Lee Waters, renowned for his pivotal role as former Deputy Climate Change and Transport Minister in the Welsh Government is visiting Australia and will be hosted by Better Streets in Sydney and Melbourne.
Lee will share his journey of implementing 30 km/h (20 mph) as the default urban speed limit across Wales. His experiences and challenges in driving transformative change towards achieving the Paris climate targets promise to offer invaluable lessons in policy and leadership. This is a unique opportunity for advocates and community members alike to delve into the intersection of policy and effective governance. Sydney Lee Walers will be joined by Rob Stokes, former NSW Minister for Cities, Planning and Public spaces , Transport and Infrastructure, alongside Lord Mayor of the City of Sydney, Clover Moore AO. Following a keynote address from Lee, he will be joined onstage by Rob Stokes and the Lord Mayor Clover Moore for a fireside chat. Together, they will explore the complexities of reducing urban speeds and discuss how community engagement can build crucial social acceptance for such initiatives. This event is being held in collaboration with Committee for Sydney, AITPM, City of Sydney, WalkSydney and the Henry Halloran Research Trust. Date and time: Thursday, August 15 · 6 - 7:30pm AEST Location: Sydney Town Hall - 483 George Street Sydney, NSW 2000 Get directions Registration link: register here Melbourne Following a keynote address from Lee, he will be joined by moderator Julian O'Shea and guests Lauren Pearson, Ben Rossiter and Sophie Wade for a chat and then Q&A. Together, they will explore the complexities of reducing urban speeds and discuss how Yarra's pioneering 30 km/h zone can grow across Melbourne. Date and time: Wed 28th Aug 2024, 6:00 pm - 7:30 pm AEST Location: The Provincial Hotel 299 Brunswick St, Fitzroy VIC 3065, Australia Get directions Registration link: register here
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Change takes time, and in the case of the Curl Curl - Freshwater Connectivity and Streetscape Upgrade, lots and lots of time. The Northern Beaches Council first considered options to better connect the Sydney suburbs of Curl Curl and Freshwater in 2021. Though a shared path was originally proposed, an outpouring of community support for a separated cycleway saw it approved in April 2022 and works began in November 2022. This was a massive win for the community. The cycleway will connect thousands of homes, shops, two schools and several parks to the existing cycleway network. An outline of the cycleway’s 1.4km route within the planned cycleway network is shown below. However, since work began it hasn’t been smooth sailing. Local residents encountered issues such as not knowing where to park or how to access their driveways, and narrowed lanes made it more difficult to turn safely. After community outcry, work was paused in June 2023 and partially reversed, for further community consultation and refinement. Following further community consultation, the option of a shared pedestrian-cyclist path was revived as a compromise. Better Streets Northern Beaches firmly objected to the shared path option, the reasons including:
Throughout this process Better Streets Northern Beaches has worked with Northern Beaches Council to complete this cycleway. Better Streets Northern Beaches and Bicycle NSW have lodged several joint submissions and met with the project team on multiple occasions. Following these discussions Council’s team implemented several suggested changes such as additional landscaping along the route. Crucially, after Better Streets' advocacy with strong support from the community, Councillors voted in April 2024 to move forward with the proposed separated cycleway, pending Transport for NSW feedback. An artistic render of what the cycleway might look like when complete is given above (title image). Better Streets Northern Beaches wholeheartedly supports the Curl Curl to Freshwater Cycleway and hope that this marathon journey to deliver a cycleway is coming to an end. The project will not only provide a new and safe Active Transport connection, but will deliver a whole host of other benefits including:
While this project, like so many others, has encountered hurdles and delays we are confident that once complete, the community will wonder how they ever lived without it! Nevertheless, advocacy for Better Streets for the Northern Beaches continues. Recently we’ve:
Better Streets Northern Beaches is currently gearing up to formally register as a community group with Northern Beaches Council, which will strengthen our ties and ability to work constructively with the Council . If you live on Sydney’s Northern Beaches and want to follow or join us on our mission for safer and more active communities, please reach out on Facebook or [email protected], we’d love to have you on board! Better Streets has signed a joint statement to the Australian Government in response to their open call for consultation on developing Australia's Transport and Infrastructure Net Zero Roadmap and Action Plan.
The joint statement is being organised by Climate Action Network Australia (CANA) here and has over 60 signatories from around Australia. The Joint Statement recommends the government:
Read to the Joint Statement here. Did you know that around 60% of car trips in Sydney’s Inner West are under 5 kilometres? That’s a short distance – perfect for hopping on a bike! But here’s the catch: our street designs prioritise driving over walking and riding a bicycle...
This means pedestrians have to cross wide streets without protection, and bike riders are often squeezed between parked cars and speeding drivers. The Inner West’s bike advocates have been inspired by our neighbours in the City of Sydney. They’ve shown us that high-quality cycleways can be built rapidly, transforming the way people move around the city. Safer infrastructure means more riders, less congestion, better health outcomes, and increased independence for students and mobility scooter users, too! The Inner West Council has worked hard on a Cycling Strategy, but we've yet to see much action on the ground. With a train line closing for upgrades, and new urban highways causing unprecedented congestion, the Inner West Bicycle Coalition has started a petition to show council that we want and need more cycleways now! Join us in creating a safer, greener, and happier Inner West. Sign the petition, share it with your friends, and let’s pedal toward a brighter future! 👉 Sign the Petition here: https://www.change.org/SafeCyclingInnerWest At its 4th June meeting, the Inner West Council unanimously voted for the motion raised by Councillors Dylan Griffiths and Tim Stephens on our petition. The council resolution acknowledged our petition and has requested council staff to produce a report outlining opportunities to accelerate cycleway delivery. However, we need more than a report to improve our streets! Whether you’re a school kid, a daily commuter, or a cargo-bike enthusiast with toddlers, pets, or groceries, we want you to reach your destination safely and with a smile. Remember, every signature counts! Together, we’ll turn our streets into vibrant, bike-friendly corridors. 🌟 Happy cycling! Better Streets has urged the Australian Government’s National Transport Commission to put people first when they write their safety laws for automated vehicles. The discussion paper is here. The laws will govern completely autonomous self-driving vehicles as well as a range of driver assistance technologies.
At short notice Better Streets volunteers mobilised to meet with government bureaucrats and write a submission. This was important because most of the input has been from industry groups with little input from the broader community due to poor advertising and communication of the consultation opportunity. Our submission urged the government to use the law as a reset for how safe operation of vehicles is understood nationally. We put forward clear principles for the government to adopt to underpin the laws:
The submission included more information emphasising the first five that were quite different to the framework that was proposed by the government. We will organise another meeting to discuss the themes of the submission further with the team working on the laws. Get in touch if you are interested in being involved. Thanks to Gill King for organising the initial meeting with the government team and her analysis of the consultation draft. A good National Urban Policy should have a vision and be a coordinated framework for urban development, ensuring efficient use of resources across states and cities. It should align investments in infrastructure, transport, services, and housing, enhancing access to funding. A good urban policy would prioritise sustainable, inclusive growth and investment that supports the development of climate-friendly, people-friendly, liveable urban spaces. Unfortunately, the draft National Urban Policy for Australia, which is out for consultation now until 4 July 2024 (A National Urban Policy for Australia | Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development, Communications and the Arts), lacks many of these qualities. Better Streets has a set of recommendations to improve the policy and will be meeting the Cities and Suburbs unit at the Australian Government to share with them. Feedback from individuals and organisations is highly recommended. TLDR: Pages 34, 35 and 41 are the most important to read from a Better Streets perspective. We suggest you read these and comment specifically on those pages. Better Streets president Sara Stace explains the Recommendations: 1. Create an Implementation Plan As recommended in the UN guide on How to Formulate a National Urban Policy, it needs to have an Implementation Plan setting out what the government will do, when, the baseline data and how it will be monitored. Progress then needs to be reported annually. Currently, each chapter includes ‘discussion’ about what the Australian Government is currently doing, muddled into the policy sections. 2. Provide clear, unequivocal recommendations for the Australian Government to action The policy also needs to be absolutely unequivocal about what it considers to be best practice (e.g. mixed-use infill with good public transport and amenities) and worst practice that should be strongly discouraged (e.g. unfettered urban expansion that will be car-dependent for decades). The Australian Government has a number of levers it can pull, such as:
3. Provide evidence and remove the platitudes The 2011 policy was accompanied by detailed evidence - in the form of discussion papers and the annual State of Australian Cities reports. This draft includes a wide range of platitudes, such as ‘Adequately housing our workforce will support productivity and growth in our cities, improving our lives and ensuring we can adapt to future challenges’, and unsubstantiated claims, such as ‘areas with greater childcare availability have higher female workforce participation rates’. 4. Focus solely on urban areas, and differentiate between demographic and spatial issues
The Principles are the strongest section of this draft:
For more information, Better Streets President Sara Stace wrote a LinkedIn post about the drawbacks of the draft policy. Having written the original 2011 version, and the global guide for the UN on How to Formulate a National Urban Policy, you can read them here: link).
The prioritisation of car parking in our busy town centres and along our cities’ high streets increases traffic, pollution and noise and discourages people from staying in an area to socialise and create a sense of community. To make matters worse, the increasing tendency of local councils to not install seating or shade along high streets (or worse to install hostile architecture) further discourages the use of our streets for anything but the most utilitarian uses. This is as true for Sydney as any major Australian city. For a country that is known to love being outdoors and with a climate that is conducive to lingering outside, we’ve created an urban environment that discourages people from sitting outside and enjoying the streets. As Committee for Sydney says in its excellent Reclaiming Sydney’s High Streets report: Most of Sydney’s streets, including its main shopping streets, lack places to sit. It’s a sign of a great street when it invites people to stop, rest, and check out the urban scenery. This, along with shade and shelter, is a key element in enticing people to stay on a street rather than just walk through. We shouldn’t have to go to a café every time we want to sit down. Above: Hostile architecture in Dulwich Hill (left) and Marrickville (right), Sydney. Source: Author At Better Streets we want the community to be able to use and enjoy safe, attractive, shaded, comfortable streets for recreation, socialisation, safe transport, community events, and more! And a critical point of public space is it should be for everyone and not cost money to use. At the same time, studies have shown that people walking or riding a bicycle spend more money in local retailers than people arriving by car and improved walking and cycling amenities can increase retail spend by up to 30%. It’s well established that when you design streets for people, you get all the things that come along with that: community, leisure, connection, recreation, commerce and celebration. One way to address our car-dominated city high streets is to advocate for car parking spaces or entire carparks to be given over to community use through conversion to ‘town squares’, parks or parklets in place of kerbside parking for public use or cafe use. Above: Good Design Projects, Parklet commissioned by Randwick Council (left), and Foursquare, Summer Hill Piazza (right) But how to do this? There’s no one-size-fits-all approach, but here are some things to think about:
In some cases, the best way to change the way a street works will be to test interventions through temporary pilot projects. This was famously how New York City began the process of pedestrianising Times Square: the first move was temporary planters and a coat of paint. Cities all over the world have converted single parking spaces at the side of the road called “parklets” - small art installations, mini parks, and café seating that occupy parking spaces next to the kerb. Bike lanes, bus lanes, footpath widenings, and many other changes can be trialled on a temporary basis. Lessons from the trial can then be converted into permanent changes. Marrickville Town Square Sydneysiders love the rich multicultural heritage, offbeat underground arts scene and fabulous food offerings of Marrickville, an inner city suburb around 5 km from the Sydney Central Business District. But if you’ve ever walked down traffic-filled Illawarra Road on a hot day to buy groceries, queued for a banh mi, or played chess at Café Nho, you’ll probably agree – it would be so nice to have a shady place to sit down, for people to come together, socialise, chat, eat their banh mi without having to resort to hovering next to the carpark or sitting in the back of their vans (see below!). Above: Locals trying to eat their lunch in the only available bit of public space on Illawarra Rd - the back of their van in the Calvert St carpark. Source: Dan Conway. Currently there are very few central places to gather in Marrickville, in the style of the Piazza in Summer Hill or the new Parramatta Square, and also very little seating or shade along the major high streets. Above: Plenty of street parking on Illawarra Road, Marrickville, but nowhere for people to sit down. For this reason, a group of local residents have started a petition to the Inner West council for the conversion of the Calvert St carpark into a town square. The group has also:
But the goal of the campaign is a permanent reclaiming of that space from cars, for community use. The space could be used for food markets, outdoor music, chess, table tennis, screenings of football matches, and any number of community events. Therefore the campaign is ramping up support for the petition currently, to demonstrate the extent of the support for such a change in the community. Above: Artist's Impression of the proposed Marrickville Town Square The campaign’s experience has been that most local residents are desperate for a public space and the proposition makes total sense to people intuitively. Some choice quotes from petition signatories include:
The biggest barriers are those in the small business representatives who are very concerned about loss of parking. The campaign has worked to reassure residents that there will still be back street parking and direct them to parking areas they may not know about, while emphasising the need to improve public transport, widen footpaths, and generally improve public amenity so residents don’t feel compelled to drive to their local shops.
We encourage you to sign the petition for Marrickville Town Square here: https://www.change.org/p/we-want-marrickville-town-square For more information:
Better Streets was recently invited by The Greens’ Cate Faehrmann and Kobi Shetty to NSW Parliament House for a discussion about shared streets in NSW. Alongside our colleagues from Walk Sydney, Bicycle NSW, 30Please and Inner West BUG, we explored how The Greens could shape their policies to ensure more inclusive, safer and environmentally-friendly streets and communities.
We welcomed this opportunity to collaborate with The Greens on developing sensible policies for sustainable transport and healthy streets. We are open to working with any party interested in fostering a more inclusive and sustainable transport future for communities around Australia. In our workshop, we proposed three key infrastructure recommendations and three enablers to ensure the best outcomes for our communities, which are outlined in further detail below. Infrastructure: 1. Introduce a 30km/h default Urban Speed Limit 2. Allocate 20% of the transport budget to Active Transport 3. Focus on schools to enable 75% of children to walk, cycle or use public transport. Enablers: 4. Undertake a deep reform of transport across state and local governments 5. Establish a Carbon Budget for all sectors, including transport 6. Embed a fully integrated approach to transport and land use planning. Recommendation 1. Introduce a 30km/h default Urban Speed Limit At 30km/h drivers have a wider field of vision and a greater chance of noticing potential hazards and stopping in time. At this speed most people, including children and the elderly, will survive a collision. Reduced speeds also make streets quieter, reduce noise pollution and encourage more people to walk and cycle. More detail about our position is at Slow vehicles down - Better Streets. Recommendation 2. Allocate 20% of the transport budget to Active Transport To achieve a substantial mode shift and reduce carbon emissions from transport, investment must be redirected to active and public transport. Countries like Ireland and Sweden allocate 18-20% of their transport budgets to active transport. Adopting this approach in NSW, in conjunction with our other recommendations, would transform our streets - much like Paris has done in recent years. Recommendation 3. Focus on schools to enable 75% of children to walk, cycle, or use public transport Focusing on schools is crucial for creating a safe and encouraging environment for children. Improving infrastructure around schools to enable children to walk independently, improves their health and wellbeing and significantly reduces traffic congestion and pollution around schools. See our position at Better Streets at school - Better Streets Recommendation 4. Undertake a deep reform of transport We believe the time has come for a deep review of Transport for NSW (TfNSW) and local governments to address the systemic issues hindering optimal outcomes. Key actions that we recommend include:
b) carbon reduction c) better streets outcomes (30kmh, cycleways, crossings) d) reduction in pedestrian and bicycle-rider fatalities.
Recommendation 5. Establish a Carbon Budget for all sectors, including transport NSW should implement a carbon budget for all sectors to meet legislated carbon reduction targets for 2030, 2035 and 2050. This would entail setting five-year carbon budgets that progressively decrease for each sector, including transport. In Wales, the Well-being of Future Generations Act (2015) created a legal obligation for all public bodies to ensure they don’t compromise future generations, while the Net Zero Wales Carbon Budget requires agencies to ensure that every decision keeps the agency within its allocated carbon budget. A Roads Review panel found most road projects needed to be halted because of their anticipated embodied carbon and operational emissions. It did not accept rising traffic forecasts as justification for increased road capacity, highlighting the need to focus on sustainable transport solutions instead. We strongly recommend that NSW adopt a similar approach. Recommendation 6. Embed a fully integrated approach to transport and land use planning If we are serious about reducing emissions and conclude, as the Welsh Government did, that road building needs to be halted, then we need to re-think our planning for urban areas. Better Streets argues that state and local governments should immediately reject all new developments that perpetuate car dependency for current and future generations. Instead, we should support compact, efficient urban forms. This involves prioritising infill over greenfield development. The NSW Government’s commitment to Transit-Oriented Developments (TODs) is a first step, by increasing density around major public transport. However this also needs to be accompanied by a serious commitment to reduced traffic speeds, improved streetscapes and parklands, and better infrastructure provision for those communities. If we cease building new roads, we can redirect funds to more sustainable initiatives, such as public and active transport, streetscape improvements and affordable housing. The Victorian Government subsidises greenfield areas by $170 000 per home which could instead fund affordable housing in infill areas. Infrastructure Victoria shows that compact development uses less land, encourages shorter driving distances, increases the use of active and public transport, and results in lower overall emissions. We are delighted to see that the Yarra City Council has approved an extension of the area to which its 30km/h speed limit applies, to cover all the streets within the boundaries of the Melbourne suburbs of Fitzroy and Collingwood (apart from the Johnston Street arterial) [1]. Fitzroy and Collingwood are relatively densely populated inner city suburbs (with 19,610 residents), just 3 kilometres from Melbourne’s Central Business District. Around 28% of households across the two suburbs do not own a car (compared with 8.5% for Greater Melbourne) [2] indicating a very high reliance on walking and cycling in the area. Streets Alive Yarra, a local safe streets advocacy group (and Better Streets coalition member) has led the campaign for a street-friendly reduction in the speed limit. Founder and president Jeremy Lawrence said: “the reduced speed limit is the lowest cost measure for maximum possible safety access...benefitting people of all ages and abilities; kids, seniors, parents with prams.“ [4] The improved safety outcomes of the the City of Yarra trial reflects the overwhelming evidence from health and safety authority research, and the experience of cities around the world, including Toronto (Canada), Bogota (Columbia) and London (UK) [5]. Lower vehicle speeds on residential streets are not just about fewer crashes. Lower speeds support the use of the street for people of all ages and abilities to walk, to ride, to socialise, to gather at local businesses. For Better Streets, the 30km/h limit is a vital step to getting kids active, boosting local business, and providing transport choices. If you want people-friendly speed limits in your local streets:
[1] The Melbourne Age, 9 May 2024. Speed limit cut to 30km/h on almost every street in two suburbs.
https://www.theage.com.au/national/victoria/collingwood-and-fitzroy-streets-drop-to-30km-h-from-today-20240509-p5in8u.html [2] Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2021. Community profile for Fitzroy, Collingwood, Greater Melbourne. [3] The Melbourne Age, 15 November 2023. Melbourne council votes to drop speed limit to 30km/h to protect cyclists, pedestrians https://www.theage.com.au/national/victoria/melbourne-council-votes-to-drop-speed-limit-to-30km-h-to-protect-cyclists-pedestrians-20231115-p5ek1k.html [4] Streets Alive Yarra, 9 May 2024. Yarra City Council Green Lights New 30km/h Speed Limit Trial https://streets-alive-yarra.org/journal/expanded-30-km-h-zone/ [5] Better Streets, Recommendation 2 https://www.betterstreets.org.au/slow-vehicles-downs.html Australian government to fund $100 million national Active Transport FundKey points
Full Release Better Streets welcomes the Australian Government’s announcement of a $100 million national Active Transport Fund. It’s pleasing to see funding to upgrade and deliver new bicycle and walking paths. Investing in active transport is the most effective way to deliver mobility freedom for Australians. Active transport infrastructure provides safe, healthy, enjoyable and convenient options to walk or ride a bicycle, enabling people of all ages to access school, jobs, or services at a low cost. The Better Streets Recommendation #1 to all governments is to get kids active, to encourage 75% of children to walk, cycle, scoot, or take public transport to school everyday, setting them up with healthy habits for life. To make this happen we need investment in bicycle and walking paths, which the announcement provides. Similarly, Recommendation #4 is to make more crossings for people walking, and Recommendation #5 is to build more bicycle routes, directly align with the announcement. Every journey that can be switched to active transport is a win for our environment and a win for our children’s future. Better Streets calls upon each state and territory government to match the federal government’s announcement, dollar for dollar, and to provide stable, continual investment in active transport, which is core to building better streets. Quotes attributable to Sara Stace, President “Better Streets welcomes the Australian Government’s announcement of a $100 million national Active Transport Fund.” “Investing in active transport is a way to deliver mobility freedom for Australians, enabling people of all ages to get around in a low cost manner.” “Better Streets calls upon each state and territory government to match the federal government’s announcement, dollar for dollar, and to provide stable, continual investment in active transport, which is core to building better streets that are safe, healthy, and accessible and enjoyable for all.” About Better Streets Better Streets is the peak body for accelerating the adoption of safe, healthy, people-friendly, climate-friendly streets, right across Australia. Better Streets is a registered charity, run by volunteers, experts, educators, and advocates. Our goal is to educate, connect and empower our coalition of community groups, businesses, decision-makers and individuals to take more effective, scalable action and advocate to improve our streets. https://www.betterstreets.org.au/about-us.html Reference: Australia Government. (7 May 2024). National Active Transport Fund. https://minister.infrastructure.gov.au/c-king/media-release/national-active-transport-fund Download Press Release
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