Melbourne City Council’s bike lane construction pause deadline revealed

Melbourne City Council have set a timeline for when construction of protected bike lanes will resume despite widespread backlash against the CBD bike ways.

Bike lanes construction site in Melbourne CBD. Picture: David Crosling

Melbourne City Council will start building a protected bike lane in Flinders St after its 12-month halt to new Hoddle Grid lanes is over.

Under pressure from the influential bike lobby at a marathon Tuesday night meeting, most councillors agreed to a compromise motion that would limit the pause to just one year.

And Lord Mayor Sally Capp has ruled out removing any existing bike lanes.

Design work on new separated lanes for Flinders St will occur over the next 12 months, despite a backlash against CBD bike ways, such as on Exhibition St.

The council will later also look at rolling out more bike lanes in other CBD roads, such as Bourke and Spencer streets.

Ms Capp introduced the amended motion, saying the council needed a balanced approach to transport measures.

Bike lanes V construction sites in Melbourne CBD. This lane is in Exhibition street and passes construction sites. Thursday, June 2, 2022. Picture: David Crosling

“When we think about creating a city for everyone, and bringing in as many people as safely as possible, we need to remember that 60 per cent of the available transport network space is already available for cars,” she said.

“We see a very high proportion of car users back using our transport infrastructure … where we have a shortfall is to continue with a roll out of bicycle lanes that provide safety for our bicycle users that are now in the tens of thousands.”

On Wednesday morning, Ms Capp said no bike lanes would be removed from the CBD, adding that “adjustments” had been made to the Exhibition St lane to “smooth traffic flow”.

“In a year’s time we will return to look at the needs of city bike lanes in the Hoddle Grid … we have a year of focusing on the streets leading into the city, it’s really about bringing people into the city,” she told 3AW.

Councillor Roshena Campbell opposed the amended motion.

“Because while it grants a one-year pause on the rollout of bike lanes in the Hoddle Grid, it does nothing to fix the issues that exist,” she said

“And that is only going to breed more anger in our community, and make this a political and divisive issue for event longer.”

Sally Capp said no bike lanes would be removed from the CBD. Picture: David Crosling

Ms Capp said the a balanced approach to transport measures is needed in the city. Picture: David Crosling

Ms Campbell said Melbourne could learn from big global cycling cities like London, Paris and New York, “including what to do when the design of bike lanes goes wrong”.

“In London, the city that has invested far more than we could ever hope to … they recently removed a bike lane in Kensington High St, because in that particular instance they found they had not got the balance right,” she said.

Referring to emotional pleas at the council meeting regarding cyclist fatalities, Ms Campbell said: “I don't want anyone to die on our streets.”

“But I don’t want people who have invested - small businesses, who’ve mortgaged their homes - to lose their livelihood, to go under either.”

Greens councillor Rohan Leppert voted to pause new Hoddle Grid bike lanes for 12 months, but boasted on social media that the council was on track to deliver more than 10km of lanes in other parts of the city in 2022-23.

“This includes completion of Arden St, Macaulay Rd, Grattan St and Royal Pde,” he said.

And he said that conversion of pop-up lanes to permanent ones in the Hoddle Grid would continue over the next year.

More than 1100 pro-bike lane submissions were received by the council, and dozens of people spoke in favour during the meeting.