St Kilda Road bike lanes pledge a win for the community

Port Phillip Council has welcomed the Andrews Government’s election commitment to make St Kilda Road safer as a win for Council and the community.

Mayor Bernadene Voss said Council had strongly advocated from 2014 for new bike lanes to physically separate drivers and bike riders and endorsed this much-needed safety improvement as an election priority in February this year.

“St Kilda Road has the unenviable title as the biggest dooring (crashes involving bike riders and car doors) hotspot in Victoria,” Cr Voss said.

“Bike riding helps reduce traffic congestion, increase travel choices and has big health benefits. Offering better protection benefits existing users and is likely to encourage less confident riders to jump on their bikes.”

Cr Voss said Council is seeking all parties contesting the election to commit to the safety improvements. “We are seeking bipartisan support for these new bike lanes to be delivered as soon as possible and will work with all parties willing to deliver this important project for our community.”

Council is keen to see details about how the Government proposes to ensure there are continuous protected bike lanes with a smooth and safe transition at St Kilda Junction from the central safety zone to Copenhagen-style lanes, she said.

Other key Council election priorities include:

 State funding for the Marlborough Street housing project which could provide 40 homes for older people, single women and families while retaining a car park for the public
 The Fishermans Bend tram network to be delivered early as a single project, rather than the three stages currently set out in the final Fishermans Bend Framework
 Funding to save the ageing St Kilda Pier, which is a Victorian Government asset, and to protect the colony of 1400 little penguins living on the breakwater from public access.

Background

The Andrews Government bike lane commitment involves two components:
 Copenhagen-style bike lanes that run along the kerb with a physical barrier separating bike riders from parked cars and the road (to be built south of St Kilda Junction from Carlisle Street) and
 A central safety zone providing a separated lane for bike riders in the middle of the road (to be built north of the Junction to Linlithgow Avenue). There were 196 crashes involving a pedestrian or bike rider on St Kilda Road between 2000-2015.