to extend the bike lanes across Carrington St and open access to and from both the shops and the adjoining parts of Hilton.
Marmion & Stirling: Again the Marmion St bike lanes in both directions simply evaporate at they approach Stirling Hwy. For some bizarre reason Marmion St widens into two car lanes as it crosses Stirling Hwy only to narrow down to single lane again. The intersection already has dedicated right and left turn lanes, so the second “straight ahead” lane serves no purpose other than to rob cyclists of the space that should have been set aside for a through bike lane.
Lefroy & Carrington: The eastward extension of the Lefroy St bike lanes is very welcome, however it throws into sharper relief the fact that there is no provision for east bound cyclists at the intersection wanting to turn right into Carrington St or continue straight ahead through to Rennie Cres. Once again the bike lane ends before the intersection. There needs to be a bike lane in between the left turn and right turn lanes to enable cyclists to do this.
Hampton & Douro: South of this intersection Hampton Rd is two lanes in both directions. The intersection is very unpleasant for north bound cyclists who want to continue through the intersection along Hampton Rd. Usually they will be travelling in the left hand lane and continue through on to the “bike and bus only” left hand lane north of the intersection if they have a green light.
However if the light is red they will find themselves stopped in the left hand lane but potentially blocking motor vehicles expecting to turn left on a green arrow into Douro Rd. Most vehicles in the left hand lane will be doing this because they can’t continue in the left hand lane past the intersection. Furthermore the left turning arrow appears before the lights turn green. The cyclist may stop and pull over to the curb to allow cars to pass but this is hazardous in itself and then threatens to leave the cyclist trapped by a stream of left turning traffic even when after the lights turn green. There needs to be provision for through bike traffic.
End of trip facilities
The proposal for “end of trip” facilities such as change rooms lockers and showers at the Leisure Centre is a good one. However such facilities need to be rolled out to other places, with the level of facility provided varying depending on the circumstances:
Railway station: The sort of facilities proposed for the Leisure Centre could also be housed at the station. Council should talk to the PTA about how this could be achieved.
CBD developments: Council should discuss what planning, rates and other mechanisms could be used to encourage, reward or even compel businesses in the CBD to provide their employees with comprehensive end of trip facilities. Certainly no new large scale office developments should be without them.
Major bus routes: Where practical all bus stops located on major routes (e.g. South St, Hampton Rd, Winterfold St) should have at least two U-rail bike racks. Already you see a number of bikes locked to poles, trees and other objects along South St near the bus stops. This demonstrates that there are people who don’t live within easy walking distance of a main bus route but are cycling there first.
We need to encourage this pattern to reduce even more unnecessary car voyages. At more important hubs like the Hilton shops, outdoor bike lockers should also be installed.
Missing links
There are a number of critical “missing links” on bike routes throughout the city. Some of these not identified in the consultant’s report are:
North-South across High St: There are no bike friendly on-road and or grade separated shared path crossings of High St anywhere east of the Stirling Hwy intersection. Possible solutions include; a grade separated overpass or underpass at the Stirling Hwy intersection in conjunction with the remodelling of that intersection by Main Roads [this has already been planned for], an underpass at Robinson St allowing a connection between Marmion St and the shared path that runs parallel to Carrington St by the Golf Course, and on-road bike lanes on Carrington St between Marmion St and Leach Hwy.
Rudderham Drive to North Quay/Rous Head: Cyclists heading to North Quay/Rouse Head have both the option of a wide shoulder (a de facto on-road bike lane) and an off-road shared path all the way along Port Beach Rd. However at the bend in the road where Port Beach Rd becomes Rudderham Drive, both these options come to an abrupt end and the environment becomes quite hazardous. The road is the property of the FPA who in informal discussions have been reluctant to consider improved cycling facilities on the basis that they “don’t want to attract bicycles into an area with heavy truck traffic”.
T
his argument is flawed for three reasons: Firstly Rudderham Drive is a public road like any other and should be built to contemporary bike friendly standards. A large number of port and related industries workers already cycle to North Quay and they have a right to a safe riding environment. Secondly it’s not the volume of trucks that makes Rudderham Drive unsafe, but the design of the road. Thirdly, Rous Head is the departure point for a major holiday destination (Rottnest Island) where cycling is the only form of transport. A substantial number of people ride to Rous Head from North Fremantle Station for this very reason.
While works on Rudderham Drive are the responsibility of the FPA, council should encourage the port to take the needs of cyclists seriously and work with it to fix the problem.
Fremantle Bridge to Port Beach: Get the FPA to cooperate in building a bike path that runs behind the Swan Hotel/Cold Storage facility and avoids the hazardous pinch point created by riding on the footpath in front of the hotel. As also observed, the Telstra pillar on the Tydeman St shared path is a serious hazard. Also any rebuild of the Fremantle Bridge should include an underpass on the northern side allowing a connection between the foreshore and the shared path.
A “Green Bridge” connecting Samson and Hilton: There is no easy cycling or pedestrian access between Hilton and Samson. People are forced to head either north to South St or South to Winterfold St. This is a significant diversion for anyone travelling to and from midpoints in both suburbs. In fact it such a diversion that it is probably enough to kill off the idea of such a journey for most people.
A solution is a pedestrian/bike overpass across Stock Rd midway between South St and Winterfold St. This would enable a continuation of the SW8 PBN route along Lefroy St though Hilton past the new Hilton Progress Hall/PCYC community facility, Hilton Primary, a connection with the proposed North-South bike corridor along Stock Rd; and on into Samson through Sir Frederick Samson Park, the Samson Shops and Samson Primary.
This could be a real cycling “trunk route” connecting a whole string of important community facilities all the way into the centre of Fremantle. It would significantly improve Samson’s connection to the rest of the city and allow residents west of Stock Rd a pleasant and efficient route to Sir Frederick Samson Park.
Special comment on Samson
As the last proposal above suggests, Samson is especially cut off from the rest of the city for pedestrian and bike traffic. Stock Rd is like the Berlin Wall, there are no permitted crossing points anywhere between South St and Winterfold St.
Residents close to South St and Winterfold St can use these to cross Stock Rd but these are problematic. As observed earlier, Winterfold lacks bike lanes through the intersection with Stock itself. As for South St, it has a shared path heading west to that comes to an abrupt halt at Stock Rd. The cyclist is then compelled to either ride on South St in a 70km/h zone where there is no on-road bike lane or to ride on the footpath which is both unsatisfactory and illegal for adults.
Both the addition of bike lanes through the Winterfold/Stock intersection and the extension of bike lanes along South St east of Carrington all the way to Stock Rd would significantly improve the situation. However for the reasons explained in the “Green Bridge” proposal, a midway crossing would open the possibility of a whole new wave of bike traffic. While an overpass is significant and costly piece of infrastructure (for council anyway), the organisation should still plan for its eventual construction and work with Main Roads to secure planning and funding avenues for its realisation.
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