News | 7 August 2017

Island Bay Parade and cycleway consultation – update

The consultation on the four new design options proposed by Wellington City Council for the Parade in Island Bay – including the cycleway - is now halfway through, with consultation set to end at 9pm next Sunday 13 August.

The City Council’s Community Planning and Engagement Portfolio Leader, Councillor Diane Calvert, says there’s been strong community interest in the consultation over the past week and more than 800 submissions have been received.

The options for an improved and reorganised Parade have been drawn up following almost a year’s work by local residents, interest groups, traffic engineers and Wellington City Council as part of the ‘Love the Bay’ process that followed controversy and disagreement over the cycleway built along the Parade.

Cr Calvert says detailed analysis of the submissions will be done after consultation ends.

"I urge the people of Island Bay – and other Wellingtonians – to make their views known on what they think about the design proposals.”

To make a submission go to wellington.govt.nz/theparade or email your thoughts to theparade@wcc.govt.nz

The designs will also be on display at the Love the Bay drop-in shop at 132 The Parade until 12 August. 

A series of frequently-asked questions – and answers  about the cycleway options can be read on our consultation page.

The four options:

The four design options incorporate extensive community engagement, the results of the Love the Bay project, transport engineering practice, NZTA guidelines and Council strategies, including the Urban Growth Plan, Cycling Master Plan and Framework, and Long Term Plan.

  • Option A - roadside cycle lane - original layout with enhancements
  • Option B - one-way Separated kerbside cycleway - road level - current layout with enhancements
  • Option C - one-way separated kerbside cycleway - above road level
  • Option D - one-way separated kerbside cycleway - above road level, with angle parking.

Each design summary includes an indicative cost for implementation. These costs are estimates for the purpose of guiding your preference and will be refined once detailed design is completed. The costs reflect community feedback to address safety concerns, environmental considerations, landscaping, and broader urban design opportunities along the length of The Parade.

Option A – roadside cycle lane - original layout with enhancements

Prior to the construction of the Island Bay Cycleway, The Parade south of Medway Street had kerbside parking, a cycle lane next to the parking, and traffic lanes separated by a central flush median. Option A proposes a layout that, as close as safely possible, reflects the original design. Changes have been made to reflect the requirements of the 2016 post-construction safety audit and peer review, and current NZTA and engineering safety guidelines that the original design did not include. It is these requirements that preclude a return to the exact original layout. Changes also extend the cycle treatment along the length north of Medway Street to the Dee Street roundabout, which the original design did not include. No reduction in the current pedestrian footpath width is expected.

This option requires the conversion of the angle parking to parallel parking within the shopping area between Medway Street and Avon Street, and removal of the flush median.

Removal of some 40 parking spaces in the residential area is designed to address the safety issues identified with visibility and vehicle manoeuvring to and from The Parade at driveways. Within the shopping area, the conversion to parallel parking will remove some 17 spaces in order to support a consistent cycleway design along The Parade.

The indicative cost for Option A is $4.1 million.

Option B – one-way separated kerbside cycleway – road level - current layout with enhancements

This option retains the status quo layout of a kerbside cycleway at road level. Design refinements include a raised concrete traffic island between the cycleway and parked vehicles, parking removal to address safety concerns at driveways, and extension of the cycle treatment along the entire length of The Parade to the Dee Street roundabout. No reduction in the current pedestrian footpath width is expected.

Removal of some 40 parking spaces in the residential area is designed to address the safety issues identified with visibility and vehicle manoeuvring to and from The Parade at driveways. This option requires the conversion of the angle parking to parallel parking within the business area between Medway Street and Avon Street, and removal of the flush median.

Within the shopping area, the conversion to parallel parking will remove some 17 spaces in order to support a consistent cycleway design along The Parade.

The indicative cost for Option B is $5.2 million.

Option C – one-way separated kerbside cycleway – above road level

This option also provides a separated kerbside cycleway, with the cycleway above road level, either at mid-height between the roadway and footpath or at footpath level. A kerb will separate the cycleway vertically from the roadway (and footpath if at mid-height), and horizontal separation for cyclists from parked vehicles is provided by a 1.0m safety strip. Kerbside parking removal to address safety concerns at driveways, and extension of the cycle treatment along the entire length of The Parade to the Dee Street roundabout is proposed.

Removal of some 40 parking spaces in the residential area is designed to address the safety issues identified with visibility and vehicle manoeuvring to and from The Parade at driveways.

This option results in a reduction in the existing pedestrian footpath width to 2.4m on the west side of the residential area. Within the shopping area, the west side pedestrian footpath reduces to 5.2m width, the east side increases to 3.5m width. This option requires the conversion of the angle parking to parallel parking within the business area between Medway Street and Avon Street, and removal of the flush median.

Within the business area, the conversion to parallel parking will remove some 17 spaces in order to support a consistent cycleway design along The Parade.

The indicative cost for Option C is $6.0 million.

Option D – one-way separated kerbside cycleway – above road level, with angle parking

This option is similar to Option C, providing a separated kerbside cycleway, with the cycleway above road level, either at mid-height between the roadway and footpath, or at footpath level. A kerb will separate the cycleway vertically from the roadway (and footpath if at mid-height), and horizontal separation for cyclists from parked vehicles is provided by a 900mm safety strip. Kerbside parking removal to address safety concerns at driveways, and extension of the cycle treatment along the entire length of The Parade to the Dee Street roundabout is proposed.

Removal of some 40 parking spaces in the residential area is designed to address the safety issues identified with visibility and vehicle manoeuvring to and from The Parade at driveways.

This option retains the existing eastern side kerb line and footpath widths. This option results in a reduction in the existing west side pedestrian footpath width to 1.6m, and provision of a 1.0m flush median between traffic lanes within the residential area. Within the business area, the west side pedestrian footpath reduces to 3.4m width, and the majority of the western kerbside angle parking remains between Medway Street and Avon Street.

Within the business area, the retention of angle parking, and provision of a consistent cycleway design along The Parade will require the removal of 2 spaces.

The indicative cost for Option D is $6.2 million.

What happens next?

The results of this consultation will be presented to the City Strategy Committee on 14 September. The Council (Mayor and Councillors) will consider the consultation feedback along with the outcomes of the Love the Bay process, NZTA guidelines, budgetary implications, and council strategy when making their decision.

The Council will then agree on the preferred option with the intention for implementation to begin before the end of this year. This will require detailed design and construction plans for the entire length of The Parade. When making changes to road layouts like this, the detailed plans must first be approved by the Council and accompanied by public consultation. The diagram below outlines the indicative timeline to undertake design and construction.

Indicative timeline

  • 14 September - City Strategy Committee receives consultation feedback and makes decision on preferred option
  • October - detailed 2-D designs developed
  • mid-November to mid-December - consultation on road changes
  • February 2018 - Council committee meetings and processes
  • March-April 2018 - Construction and engineering plans developed, safety audit conducted
  • May 2018 – Procurement
  • Late May - construction under way.

The designs will also be on display at the Love the Bay drop-in shop at 132 The Parade throughout the consultation period (31 July-13 August).

  • Monday - 4-7pm
  • Tuesday - 11am-4pm
  • Wednesday - 11am-7pm
  • Thursday - 9am - 3pm
  • Friday - closed
  • Saturday - 10am-4pm
  • Sunday – closed.

Councillors will be on site at the shop at appointed times if you would like to discuss your preferences with one of them directly. Visit www.wellington.govt.nz/theparade to see when Councillors will be in attendance, frequently asked questions, detailed design reports, or to make an online submission.

While we encourage and appreciate comments and discussion on social media, these will not be taken as formal submissions. Please also make a submission online at www.wellington.govt.nz/theparade to ensure your view is heard.