Middlemore Hospital has been much in the news lately. The health centre at the heart of the isthmus, it sits at the heart of a health-challenged community, many of whom suffer what Dr David Galler calls “the South Auckland full house, ‘a six-card hand of obesity, diabetes, heart disease, hypertension, chronic kidney disease and gout’.” Middlemore is also home to a naturally health-conscious workforce, several of whom make a point of biking to work – while many more would, if it felt safer to do so. Anaesthetist Rob Burrell is one who counts himself lucky to bike to Middlemore, despite the lack of decent infrastructure. He shares his commute with us in a guest post, below. …
Bike Auckland
After the sudden closure of the Old Mangere Bridge due to advanced deterioration, now the only way to walk and bike across the harbour – until a new walking-biking bridge is completed around 2021 – is via the underpass on SH20 under the New Mangere Bridge. Yes, you read that right: while we’re eagerly awaiting Skypath across the Auckland Harbour Bridge, our other harbour has had two crossings for many years. But while the old bridge was popular and widely used, the underpass always felt like its poor cousin – dingy, whiffy, covered in graffiti and not very welcoming. That’s why we’re delighted to report that the NZ Transport Agency has …
Updated 17 April 2018: Auckland Transport has contacted us today to say they’ve revised this intersection design in direct response to our concerns. In what has been a tragic, awful week on Papatoetoe’s streets, we’re happy to claim this as a partial victory. The new intersection design, while still constrained by space and budget, is at first glance much safer than the original one. And there’s the promise of more improvements to come as investment becomes available in the next budget round. (A very very good reason to lift your voices in support of the Regional Land Transport Plan when it comes up for consultation next month!) In short: our work …
The one-sentence version: we campaigned for – and won! – an extra access point for the new Southern Cycleway, and your feedback is now welcome until Friday 9 February. While we’ve been discussing high-profile bike projects through highly visible parts of town, other bikeways are being quietly gotten on with as part of large roading projects, and are moving on without much noise or fuss. One example is a shared path along State Highway 1 between Takanini and Papakura, the first stage of what will eventually be the South’s equivalent to the Northwestern Cycleway. This bikeway is being built by NZTA as part of their Southern Corridor Improvements project. It is …
We’re a pretty tight team in Bike Auckland; a close collaboration of talents and interests. I’m very lucky to be at the centre of the team, orchestrating our work. Since the arrival of our inspirational contract staff, Communications Manager, Jolisa Gracewood, and Events/Partnerships Manager, Olivia Lynch, I feel I am either sitting in the audience, applauding Jolisa’s and Olivia’s creativity and achievements, or on a significant event like our recent AGM taking centre- stage to conduct the proceedings. My years of work as a RMA planning consultant have taught me to value mediation and negotiation. They’re useful in our Bike Auckland work as sometimes we’re faced with opportunities to work …
The quick version: Otahuhu Town Centre is getting a makeover – but there’s not much in it for people on bikes, and it could be a lot better for pedestrians. Feedback closes very soon (Wednesday 6 September) – so we encourage you to go to the feedback link ASAP and answer Question 2 by asking for these 3 changes: a protected cycleway on Station Road, between the town centre and the train/bus interchange, using one of Bike AKL’s options more traffic calming through the village shops – by adding zebra crossings and raised tables to the intersections along Great South Road a 30kmh speed limit for the town centre Read on for more details, …
There’s a brand new train station in Otahuhu, and now Auckland Transport is inviting public feedback on a proposal for T3 lanes and a shared path to the station along Walmsley Rd. Here’s the project information page with a link for feedback, which is open until Friday 17 February. You can see the full plans here. As well as adding T3 lanes, the proposal is to widen the footpath along the western side of the road, with the stated goal of: Improving pedestrian and cycle facilities and connection to the new Otahuhu Station. Encouraging more people to walk and cycle (particularly school children). We’re generally supportive of the project, but it must be noted: While the footpath will …
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