Hard News: Nelson Street: Not too pretty, please
54 Responses
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There'll be such a great view of the beautiful lines of Hopetoun Bridge. Leave it bare! It's a brutal site - let's embrace it. No concrete native flora motifs!
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Russell Brown, in reply to
I’m tending towards this view, yes. The space is what it is. Just wide, safe and smooth, that’s what I want. But perhaps a grand work of street art on the facing wall under the K Road overpass. That would be nice.
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Steve Curtis, in reply to
No concrete native flora motifs!
Absolutely. A bit like the motorway bridge north of Orewa with its 'Pukeko legs'
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I thought exactly the same thing when I saw the submission form. I went looking for more info, to get a better idea of what they were actually talking about, or perhaps even some ballpark costings, but after 10 minutes gave up in frustration. So I ticked leave it as is, and Other (writing in Safety). Felt a little curmudgeonly in doing so though.
I think the most important thing to do is to physically separate pedestrians from cycles so commuters whizzing down the ramp don’t have tourists or a pushchair wander across their path.
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It does seem to me that actually getting regular cyclists to give input on the design and then listening to them should be something that Auckland Transport should do more often.
As I've said before the cycle routes paralleling Dominion Road are an example of how not to do it and strongly suggest that nobody on the design team actually rides a bike.
The basics aren't hard.
Make the road surface smooth, but not slippery - that shiny green paint you used is freaking dangerous in the wet.
Avoid hills and bumps - including speedbumps because on a bike it's harder to get back up to speed than just pressing on the accelerator after you've had to slow down.
Make sure the lighting is decent at night and shines on the road not on the cyclists head.
Keep the cars and buses off the bit where the bikes are - unless you want cyclists to be run over (yeah I have a friend like that).To be fair that last bit appears to be advanced design.
After you've mastered those design features then you can worry about making it look cool.
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According to Max Robitzsch on Twitter, cars will (ironically) be the saving of the space. NZTA wants to keep the traffic lane on the old on-ramp free for serious emergencies where they need some way to get traffic off the motorway.
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Russell Brown, in reply to
So I ticked leave it as is, and Other (Safety).
Yes. I used Other to emphasise safety too.
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So you don't think they should incorporate a kicker?
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Russell Brown, in reply to
Que?
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EE,
I would like trees, flowers, birds, bees and butterflies... that would be nicer..
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mpledger, in reply to
As long as the foliage is low - anything too high then it becomes a bit scare for this women cyclist - who knows who is hiding behind the trees waiting to catch a lone female cyclist.
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Rich of Observationz, in reply to
A ramp? For doing jumps?
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Sacha, in reply to
the cycle routes paralleling Dominion Road are an example of how not to do it
Still attracting a whole lot of cars who would have used Sandringham and Dominion Rds. Hope someone is monitoring it.
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As you say, this isn't the skyline. It performs a different purpose and is in a very different environment, so the image from the City Centre Masterplan isn't practical at this stage. But this was a very popular project from the CCMP, and it's fantastic to see the pace that the NZTA is delivering it, alongside other cycling projects.
The surface design is a chance to celebrate the route and make it stand out from the grey that surrounds it. Doesn't have to mean flashy.... But that's why we want the feedback. Seeing a few trends emerging from the discussions and feedback so far, and there's been a big response. We hoped for a minimum 400 submissions over the 17 days, but we've passed that already in less than a week.
Safety, of course, is essential., so the next stage will be establishing what's possible within the technical and safety constraints. -
Russell Brown, in reply to
Seeing a few trends emerging from the discussions and feedback so far, and there’s been a big response. We hoped for a minimum 400 submissions over the 17 days, but we’ve passed that already in less than a week.
Good to hear. Thanks for dropping by, Oliver.
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Tim Michie, in reply to
Yes. Reflector jacketed guys standing next to tripod video camera setups for hours on end are a regular sight, at least on the routes I mostly bus on, Mt Eden, New North Rds and Symonds St.
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Bart Janssen, in reply to
The surface design is a chance to celebrate the route and make it stand out from the grey that surrounds it. Doesn’t have to mean flashy…. But that’s why we want the feedback.
Great to see you are reading this as well and thanks for dropping by.
I guess for me I'd like it minimalist in style. As Kevin McCloud points out minimalist is HARD. But the key is that it should feel like there is plenty of space for cyclists and pedestrians to stay clear of each other. The image shown suggested the space would be narrowed and that really doesn't help keep people safe.
Remember there will be people wanting to use the path to get somewhere fast as well as cyclists just dawdling and enjoying the space. When you have two directions for each use plus pedestrians that does not leave much room for large plantings and having the path weave back and forth unnecessarily.
Maybe you should start with it as simple as possible and then add things slowly if they make sense once you see how the route is used.
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Ana Simkiss, in reply to
Maybe you should start with it as simple as possible and then add things slowly if they make sense once you see how the route is used.
I agree with Bart - this route could end up being a cycle superhighway or a pedestrian paradise. Observation of its evolution is the best way to find out what is needed.
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The piles for the connecting bridge being worked on this week.
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I'm looking forward to this and agree with the minimalists. Decent safety barriers on the sides to prevent suicides. If they're transparent and high, and overhanging they double as weather shelters, and massively reduce the wind, which is very likely to be a problem on an elevated path in a valley. If we must waste such valuable space on shrubbery, it could be small, low stuff that forms natural lane separators, and doesn't hurt to fall into at speed, and don't produce vast amounts of leaf litter. The most intuitive plan to give the best of worlds to both pedestrians and cyclists would be to make it like a road - footpaths to the sides, since people are going to be gawking at the views on both sides a lot, and cyclists do often want to just stop. Cycleway in the middle, preferably with lanes in each direction. Maybe a small kerb for the footpath. I'd think giving the pedestrians the lion's share makes sense. Dedicated unidirectional cycleways don't need to be that wide, when the danger of cars is zero. This gives plenty of room for such lovely conveniences as decent light masts, park benches, rubbish bins, public toilets, public art, with viewing space.
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Brent Jackson, in reply to
The surface design is a chance to celebrate the route and make it stand out from the grey that surrounds it. Doesn’t have to mean flashy…. But that’s why we want the feedback
It'd be great for it to look good, but it is imperative that this does not come at the expense of functionality, literally and figuratively.
Pedestrian spaces along the edges, and two cycle lanes going each way, one marked slow, and one marked fast. Perhaps different surface colours to differentiate them.
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Bart Janssen, in reply to
The piles for the connecting bridge being worked on this week.
How do you get down there to take that photo.
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Russell Brown, in reply to
How do you get down there to take that photo.
Nicked it from the Pinterest account of Contract Landscaping Limited, who are doing the work :-)
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Oliver Roberts - AKLCouncil, in reply to
Thanks Brent, but that raises an interesting question. Do people need to be so explicitly told what to do... or with enough width and decent sight lines, can they just be left to get on with it? Or should we go somewhere in the middle?
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Russell Brown, in reply to
How about these for slow and fast markings respectively?
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