If I had it my way, I'd scrap many of Wellington's cycleways

(Updated, 29th August, 2024)

While I am updating this article, a fierce storm is raging outside with strong winds and heavy bursts of rain. Even I, a dedicated greenie and a skilled cyclist, am hesitant to ride a bike in such severe conditions. If a transportation solution is only functional during fair weather, it will not effectively address traffic issues or contribute to environmental preservation. On days like today, cyclists resort to using their cars, enduring bumpy rides over speed bumps as they desperately search for parking spaces. And who among these health-conscious individuals would want to squeeze into a crowded, stuffy bus filled with people coughing and sneezing? Certainly not me!

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If I had it my way, I would scrap many of Wellington's cycleways, and do it better. Allow me to elaborate.

Aro Valley: Where's the parking?

Having ridden Wellington's streets almost daily for 40-plus years, I feel qualified to share my thoughts on the state of our city's cycling infrastructure. It is clear, electric bikes or not, Wellington will never be the Amsterdam of the South. Our fierce winds, persistent rain, narrow streets, and rugged terrain ensure that this dream will never become a reality. Instead, we must focus on what makes sense for our unique city and its residents. This means reconsidering many of the cycleways in Wellington.

For Wellington to thrive, ample on-street parking is essential. Despite the influx of more public service employees and contractors in recent years, central Wellington is struggling. Many long-term Wellington residents, like myself, feel the inner city is in a state of decay and is losing its once vibrant soul. Putting in one cycleway after another is not helping the situation. To the contrary, they are making things worse.

The cycleways were made with good intentions, but they have taken away many parking spots for residents and businesses. They are now hurting small and medium-sized businesses and degrading property values.

Small businesses depend on customers being able to find convenient parking. Without it, they suffer — we all do — and the vibrancy of our city diminishes, as it is. Large enterprises such as supermarkets remain largely unaffected by the impact of cycleways on small to medium businesses. They typically have their own dedicated parking, insulating them from the struggles faced by smaller enterprises. However, small businesses do not have this luxury, and the loss of convenient parking can be devastating, and it is proving to be so. Just take a walk and see all of the vacant shops, and how drab things are looking.

Moreover, the removal of on-street residential parking creates extreme inconvenience for householders, particularly the elderly and mothers with children and groceries. These residents often rely on close, accessible parking for daily activities and errands. For them, the frustration and inconvenience caused by the lack of parking are significant. Delivery trucks and couriers also face increased challenges. The absence of convenient parking spots slows down their operations and impacts their efficiency, while increasing traffic congestion. This, in turn, affects local businesses and residents who rely on timely deliveries — and fuel is wasted.  In the upper Aro Valley, for example, how can a mother with children, shopping, prams, and so on cope with everyday life? And how can a truck or van deliver goods without completely disrupting traffic flow? There is absolutely nowhere for them to park, other than to take up all of one side of the street. While I love the new cycleway in the upper portion of Aro Valley, it must be terrible for its residents, so for that reason, I oppose it.

Wellington will never be the Amsterdam of the South.

Cycling is a hazardous activity, especially in Wellington. People on our City and Regional Councils who think cycling in Wellington is romantic and think that putting cycling above cars, and at the cost of smooth traffic flow, will save the planet are wrong. They are in dreamland. While they claim to "consult" I feel the process is a "Clayton's" consultation with the decisions already predetermined, pending a few cosmetic tweaks. Have I been properly consulted? How about you, if you are a resident? Were you consulted, then ignored? The best conclusion is that there is an agenda that is divorced from the reality of what makes a city like Wellington function and thrive.

If a person cannot safely do tight turns on a bike in a grassy field or emergency brake in the wet, they should not be riding a bike in Wellington. They should also not be riding with their children on the back of the bike. I cycle for one to three hours just about every day, and I am always practicing my skills. This even includes practicing my forward and side rolls, so when I fall off my bike I am less likely to fall face-first or break a wrist or collarbone. When the occasional person flies past me on their cumbersome e-bike with its cheap and nasty brake set I, wonder how good their skills are for emergency braking, for avoiding a drain or pothole, or for safely descending a steep hill in the wet and when the wind is gusting dangerously. I have already been hurt by an e-bike that could not stop in time to avoid a head-on crash. I was very lucky not to be badly hurt.

https://www.garymoller.com/post/ouch-i-collided-head-on-with-an-e-bike

Wellington is not the place for anyone other than skilled cyclists to venture, except in the Central City where vehicle speeds are typically less than 30 km/hr. Cycling is a high-risk activity anywhere other than in an environment like Amsterdam. Wellington is not Amsterdam. A fall from a bike is inevitable, and for a frail or elderly person, the consequences can be catastrophic. The personal, social, and financial costs of such accidents must be factored into the equation of the cost-benefits of a cycleway project.

Dedicated cycleways that do not detract from traffic flow are great. For example, the cycleway to Ngauranga Gorge and the cycleway from Oriental Bay to Evans Bay are excellent, although their cost-benefits are still questionable. These routes offer safe paths for cyclists without significantly impacting traffic or residents. In contrast, the cycle way in Aro Valley, the one in Island Bay, and the one from Te Aro to Brooklyn, to name a few, are problematic.

Brooklyn Hill: Plenty of cars but no bikes and loss of one uphill lane.

The busy three-lane road up Brooklyn Hill is now reduced to a single uphill lane. This road is in constant use by heavily-laden trucks labouring their way to the Happy Valley landfills. Although I enjoy it, the cost-benefit of this mostly deserted cycleway is dubious. A solution to this rarely-used bike path up Brooklyn Hill is to change the climb up the mostly empty footpath on the left side, past the Renouf Tennis Centre, or to divert bicycles up Thompsomn Street. Then, turn into Nairn Street, then into Nairn Street Park. We can even build a few metres of a new and less steep path into the park. Then, at the top of Bidwill Street, the cycleway either rejoins the upper half of Brooklyn Hill, which then loses one lane to the cycle-way, or the cycle way continues up Bell Road, using the walkway, then becoming Heaton Terrace. Cyclists heading south can then either head up Washington Avenue, or proceed through Brooklyn Village and down Ohiro Road to Happy Valley. Another option is to have cyclists cross the road at the bottom of Brooklyn Hill and go up the footpath past the Renouf Tennis Centre. Bikers riding uphill are slow and not a danger to the occasional pedestrian. The footpath could be widened. Or, cyclists can be directed into Central Park to use a bike path that will need to be built to meander up the hill, then a crossing with traffic islands at to top of the park. Another option is to build a track from the bottom of Central Park that climbs to meet Ohiro Road, about one-quarter of the way up the road. This will avoid the narrow bottom of the road where it connects with Aro Street. With its footpath widened, it will safely take cyclists to the top of Brooklyn Hill, and without impeding traffic flow.

This one's not too bad (Upper Glenmore St.) here, but there's the wholesale loss of resident's parking lower down the road.

What I am saying here is that cycleways should be separate from main arterial streets and not impede traffic flow or lead to the loss of parking spaces. Merely removing traffic lanes and carparks to make way for rarely-used cycleways is nonsensical. We need to do a proper and independent cost-benefit analysis of cycleways, not just using figures from the air or from the experience of cities like Amsterdam. Wellington is unique. We need to think about the traffic and inconvenience of narrowing already narrow streets, losing car parking, and how these cycleways affect small and medium-sized businesses. We must also properly assess and factor in the cost of injuries from cycle accidents. Only then can we make informed decisions that truly benefit our city.

I would rather have our children and the elderly driven about the city in fuel-efficient cars. Cars are safe, with seatbelts and airbags, and they are warm and dry. When the wind is blowing wildly, when it is wet and freezing, as it often is in Wellington, few other than the hardiest and most skilful cyclists are on their bikes. Consequently, the roads that run next to them are full of cars, including those being driven by our "fair weather" cyclists.

Instead, as an interim measure, while better solutions are found, if the primary intention of building cycleways is to reduce carbon emissions, then how about we encourage investment in developing more fuel-efficient cars?

I will add that electric cars are not going to save the planet, but that is another article.

For motor vehicles to operate efficiently, they must be operated smoothly. Speed bumps on busy city streets, traffic congestion, and driving around in circles looking for a parking spot all add up to wasted fuel, mechanical wear, and cause anger and frustration. As soon as the weather turns foul, cycling ends and the congestion increases. The cycle-ways of Wellington are increasing carbon emissions — not reducing them.

Wellington's unique topography and weather conditions necessitate a tailored approach to urban planning. Instead of forcing cycleways into a city ill-suited for them, we should focus on enhancing our existing infrastructure. We can help our city's residents and businesses by making traffic flow better, better public transportation, more parking, and creating routes that are better for cycling and walking, while not impinging on efficient traffic flow.

The much criticised Island Bay Cycleway that has made a broad street ugly.

More money should be spent on teaching cycling skills, just like motorcyclists are encouraged to learn defensive riding skills as part of their licence. We need funding for more cycling skills programmes in our schools, and how about vouchers for training courses to go with new bike purchases? The Council and the ACC will surely accept the cost-effective merits of funding these programmes.

In conclusion, Wellington's cycleways, while well-intentioned, are not the simplistic panacea for our city's transportation and urban planning challenges, nor will they save the planet. To the contrary, they are contributing to more carbon emissions, increasing stress, causing inconvenience, and injuries, while ruining businesses. It is not that cycling should be discouraged, but rather that our city needs a more balanced approach. We should provide safe cycling routes where feasible, but not at the expense of the city's overall functionality and accessibility.

By prioritising ample parking, improving traffic flow, and addressing the unique needs of our city, we can create a more liveable, vibrant, and thriving Wellington. Let's focus on what truly makes sense for our city and its residents, ensuring that Wellington can regain is soul and prosper.

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Reading about Cycling:

• https://www.garymoller.com/blog/categories/cycling

• Wellington Politics: https://betterwellington.org.nz/