For over 15 years, there has been industry and student training in NZ on “planning and design for cycling”, much of it via the company that I work for, ViaStrada. During that time, over 1200 people have attended the various introductory and advanced training courses offered. And now it’s time for a course in Christchurch…
Remarkably it’s been nearly six years since an introductory cycle planning/design course was held in our fair city (although there was a cycle programme masterclass in 2015 and an advanced intersection workshop in 2017). Since then, the city has built quite a few cycleways, and learnt a lot along the way. Meanwhile, national and international practices and policies in this space have changed over that time – particularly now that we have a new government very keen to support cycling networks. Hence the push to roll out a new series of one-day cycle planning & design courses around the country.
Already, there have been packed houses in Wellington and Hamilton (in fact, repeat courses are about to run in both cities soon). Christchurch’s turn come on Wed 1st May, at the Ibis Hotel on Hereford St. A team of presenters from NZ Transport Agency and ViaStrada will guide attendees through a range of topics during the day, including:
- Meeting the needs of cycling – customer thinking / target audience approach, cyclists’ 5 main requirements
- Planning for cycling – assessing demand, route options, prioritisation, monitoring, engagement, funding
- Designing between intersections – various types of provision (focus on separated cycleways and paths), making space
- Intersection design – achieving continuity through intersections, cycle bypasses, minor junctions, cycle crossings, cycle detection, signalised intersections, roundabouts
The course material has been quite extensively revised, based on the recently ratified NZTA Cycling Network Guidance, other recent cycling research, and case studies from a wide range of NZ projects implemented in the last five years (even e-scooters get a mention…). It’s not just one-way listening either; there are a number of little exercises and discussion points throughout the day to keep you on your toes.
Early-bird registrations (by Thu 11 Apr) for industry practitioners are just $400 + GST. And volunteer community advocates are also welcome to attend for only $150 + GST (early-bird). To register, just fill in the form on the course webpage and return it to ViaStrada.
{For those interested in more advanced topics, there are plans for some more specific topic webinars and advanced workshops to be offered later in the year – watch this space…}
Are you interested in this course? Register now!