Draft Strategy Banyule Bicycle Strategy Draft Strategy Banyule Bicycle Strategy V190811 Prepared for Banyule City Council 3 February 2021 3 February 2021 Cardno i Draft Strategy Banyule Bicycle Strategy Contact Information Document Information Cardno Victoria Pty Ltd Prepared for Banyule City Council ABN 47 106 610 913 Project Name Banyule Bicycle Strategy Level 4 File Reference V190811REP004F01.docx 501 Swanston Street Melbourne VIC 3000 Job Reference V190811 Australia Date 03/02/2021 www.cardno.com Version Number F01 Phone +61 3 8415 7777 Fax +61 3 8415 7788 Author(s): Joshua Hiscock (Engineer) Effective Date 3/02/2021 Callum Thomas (Project Engineer) Approved By: Matthew Mudge Date Approved 3/02/2021 Associate Transport Engineer Document History Version Effective Date Description of Revision Prepared by Reviewed by D01 18/08/2020 Draft Report Joshua Hiscock Matthew Mudge D02 01/01/2021 Draft Final report Callum Thomas Matthew Mudge D03 02/02/2021 Draft Final report Callum Thomas Matthew Mudge F01 03/02/2021 Final Report Callum Thomas Matthew Mudge © Cardno. 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Whilst, to the best of our knowledge, the information contained in this report is accurate at the date of issue, changes may occur to the site conditions, the site context or the applicable planning framework. This report should not be used after any such changes without consulting the provider of the report or a suitably qualified person. V190811 | 3 February 2021 | Commercial in Confidence ii Draft Strategy Banyule Bicycle Strategy Table of Contents 1 Introduction 5 1.1 General 5 1.2 Background 5 1.3 Purpose of the Banyule Bicycle Strategy 6 2 Strategy Background 7 2.1 Existing Conditions 7 2.2 Consultation 11 2.3 Summary of Issues 11 2.4 Summary of Opportunities 11 3 Benchmarking 13 3.1 Vision 13 3.2 Benchmarking 13 4 Considerations 16 4.1 Government Policy 16 4.2 New Infrastructure 16 4.3 Safer Routes 19 4.4 Bicycle Parking 19 4.5 Advocacy 19 4.6 Other Considerations – Impacts of Covid-19 22 4.7 Other Considerations – Induced Demand 22 4.8 Other Considerations - Priority 23 5 Recommendations 24 5.1 General 24 5.2 General Themes 25 5.3 Activity Centres 26 5.4 Connecting Links (PBN / SCC) 28 5.5 Off-Road Shared User Paths & Trails 32 5.6 Railway Stations 36 5.7 School Cycling 39 6 Implementation 42 6.1 General 42 6.2 Corridor Strategy 42 6.3 Area Strategy 45 6.4 Cycling Culture 47 Appendices Appendix A Existing Conditions V190811 | 3 February 2021 | Commercial in Confidence iii Draft Strategy Banyule Bicycle Strategy Tables Table 5-1 General Recommendations 25 Table 5-2 Major Activity Centre Recommendations 26 Table 5-3 Connecting Route Recommendations 30 Table 5-4 Off-Road SUPs & Trails Recommendations 32 Table 5-5 Rail Station Recommendations 37 Table 5-6 School Cycling Recommendations 40 Figures Figure 1-1 Banyule Local Government Area 5 Figure 2-1 Method of Travel to Work 8 Figure 2-2 Existing and Proposed Strategic Cycling Corridor & Public Bicycle Network 10 Figure 3-1 Path Widths for a 75/25 Directional Split 15 Figure 4-1 Off-Road Paths 17 Figure 4-2 Example Cycle Network Treatments 18 Figure 4-3 Ride to School 21 Figure 4-4 Jump Electrical Bike Share (Uber) 21 Figure 5-1 Existing and Proposed Strategic Cycling Corridor & Public Bicycle Network 28 Figure 5-2 Missing link on Main Yarra Trail / Plenty River Trail – Banyule Flats Realignment 35 Figure 5-3 Car Space Compared to Bicycle Parking (Translation 1 Car = 10 Bikes) 39 Figure 6-1 Indicative Corridor Level Plan 44 Figure 6-2 Proposed Precinct and Local Areas 45 Figure 6-3 Group of Cyclists – Yarra Main Trail, Banyule 47 Figure 6-4 Bicycle Parking located in front of Supermarket, Fitzroy North 48 V190811 | 3 February 2021 | Commercial in Confidence iv Draft Strategy Banyule Bicycle Strategy 1 Introduction 1.1 General Cardno Victoria Pty Ltd (Cardno) has been commissioned by Banyule City Council to aid in the review and development of a new bicycle strategy. The strategy will build on the achievements of the Banyule Bicycle Strategy 2010•2020 and will support cycling for recreation or transport becoming a viable and safe mode choice for everyone. This draft strategy report provides a suite of recommendations to assist Banyule City Council to improve the quality of the bicycle network within the municipal boundary, increase connectivity to the surrounding network, and encourage cycling participation. These recommendations have been informed by a comprehensive assessment of the existing bicycle network within the City of Banyule. This assessment comprised the following: > A detailed site inspection; > Community engagement including consultation with key stakeholders such as Department of Transport (DoT), Council, the Banyule Bicycle User Group and other local stakeholders; > An assessment of existing facilities including traffic counts; > Collation of Principal Bicycle Network (PBN) and Strategic Cycling Corridor (SCC) databases; and > A literature review of existing background documentation including plans relevant to surrounding municipalities and greater Melbourne. This draft report and recommendations are presented to Council and community for review and comment. Input gained through this process will be reflected in the development of the final Banyule Bicycle Strategy 2020 and strategic action plan. 1.2 Background The Banyule local government area is located approximately 7km to 21km northeast of central Melbourne. Figure 1-1, shows the municipality in the context of surrounding councils. The Yarra River runs along the south- eastern boundary and Darebin Creek runs along the western boundary. Three Major Activity Centres (MACs) are located within this area, being Heidelberg, Ivanhoe and Greensborough. The La Trobe National Employment and Innovation Cluster (NEIC) is situated to the immediate west of the Banyule boundary, with the Metropolitan Ring Road and Greensborough Bypass located to the north. Banyule is primarily a residential area with a varying topography, including expansive areas of open space particularly along the Yarra and Plenty River valleys. Other key land uses include industrial uses, education institutions, health and leisure facilities. Figure 1-1 Banyule Local Government Area V190811 | 3 February 2021 | Commercial in Confidence 5 Draft Strategy Banyule Bicycle Strategy Based on the 2016 Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) census data, the population of Banyule is increasing at a 0.6% growth rate per annum with a median age of 39 years, higher than the median for both Victoria and Australia. Banyule is identified as having an ageing population which is forecast to continue over the next 30 years, resulting in an increase in the demand of health and aged care services. In order to minimise the associated cost impact to all levels of government and maintain community wellbeing, it is vital to provide a high level of access to public open space for low-impact recreation as well as good quality active mode infrastructure which decreases reliance on private vehicle transportation. At present car dependency identified as being high in Banyule, coupled with a lack of provision and connectivity of cycling infrastructure. A number of major projects of state significance are planned or occurring within the municipality, providing both an obstacle and an opportunity with respect to the cycling network. Improving cycling infrastructure is beneficial from a public health perspective, with additional environmental sustainability benefits associated with reduced private vehicle usage. Banyule City Council is committed to environmental sustainability having declared a climate emergency in 2019 and adopted an ambitious target of carbon neutrality by 2028. 1.3 Purpose of the Banyule Bicycle Strategy The development of the Banyule Bicycle Strategy (BBS) will significantly contribute towards creating a safe, convenient and accessible network of cycling infrastructure for all ages and abilities. Consideration is to be given to linkages with other transport modes and key destinations, while complementing Banyule’s natural environment, community character and the community’s overall standard of living. As an overview, the purpose of the BBS is to identify a set of objectives and key strategies to provide a framework for achieving this vision. This strategy seeks to do this by: > Establishing a framework for investment that follows a regional and corridor-based approach; > Prioritise a series of key actions to improve the provision of key cyclist infrastructure within Banyule; > Encouraging investment in advocacy, education and building a strong cycling culture within different groups; > Providing measurable benchmarking tools for goalsetting and measuring cycling trends; > Considering constraints to cycling within Banyule including topography, scale and demand; and > Advocate for inclusion of cycling infrastructure in all state government projects within the municipality. V190811 | 3 February 2021 | Commercial in Confidence 6 Draft Strategy Banyule Bicycle Strategy 2 Strategy Background 2.1 Existing Conditions To inform the development of proposed recommendations to improve Banyule’s Bicycle network and increase uptake within the region, Cardno has prepared a background report that investigated the existing conditions of bicycle infrastructure and community sentiment towards cycling within Banyule.