As I mentioned last week, about six months ago I visited Palmerston North for a meeting of the Active Modes Infrastructure Group. Although I’ve made a couple of other visits there for work trips, I hadn’t had the …
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In the Spotlight: Don Babe, advocating for Canterbury cyclists
Don Babe is a busy man. He works as an accountant, helps his wife run their Prebbleton blueberry farm, is long-time chair of Spokes Canterbury, and takes every opportunity to contribute to planning processes to create a better environment …
Flashback Friday: Solutions to traffic queues
I’ve had two occasions recently where I had to bike to locations across town right at the peak start and end of the day when commuters are trying to get to or from work, mostly in their cars. Often I …
Photo of the Day: Cycleway Sweeper
Six months ago, I was in Palmerston North for a site visit as part of the Active Modes Infrastructure Group (AMIG). As well as our usual meeting, we also took the opportunity to bike around the city looking at the …
In the Spotlight: Robert Fleming and the Wednesday Wheelies
Robert Fleming has been involved in cycle advocacy for well over a decade, having first gone along to a Spokes Canterbury meeting in early 2013 after being knocked off his bike. He says he sat quietly for the first year …
Flashback Friday – Vienna: Cycling on the Rise
It’s starting to get a little bit cooler and for many Kiwis they might be thinking of travelling to warmer climes. Indeed, two of my children are planning to head over to Europe in the next few months. So I …
Flashback Friday Photo of the Day: Playcentre Bike Parking
The other day while riding to work, I saw a Dad riding in front of me with two youngsters sitting behind him on his long bike, presumably heading off to drop them at school. Increasingly, that is not an uncommon …
New cycleways in Wellington are making a difference
As mentioned a few weeks back, I was in Wellington for a holiday with my partner and we took the opportunity to jump on some bikes and have a look around the city at some of the more recent …
Flashback Friday – Hidden Treasures: Knights Stream cycle skills park
It’s school holiday time again, a good chance for families with youngsters to get out and do a few fun things. For those who are fans of cycling, there are a growing array of family-friendly cycleways around the city to …
Submit now on Chch Draft Long Term Plan
Every three years, Councils around the country are required to review and update their 10-year Long Term Plans (LTPs), which sets out what they propose spending on over the coming decade (and where the money will come from), based on …
Flashback Friday: Coffee, Cycling and Culture
Last night I caught up with a few people to chat about transport and urbanism topics over a few drinks. We’re keen to make it a more regular thing, and will probably mix it up between cafe and bar catch-ups. …
A loop ride to Tai Tapu
Tai Tapu has long been a popular destination for road cyclists. It’s close enough to Christchurch to be easily reached, yet distant enough to provide an opportunity for smooth uninterrupted cycling away from the city traffic. And, of course, there …
Flashback Friday: Council Long Term Plan brings some good cycleway news
In case you haven’t noticed; the Chch City Council is currently consulting on its 2024-34 Long Term Plan (with feedback due Sun 21st Apr). This important exercise every three years sets out the key priorities for the various Council activities, …
Flashback Friday: Cycling in the Wind
This past week has been notable for quite a few decent breezes in Christchurch (and a week ago in Wellington there was also a pretty strong northerly while riding around). Even as I write this, I can hear the wind …
Submit on Govt Policy Statement on Roads – I mean, Transport…
As mentioned a few weeks back, the new Government has released its revised Govt Policy Statement (GPS) on Transport for consultation and, to no huge surprise really, it represents a huge shift away from sustainable transport options like walking and …
In the spotlight: Meg Christie, getting communities cycling
Meg Christie is an active transport health promoter for Canterbury’s community public health service. Her job is about finding ways to make it easier for people to walk and cycle places. This involves influencing public policy (for example, by making …
Flashback Friday: Cycling projects around Wellington
As I mentioned last week, I missed attending the just-finished 2WALKandCYCLE Conference in Wellington, but I’m actually now up in our capital city for a little holiday. I guess you could call it a “busman’s holiday” as I’ll be …
Chch cycle counter update Mar 2024: The only way is up…
It’s been a little over a year since I last had a good look at how cycling numbers have been tracking across the many cycle counters in Chch. At that time the picture was a bit murky, thanks to a …
Flashback Friday: Highlights from #2WALKandCYCLE Conference Auckland
Next week sees the return of the 2WALKandCYCLE Conference, hosted in Wellington. Partly due to lockdown disruptions, it’s been three years since the last one in Dunedin – quite the wait. Unfortunately I won’t be attending this one – …
In the spotlight: Glen Koorey, championing safer roads for cyclists
In the coming months, I’d like to post a series of short pieces on people who are actively involved in making greater Christchurch a great place to cycle and encouraging everyday cycling. I’ve got a few ideas about who I …
