Gold Coast cycling crash hot spots revealed: How can council increase safety

Council are in talks of how to make roads safer for cyclists after a report revealed the worst crash hot spots for the riders on the Gold Coast.

MILLIONAIRES row along Hedges Avenue and the highway from Broadbeach to Burleigh are the Gold Coast’s crash hot spots for cyclists and “at capacity”, warns a council report.

Four cyclists have died and hundreds of others have sustained serious injuries in the busy section of coastal strip over a 10-year period.

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Cyclists rule the roads at Broadbeach. Pic by Luke Marsden.

The council is investigating safety solutions because extending the light rail south will take up much of the Gold Coast Highway, forcing cyclists on to the coastal road where most crashes have occurred.

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Cycling safety will be a major debate before next year’s council elections, with candidate Mona Hecke championing an Oceanway 2020 petition that supports a pathway along the dunes in front of the city’s most luxurious beachfront homes.

But the council report says officers recommend an upgraded cycleway option on the existing principal cycle route along Hedges and Albatross avenues and Marine Parade.

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Kathryn Paech, 27, from Broadbeach, on her regular bike ride along Hedges Avenue. Pic: Tim Marsden.

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The coastal route is “one of the busiest cycle routes” with more than 500 trips a day, compared to 200 along the Gold Coast Highway.

The daily average along the route from Broadbeach to Mermaid Beach, Miami and Burleigh Heads is expected to reach 1000 trips.

“The number of crashes on the coastal principal cycle route is almost double compared to those on the Gold Coast Highway corridor,” the report said.

Key crash hot spots were Hedges and Albatross avenues, the southern portion of Marine Parade and the southern section of The Esplanade.

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Cycle crashes on the Gold Coast.

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Two fatalities had occurred on the highway which had “an elevated crash risk” at Hooker Boulevard and through Miami.

The more severe crashes were on the highway where in May last year a 35-year-old cyclist was critically injured in a collision with a car, and 36-year-old man died a month later after crashing into a retaining wall at Burleigh.

Offices found Hedges Avenue had “very high casualty rates” due to the narrow road reserve and poor distance between vehicles, cyclists and pedestrians.

After examining several corridor cycle options, officers concluded an Oceanway path was “unviable at this time” because it would be vulnerable in sections.

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Cycle route for Gold Coast light rail.

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“Legislatively, the State Government has do all the active transport connected to the light rail upgrade,’’ Burleigh-based councillor Pauline Young told the Bulletin.

“So their commitment at some of the forums we had was that Hedges Avenue, Albatross and … on to Marine Parade, the pedestrian access there would be widened.

“And then down to The Esplanade at Burleigh too, that path would be widened.”

Both Cr Young and Broadbeach-based councillor Paul Taylor admitted there were financial and practical challenges but a solution would be to move roadside infrastructure underground.

“The only way would be — as I’ve been trying to do for so long — get rid of the poles, go underground, that would solve it,” Cr Taylor said.

Cr Young said the plans would not involve widening the road for a cycle lane, but making better use of the footpaths.

“So they’ve got all the Energex posts, they would underground all that power, it would then mean it would give them a clear run and maybe only have a footpath on one side of Hedges Avenue and not on both. But it (costings) is all incorporated within stage three of light rail.”