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House of Assembly - Fifty-First Parliament, Third Session (51-3)
2009-02-05 Daily Xml
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CYCLEWAY NETWORK

The Hon. R.B. SUCH (Fisher) (12:46): I move:

That this house calls on the state government to plan, fund and develop a comprehensive off-road cycleway network in Adelaide.

In moving this motion I am not suggesting that the state government has not done anything in relation to cycleway provision, because it has; I am saying that I would like to see more—and I am sure the government itself would want to see more. The people of Adelaide and the wider community throughout South Australia, I believe, are very supportive of providing good cycleway facilities, particularly in Adelaide but also in country areas. When I talk about a cycleway, I mean (in general terms) a shared use network, because cycleways can be used by joggers and people with prams and so on, so it does not have to be exclusively for the use of cyclists.

All members would be aware of, and no doubt many participated in or viewed, the recent Tour Down Under, which is a fantastic event. I have been a cyclist in my youth. As members can see, I am not doing enough cycling now, but I still have four pushbikes and was one of the first to wear a cycle helmet more than 30 years ago. In fact, I still have it. It is a MSR (mountain safety research) helmet. Long before they were legally required I thought that my head is worth $40. A lot of people would disagree with that, but I thought, 'Is my head worth forty bucks?' and the answer was yes, so I bought one.

More seriously, in terms of this network and the atmosphere and interest that has come from Tour Down Under, I think bringing Lance Armstrong here was a fantastic thing, not only for cycling but also because of his campaign in helping to research and promote awareness of cancer. As someone who has been in that situation, I am very mindful of the impact that it has on a person and their family. I note that in his case he had testicular cancer. I am sure the Minister for Health will look through Hansard—I digress a little bit from cycleways at the moment—but one of the issues that has been brought to my attention is that there is no support network, of any kind, for people who suffer testicular cancer. Unless one has been formed in recent times, there is no group that offers support, counselling or other assistance. I am happy to be corrected if it has changed, but that was put to me not long ago by someone in that situation.

This is something that involves young men and strikes at the very heart of their manhood and they do not necessarily want to talk to people or acknowledge that they have or have had testicular cancer. Likewise, I can understand that woman do not necessarily want to be too overt in talking about things such as ovarian and cervical cancer and so on. I think we need to move on in respect of awareness and research. If the minister or the Cancer Council can do anything to provide a support group for those with testicular cancer, arising out of the Tour Down Under and the appearance of Lance Armstrong, that would be fantastic.

I have never seen so many people on pushbikes as I have seen lately, so the Tour Down Under has created an interest in cycling. It is one of the healthiest activities that people can undertake, because you are not pounding the footpaths and are less likely to end up with dodgy knees as you get older, through not belting the hell out of your knees on an asphalt surface. So, it is a very good exercise.

Unfortunately, however, in Adelaide at the moment there is inadequate provision for cyclists. The government has been trying to get motorists to adopt the slogan 'share the road', but my argument is that it is very hard to share the road with a concrete truck when you are a 10 year old on a pushbike.

The other very common problem is that many of the existing on-road marked cycleways go nowhere. So, you are riding along and suddenly you come to a certain part of the road and there is no continuation of the cycleway. So, where do you go? Hopefully, not under the concrete truck! You try to do something, but what we have at the moment is an economy version of a cycle network.

Cycleways are not cheap and the city council, to its credit, has put some through the Parklands that are of a very high standard. The City of Adelaide seems to be a very well resourced council, but I give it 10 out of 10 for the quality of its cycleways. If any member wants to experience a good cycleway, they should have a look at the ones in the south-eastern and southern sections of the Parklands that have been constructed in the past year or two. They are of top quality and standard and are a credit to the Adelaide City Council.

It would cost many millions of dollars and it would be a challenge to provide that sort of standard throughout the metropolitan area. I have been trying to get a cycle connection from Belair to Mitcham for years so that people can easily cycle up to Belair National Park, and so on—and, likewise, come down the hill—and extensions from, say, Flagstaff Hill through to Blackwood, which takes in part of my electorate. I have not yet succeeded in achieving those connections, but they are just two examples out of a whole multitude that are required in the metropolitan area.

If those facilities are provided people will use them, but then they have to be maintained. More than 20 years ago I was a founding member of the Mitcham Hills Cycle Network, and you can just about guarantee that any of the cycleways to be seen up through the Mitcham hills are the result of that committee's work. Sadly, very little has been added since that time. That was a group of community-minded people spun off from the Coromandel Valley Community Association, which still exists as a body. We had a whole lot of people on the committee, including engineers and others, who gave their time to help promote a cycleway network in the Mitcham Hills, and it was supported by the Mitcham council of the day, to its credit.

I am urging the state government to go flat-out on this cycleway network throughout Adelaide, off-road wherever possible. I think it is a good project to attract federal funding, because one can easily and quickly design and construct them and it would provide a useful boost to the earth-moving industry and the people who lay the special bitumen, and so on.

I believe that the Tour Down Under should be a catalyst for action by the state government. There is interest in it. People want their children to ride bikes, but at the moment it is just not safe to ride on many of our roads. I have tried riding on roads such as Marion Road and South Road, and it is one step away from Russian roulette. I would not encourage anyone to ride on those roads. Why should people not be able to ride safely off road, not only into the city but also in other locations?

I commend this motion to the house. I do not think that I have to labour the point for too long but I hope that, now he has been infected with the cycling bug, if you like, 'Lycra Mike' will really get behind this and help us to create a comprehensive off-road cycleway network in Adelaide.

Mr KENYON (Newland) (12:55): I move an amendment to the motion:

Delete all words after 'house' and substitute:

congratulates the state government on its continuing work in developing a comprehensive off-road cycleway network in South Australia.

The reason for this amendment is that a substantial amount of off-road cycleway in South Australia has been developed in Australia over the last few years and it needs to be recognised. I think that the member for Fisher's motion suggests that there is none whatsoever, and that is just not the case. If you were to read his motion, I think that would be the inference. I believe that my amendment better reflects the actual state of off-road cycleway networks in South Australia.

The government has a strategy already in place, namely, 'Safety in numbers—A Cycling Strategy for South Australia 2006-2010', which has the objective of a comprehensive cycling network and facilities. Included under this objective are actions to work with local government and other state agencies to improve the metropolitan and regional cycling networks that cater for the full range of users and extend and improve cycling routes along dedicated public transport corridors. Adelaide's principal bicycle network is known as Bike Direct, which is a comprehensive network of routes consisting of off-road paths, bicycle lanes and backstreets that provide for the diverse range of people who choose to cycle.

Adelaide's Bike Direct network (which I encourage members to look at), including off-road paths, is shown on a series of web-based maps on the Department for Transport, Energy and Infrastructure's (DTEI) website. I will read it out for members so that they can look it up on their laptops: www.transport.sa.gov.au/personal_transport/bike_direct/maps.asp.

Mr Bignell: Just Google it!

Mr KENYON: Or you can just Google it. I think you can probably Google 'Bike Direct network', as the member for Mawson says. It is probably a lot easier. There are a number of parts to it and I will go through a few of them. There is the Coast Park initiative to develop a 70-kilometre linear park shared-use path along the metropolitan Adelaide coastline from North Haven through to Sellicks Beach. You can even cycle down to see the member for Mawson! Significant lengths of off-road, shared-use paths exist along our rivers, including the Torrens Linear Park. Of course, it goes right along the boundary of my own electorate, which borders the electorates of the members for Torrens and Morialta, I believe. It is an excellent little path.

It also mentions the River Sturt Linear Park, the Little Para River, the South Para River, the North Para River and the River Onkaparinga estuary; and Christies Creek and Dry Creek all have shared-use paths along them. Recently the Coast to Vines Rail Trail, which follows the disused Willunga to Marina rail corridor, was launched. This 38-kilometre trail resulted from significant collaboration between federal, state and local governments, with this government contributing $1.2 million. The seven-kilometre Westside Bikeway follows the disused Holdfast Bay rail corridor from the city to Camden Park; and, in the Adelaide Hills, the Premier recently announced the development of a shared-use path along the disused Adelaide Hills rail corridor from Oakbank to Mount Pleasant, and this will be named in honour of Amy Gillett.

Stage 1, costing $1 million, will be a five-kilometre path from Oakbank to Woodside. The Premier has also announced that two other great South Australian cyclists will be honoured through the naming of the significant off-road cycling paths that follow major roads. For instance, the 20-kilometre Southern Expressway veloway from Darlington to Noarlunga will be named the Patrick Jonker Bikeway after the great Patrick Jonker, a friend of the member for Mawson, I believe. The yet to be constructed 23-kilometre cycle path following the Northern Expressway will be named the Stuart O'Grady Bikeway, another great friend of the member for Mawson, who seems to know all the cyclists.

The Hon. R.B. Such: Is there a Leon Bignell one?

Mr KENYON: I don't know. If he pedals hard enough there might be. I think it is fair to say that there are any number of other examples I could read, but I do not know that the house would be excited about it. There are enough examples here to show that a network is well underway which will continue to develop over coming years. That is why I believe my amendment more accurately reflects the situation in the City of Adelaide and the state at this time.

Debate adjourned.


[Sitting suspended from 13:00 to 14:00]


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