Melbourne Lord Mayor Sally Capp says city bike lane rollouts will have ‘minor impact’ on cars

Melbourne’s Lord Mayor has dismissed complaints about a controversial city bike lanes rollout, saying while there’s “a lot of chatter”, impacts on motorists will be minor.

Melbourne’s Lord Mayor Sally Capp says the council is not trying to deter cars. Picture: David Crosling

Melbourne Lord Mayor Sally Capp has dismissed concern about the rollout of bike lanes in the CBD as “a lot of chatter” about something having a very minor impact on car traffic.

Ms Capp said that about seven per cent of traffic into the inner city was bicycles, but protected bike lanes, including in places like Exhibition St, comprised only one per cent of total road space.

“So we are talking a lot of chatter about something that is really having a very minor impact on the space available for cars,” she told a Melbourne Press Club event.

Ms Capp said while it was important to make cycling safe, “I can say categorically that we are not trying to deter cars”.

“There are so many people reliant on cars, people who have come long distances and don’t have any other transport choice, people with disabilities....all the tradies, I think of people making deliveries, I think of emergency services...so there will always be space for cars,” she said.

Small Business Australia executive director Bill Lang said it was refreshing to hear the Lord Mayor state that there was no agenda to ban motor vehicles from the CBD.

But Mr Lang said the council should reassure motorists by releasing all reports about current and projected traffic movements in the city.

Prominent restaurateur, Chris Lucas, opposes the expansion of bike lanes and said more needs to be done to entice visitors back to the city.

“Traders and businesses across the city are suffering huge losses, yet despite numerous pleas for a commonsense solution we have a plan to now extend those business destroying bike lanes,” he told the Herald Sun earlier this year.

Victorian Transport Association chief executive, Peter Anderson, said the separated bike lanes had made access to CBD business a big challenge with many drivers having to wheel their deliveries long distances along busy footpaths.