North Sydney roads to become pedestrian zones, parks under $26.4m project
New plans have been revealed for a transformation of the North Sydney CBD including converting streets into pedestrian zones and upgrading a disused tram viaduct into a park. See the list of projects.
North Shore
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Cars will be replaced with pedestrians on major roads through North Sydney as part of a $26.4 million upgrade for the CBD.
North Sydney Council has released new plans for the second stage of a public domain strategy that includes 19 projects ranging from new parks, laneways and pedestrian malls in the rapidly growing town centre.
Big ticket items include converting Miller St into a pedestrian zone, creating a new public plaza outside the heritage listed North Sydney Post Office and turning the disused North Sydney tramway viaduct into a park.
The revamp would also involve rearranging traffic flows and dropping speed limits to 40kmh to boost pedestrian safety.
The council said the project was aimed at addressing a predicted surge in foot traffic from new Victoria Cross Metro Station along with 5700 jobs expected to be created in the area by 2036.
“The Metro is anticipated to revitalise the centre and increase the number of workers and visitors,” the council said.
“The working population of the North Sydney CBD is also forecast to increase by 33 per cent over the next 20 years. The (strategy) addresses the undergoing transformation of the CBD.”
But the project will not be all smooth sailing with hurdles including construction works on the proposed Western Harbour Tunnel motorway.
The council said the tunnel, which would divert traffic through the CBD, would “achieve the exact opposite” of strategy’s aim of promoting pedestrian friendly areas.
North Sydney Mayor Jilly Gibson said the council would also have to juggle potential backlash from businesses over plans to remove vehicle access and on-street parking.
“Parking would have to be removed but we’d be looking to make sure there’s no net loss by replacing spaces near where we take them away,” she said.
“We would also look at opening pedestrian zones in the morning and night so businesses can still access loading zones.”
The council – which will open public feedback on the plan later this year – has already committed $2.5 million towards the $26.4 million project.
Businesses headquartered in North Sydney include Vodafone and Leighton Holdings with Channel 9 due to open by December.
Projects in the strategy include:
MILLER ST
The strategy includes an $8.96 million plan to convert Miller St into a public plaza between the Pacific Hwy and Berry St.
The council said the aim was to address the estimated 16,000 hourly increase in foot traffic when the new Victoria Cross Metro opens in 2024.
The public space would include areas for concerts and markets along with new cafes, kiosks and public art displays.
POST OFFICE SQUARE
Mount St at the Pacific Hwy would be closed to cars and turned into a 1675 sqm plaza outside North Sydney Post Office.
The plaza would also incorporate the pedestrian strip outside the Treehouse Hotel on Miller St and include trees, kiosks and seating.
VIADUCT PARK
The 250m tram viaduct between the North Shore Rail Line and the Pacific Hwy would become a park with shaded areas, plants, and outdoor seating.
The viaduct has been relatively disused since the 1970s but intermittently used for storage and carparking.
PUBLIC LANEWAYS
A range of new laneways have been included in the plan including a link between North Sydney Station and St Leonards Park.
Works would include closing parts of Denison Street to cars and encouraging new shared zones in Spring Street and Little Spring Street.
Other outdoor spaces range from a “land bridge” over the Warringah Fwy and upgrades to the roof of North Sydney Station as a public viewing point overlooking Sydney Harbour.