Council unveils Frome St designs amid signs of confusion
The Adelaide City Council has unveiled designs for part of its Frome Street bikeway extension and requested changes to signage that one councillor labelled unnecessary because cyclists have eyes and “aren’t complete fools”.
The council last night resolved to delay any decision to implement the designs until the State Government makes a decision on co-funding an extension to the contentious bikeway.
It also decided to investigate new signage for Frome Street, to warn cyclists – at the point where the separated bikeway ends – that the separated bikeway ends there.
But Deputy Lord Mayor Megan Hender described the sign idea as “surplus to requirements because we’ve got eyes”.
“I do want to just reassure councillors, for those of us who do actually ride bikes, [we] do recognise when we get to the end of a bike lane,” Hender told the meeting.
“We’re not complete fools – when the bike lane stops it does dawn on us that the bike lane has stopped.
“I’m quite happy to have the signs there but I can assure you that they’re pretty much surplus to requirements, because we’ve got eyes.”
InDaily understands that the council’s transport experts believe signs are not required at the end of bike lanes, because the fact that they come to an end is visually clear.
"I just hope that no cyclists have a collision with the new signage."
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But Area councillor Anne Moran told the meeting there were risks to cyclists’ safety at the intersection of Frome Street and Pirie Street, where the concrete separation between cars and cyclists finishes.
She said signs should be erected to warn cyclists they are entering general traffic.
There was confusion during the meeting about whether or not signs already exist to do just that.
A council staff member told the meeting there was already a sign to indicate end of the bikeway.
“If there are signs there, they’re very small signs and nobody’s seen them,” Moran told the meeting.
InDaily understands the representative was given the wrong advice at the meeting.
There are no signs to indicate the end of the separated bikeway.
When InDaily visited the bikeway this morning there was, however, a sign indicating the council’s $90,000 ‘minor safety improvement’ works had begun. Note the slices in the cement lane dividers on the right:
Area councillor Sandy Wilkinson told the meeting: “I just hope that no cyclists have a collision with the new signage”.
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The council’s resolution on the matter says it will “look at ways to improve current signage on Frome Road [sic] to increase safety”.
The council’s administration presented two design options for the councillors to consider.
The $50,000 option
The first design option presented to the council:
- Would cost an estimagted $50,000.
- Bike lanes would be open only during peak bike traffic times (proposed time limits
are 7-10am and 4-7pm on week days). - Four lanes of traffic would be maintained at all times.
- On-street parking would not be allowed during peak traffic periods.
- Off-peak on-street parking would be allowed.
- There would be an impact on either the safety of people riding bikes or the
kerb-side operations of two hotels on the street during peak times (pink dotted lines). - Peak period parking restrictions would need to be enforced on a regular basis
to ensure that bike lanes are not blocked.
The $200,000 option
The second design option presented to the council:
- Would cost an estimated $200,000.
- Kerb-side separated bike lanes would be operational full-time (possibly with the
exception of sections outside the two hotels). - There would be four lanes of traffic during peak periods, with two lanes during off-peak
periods. - On-street parking would be available during off-peak periods only.
- There would be impacts on hotel operations or the safety of people riding bikes (in the pink dotted line area) depending on
the final design solution.
The Council also endorsed an $86,000 rainbow walk – to recognise Adelaide’s LGBTIQ (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual , Transgender, Intersex and Queer) community – for Light Square.
The endorsed design will include significant dates for the LGBTIQ community, including the decriminalisation of homosexuality in 1975.
A council spokesperson said construction on the project would begin in September.
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