BIKESydney is calling for more people-orientated design for the new Draft Plan of Management for Sydney Park which is now open for public comment. You can view the entire Plan via the Project’s “Document Library” link (8.3MB) or download the key excerpts of the Plan here (1.9MB).)
The key points of the Draft Management Plan include:

• A City Farm (including a farmers market);
• An urban ecology plan (including a new enclosed forest area with water cascades);
• New frog ponds and habitats for other unique wildlife;
• Improvements to the cycling Centre (including amenities, a learning focus area and childcare centre);
• Conservation of the Bedford Brickworks, and
• Sydney’s largest stormwater harvesting and water re-use facility (a project co-funded by the federal government).

Some really nice outcomes. It’s a great vision for the Park. But we seek to encourage the City of Sydney to reach a little further. There are terrific opportunities here to nudge cycling to the next level, and to significantly increase patronage of the Park (thereby better securing its future against the incursion of commercial development).
While we’re always looking to bring positive change for everyone, not just those who ride, (our motto: “cycling and a liveable city”), Sydney Park presents a massive opportunity to develop “Sydney as a cycling city” because of its potential to attract and upskill riders, and in particular young (kiddies) and inexperienced (all ages) riders. It prospect, the city’s “cycling incubator”.
We’re encouraging you to support our campaign for improved cycling facilities and (here’s the clue…) access to the Park by making your own submission prior to the exhibition deadline of Friday 7th March 2014.

 

How to Make a Submission

Below we’ve summarised the key values BIKESydney believes should guide the future management of the Park and also identified specific actions. We recommend making comments in your own words but you’re very welcome to refer to or quote any of the points below. As always:

• Include your name and suburb or postcode;
• Say whether you cycle in Sydney, how regularly or if you intend to;
• Be constructive – list your concerns but also share your support for investment in cycling, and
• Be succinct – address the proposal in list form if you can.

To register your thoughts, you can either Have Your Say online or email the project manager vphung@cityofsydney.nsw.gov.au .

BIKESydney’s View

Read the detail of BIKESydney’s Submission to the Draft Plan of Management in full.

BIKESydney’s submission argues that the Park’s Management Plan should be founded on the principles of encouraging healthy lifestyle, community-building, and local living and should take bold steps to favour sustainable transport. Taking this approach would open the way for material improvements in the areas of safety, connection to environment, wellbeing and unplugging from the mechanised world.
In our submission to the draft Management Plan we’re calling for:

• Improved access into the Park – safer and more pronounced walking and cycling access to, and into the Park;
• An underpass connection for walkers and cyclists to St Peters rail station;
• Extending the Park beyond its perimeter to create ‘arrival gateways’ in the style of Centennial Park’s Federation Way so as to induce more active travel trips into the Park;
• Articulation of the strategy to have Sydney Park connect to existing and future regional cycling routes such as the Cooks River cycleway and the Alexandra Canal corridor;
• Traffic calming measures for all streets surrounding the Park;
• Developing the Park as an incubator for cycling by extending child and adult cycling training. Achieving the City’s 2030 Vision target of having at least 10 % of all trips within the local government area being made by bike (2030 Vision’s Community Strategic Plan, Target #7, pg 24) will necessarily depend on such devoted initiatives;
• Introducing more “sticky” uses – more of whatever keeps people spending time in the Park, not just passing through it, eg. seats, BBQ’s, shade structures, hire bikes, context-sensitive, and strictly car-free retail uses (eg, cafes), skate bowls;
• Providing separated bike and pedestrian paths within the Park. Where this can’t be achieved, increasing the widths of shared paths so that a rider can safely pass two pram widths;
• A cycling loop path around the Park’s perimeter, thereby encouraging commuting trips by bike to the outskirts of the Park;
• integrating cycling into water and ecology features, and wildlife corridors;
• Ample, secure, highly visible bike parking throughout the Park and a Bike Parking Station near St Peters rail station;
• A public Bike Libary including bikes with load-carrying capacity (“Cargo Bikes”);
• BMX and/or a mountain bike trails which can utilise slopes that may otherwise remain un-activated;
• Landscape designs and constructions that avoid “designing cyclists out” – engaging with local cycling groups on the detail of treatments and development choices for the Park;
• as well as other interventions such as historical and cultural walking and cycling trails and aesthetically-sensitive wayfinding systems.

We’ve also letterboxed the local community (flyer below) in the hope of encouraging more engagement and more ideas that extend and can be extended by cycling.
Please take a few minutes to help shape the Vision.