Ilam Road Project – submissions due now

Anyone who uses Ilam Road to access the University or other nearby facilities might be interested in what the City Council is proposing to do to it in the near future. This project was first looked at nearly three years ago, but earthquakes put a hold on progress.

The 9am lecture rush-hour – not much fun on a bike

Ilam Road has always been a difficult mix of road users, especially in the morning rush hour when people are trying to get to lectures, work and school all at the same time. The prime motivation for this project is to help pedestrians – did you know that over 8000 people cross this section of road during a term day? And they cross everywhere, making it hard to provide specific crossing facilities.

Finding a happy place between parked and moving cars…

Meanwhile, people cycling have to squeak in somewhere between the continuous array of parked cars and the moving traffic. With traffic looking to turn at a number of side-roads, it makes for a very busy environment.

Now how do I cross over here…?

The Council plans propose to create a 3m-wide shared pathway on each side for walking and cycling. Regular islands and medians along the middle will provide assistance crossing the road, as well as restricting the traffic lanes to a width where anyone still cycling on the road will share the same space with motorists. Interestingly the Council aren’t looking at extending the current 40km/h school zone that exists in front of the adjacent Ilam School.

Have the City Council got this design right?

So what do you think:

• Will the shared pathways provide a good cycling alternative away from traffic? Will they work sufficiently well with the numbers of pedestrians in this area, and having to wait at side-roads?
• Can narrowed shared traffic lanes work without a lower speed limit?
• Does these facilities take account of the various desire lines for cycling to/from uni and nearby schools?

Hurry – you only have until this Friday 10th August to submit on this project!

Tagged City Council, cycle facilities, pedestrians, university