Four Photos
Is it getting easier to ride a bike in Australia?
Four Photos tracks the progress of important bike routes in our cities.
#FourPhotos
Northern Territory
DARWIN
Darwin has some bike friendly laws like footpath riding and non-compulsory helmets use when riding off-road, but there are some areas that desperately need upgrading to help more people get riding.
We have described why we have included each location and what can be done to improve it. We’ll go back every two years to check on the progress.
Photo 1: Bagot Road
Why: The key route to Casuarina and the Uni, Bagot Road has three lanes and no bike space. It’s a place only the strong and the fearless will ride.
What: an off-road bike path.
Photo taken September 2019.
Photo 2: Cavenagh Street (Corner of Garramilla Boulevard)
Why: Garramilla Boulevard will soon be completed providing a separated path into the city, however it stops though when riders get to Cavenagh Street. With an innovative cooling program in place for the street, it will be a great place to provide bike facilities.
What: a separated lane on the left-hand side of the street.
Photo taken September 2019.
Photo 3: Smith Street and Daly Street
Why: this is a missing link in Darwin’s bike network that connects the Esplanade to Cullen Bay, Mindil and Parap. This roundabout has caused much controversy.
What: a separated place for people to ride bikes.
Photo taken September 2019.
Photo 4: Bennett Street
Why: The Tiger Brennan Drive bike path ends and riders are forced into general traffic. Thank goodness they can ride on the footpath.
What: separated bike lanes on Bennett Street to connect the key riding routes.
Photo taken September 2019.
Four Photos
The cities
We've picked spots in Adelaide where the current bike infrastructure is not up to scratch, or bike lanes could be developed to connect missing links.
We've picked four spots in Perth that are popular and existing bike routes but aren't quite up to scratch. With a bit of extra love they can become gold-class riding routes.
Ballarat is a city experiencing significant population growth. It has a golden opportunity to become a livable city where people have more choices about how they move around.
More people want to ride in Bendigo, but the bike network needs to be improved with better connections and bike lanes. We've chosen four places and recommended improvements.
For years, Sydney had the reputation as the toughest city in Australia to ride a bike. But many hard won, giant strides have been made recently.
Hobart can become one of Australia's great bike cities, but there are some dead ends in the network and not one protected bike lane.
Launceston could be an easy town to ride around, but there are missing links and poor quality trails and not one protected on-road bike lane.
Melbourne is known as one of Australia's most bike friendly cities, but there is still a lot of work that needs to be done.
Brisbane is becoming a bike friendly city – in 2019 it has a successful share bike program, a mayor who wants to relax mandatory helmet laws and allows footpath riding. However, there are still many gains to be made, including improvements to four important bike routes.