Christchurch again becoming the favourite city for cyclists...

Press, 15 March 1978, Page 17

Christchurch again becoming the favourite city for cyclists...

“ The time to peddle the bicycle s now,” says a slogan from the Friends of the Earth. The environmentalists could be right. Sales of bicycles, especially those racy, multi-speed, geared machines, are increasing. During this long, hot summer many more commuters have dusted off their cycles and been riding to and from work; and a Bicycle Planning Committee in Christchurch has been lobbying for a return to the energy-saving cycle. But so far there has been little outward sign that officialdom is taking seriously an obvious swing back to pedal pushing in a city tnat was once the wire-spoke capital of New Zealand. Even the cycle lobbyists- seem to have run out of puff. Cyclists, encouraged by installation of two sets of lights in Hagley Park, now wonder whether this was merely a token gesture.

They have emerged from the haven of the park — ir which longoverdue re-sealing of cycle tracks has only recently been completed — to be pitchforked into city traffic at the Armagh Street gates.

But proposals which the City Council has been quietly working on might change all that, and herald a new deal for cyclists. “The bike and the motor-

car can co-exist,” maintains a council traffic engineer (Mr Mike Gadd). Within the next few weeks, local councils will be asked to approve a cycle network plan for Christchurch. It is not the cyclists’ dream — a system of sealed cycleways exclusively for their use. But it is a start.

The plan calls for 120 km of cycle tracks, two metres wide, clearly marked on both sides of quieter streets.

It also provides for underpasses; cycleways along river reserves and through parks; the construction of a cycle bridge across the Avon linking Antigua Street and Oxford Terrace with Rcrlleston Avenue; and a cycle lane bordering the railway line through Fendalton, Bryndwr, and Papanui. The causeway on the main route to" Sumner, which once carried clanging trams, is being upgraded and widened to take a cvcle trad-

The council has produced the network.plan at the request of the Regio-

nal Planning Authority which also favours facilities for bikes. Other local bodies, except Paparua, have agreed to share the cost. Public discussion of the plan will be encouraged. The City Council is earnest in its long-term planning for bicycles — cycle lanes above and below the Opawa and northern arterial expressways will be incorporated into their design. Given prompt approval, the cycle network scheme might be started this year. Sign-posting cycle routes.

based on Canadian designs, and painting lanes is simple and of relatively low cost.

Busy intersections pose one of the major headaches for traffic experts. Some sets of lights will have to be adjusted so they stay longer on red, allowing the slower accelerating cyclist to push his way to safety. Then there is the problem of cars parking along streets carrying cycles and cars. All cyclists know the hazard of car doors suddenly opening in their face.

Closing some streets to all but cyclists and loading or unloading motor vehicles would simplify planning; Armagh Street is one possibility. A practical scheme would be to close one end of a street by the use of concrete posts, allowing cycles to pass through but not cars. Closing some streets to all but pedestrians or cyclists would be a real contribution towards making Christchurch a better place for people.

But it remains to be seen whether local bodies will have the courage to take a firm stand against pressure from shopkeepers and property owners who see motor vehicles as indispensable to' profitmaking, and those who object to the inconvenience of walking or driving a little further. Dedicated Christchurch cyclists have a friend at court, as it were. Mr Clive Shaw, who works for the traffic engineers’ department, is also a member of the Bicycle Planning Committee. He has been work-

ing on the network plan and making cycle surveys for a year. Christchurch has about 23,000 young cyclists, he says, and 80 per cent of ail intermediate pupils and between 60 and 75 per cent of all high school students ride to school.

The precise number of “bicycle commuters” is more difficult to fix, but there are up to 100,000 cyce “movements” in the metropolitan area daily. In March of last year the number of bicycles entering the central city area across the four Avenues, on a week-day between 7.54 a.m. and 8.45 a.m., was 1490. This year, between the same times, 110 0 cyclists have streamed over the Antigua Bridge.

“There is a modest but definite growth in cyclist numbers,” says Mr Shaw. Fifteen per cent of suburban shoppers, for example, go shopping on their bikes.

A few years ago only a few hardy cyclists were prepared to pedal into the

city centre. Today, traffic experts say that in the downtown area, bikes are not the problem they are on busy suburban traffic routes. A lone cyclist feeling vulnerable during rush hour might disagree, but Mr Gadd observes: “Don’t forget, a cyclist can turn into a pedestrian at the drop of a foot.” Some streets set out for lane marking will need shoulders upgraded, and possibly resealed, before cyclists will be enticed into them. No cyclist will choose a bone-shaking ride along a street verge just because it is labelled a “cycle track.” improved cycle routes to schools are planned. In some areas it may be necessary for the council to buy one or two private houses to make way for a cycle route — a welcome reversal of the trend for concrete motorways snaking their way through residential areas in the wake of demolition gangs. While traffic planners are keen to encourage the use of the bike, they observe that cyclists are

sometimes thoughtless and ill-rpannered. Little research is needed to confirm this. Closely bunched groups of high school pupils cycling slowly to school across Hagley Park can be infuriating and dangerous to other cyclists. Incidentally, what happened to the bicycle bell? It is seldom heard these days. And then there are the head-down speedsters who, during off-peak traffic hours, ignore lights installed for their benefit in Deans Avenue and Harper Avenue, and scoot across the main roads under the bonnets of speeding traffic.

.Worse still is the impatient pedal-pusher who activates the lights by pushing the button, but who will not wait for green. A few moments later, after the cyclist has crossed and has ridden out of sight, traffic is halted, seemingly unnecessarily. This practice does nothing for the image of cyclists. Just as infuriating for the cyclist, however, is the thoughtless motorist who refuses to give way to a bike on his right, or crowds out the pedal-pu-sher as though he has no right on the road.

But like it or not, the cyclist is back to stay. And something positive must be done to make his life happier and safe.

By

KEN COATES