The tale of two cities: turns out for those living either side of the Linear Park bike path, not all is equal
OUR reporter Ben Cameron took a leisurely ride along the River Torrens in Adelaide’s northeast and was surprised by what he discovered.
A BIKE ride along the River Torrens in Adelaide’s northeast is a bit like traversing the guts of Germany, post-World War II.
The river, as a kind of aquatic Berlin Wall, separates two contrasting councils – Campbelltown and Tea Tree Gully – if cycling the famous Linear Park trail is anything to go by.
The differences are as stark as Churchill and Stalin.
The Campbelltown side, south of the river, is like the Allies-backed, capitalist fiefdom of West Germany after the 1949 split.
Flush with playgrounds, toilets, bubble taps, historical markers, a skate park and basketball court, easy-to-follow signage and well-placed benches dedicated to notable people of the past, it’s a much more enjoyable ride south of the border, down ole Marden way.
Even the footpaths encourage you to pedal harder with colourful “Woosh-Push” logos painted on the pavement.
Tea Tree Gully’s section is more akin to the communist-controlled East Germany: attractions are pretty thin on the ground on this side of the stream.
There’s not a bubble tap in sight, and if you’re looking for the loo, best head for a bush or knock on the nearest door.
Which is handy during the Dernancourt stretch, where the path takes an unexpected left hand turn into a residential street.
“It’s just a suburban footpath,” regular walker Bob points out.
You’d be forgiven for thinking: ‘Oh well, that’s the Linear Park path done then, bit shorter than I expected though’.
But cycling on, there are a few more quirks in store on the TTG side.
A few kilometres further ahead towards the final destination of the Adelaide Hills, yet another fork in the road provides no clear direction on which way to go.
Go right, and you literally take a road to nowhere; the path just ends.
Left it is, then.
On the positive side, walkers and cyclists clearly respect their neighbourhood. Apart from some kid’s makeshift cubby house found among some bushes outside a Highbury home, and the final, anti-climactic 800 metres of the TTG trail, there’s little litter in sight.
Just off Boundy Rd, right near that cubby house, we talk to weekly walkers Ann, Alison and Chris, who love the track but say it’s high time the council ejected the Lycra heroes from the path.
Ann says her elderly friend, an 83-year-old woman, ended up in hospital after being collected by a speeding cyclist.
“We need to get rid of the cyclists,” she says, before realising this reporter is sat on a bike.
“I don’t mean you, though, I mean the speeding ones who are meant to slow down when they approach.
“But they whiz right past without even ringing their bell. They should be at walking pace.
“It becomes an expressway.
“My friend ended up in the Royal Adelaide with head injuries. She can’t drive any more.”
To be frank, picking holes in the TTG side is a bit like taking pot shots at Bambi – the scenery is truly stunning on both sides of the stream and we’re lucky to have it – but you can’t help but think: ‘untapped potential’.
Folks are crying out for toilets, even a few barbecue areas, which could make the park a real destination for families on weekends.
But the council says there are no specific projects planned for 2017/18.
Looks like the Berlin Wall will remain standing for another 12 months.