A realistic and effective cycling strategy for the Hills Shire requires a solid foundation of facts about current and future demand, and the real needs of cyclists in the Shire. SLA Statistical Local Area SOE State of Environment Report SSD Statistical Subdivision TDC Transport Data Center THSC The Hills Shire Council.
INTRODUCTION
STUDY OBJECTIVES
METHODOLOGY
Analysis' - the detailed route planning phase in which the engineering measures for the establishment of the recommended system of cycle paths and other cycle facilities are determined. A planning methodology as described in Appendix E of the 1994 Cycle Plan was used to develop the new cycle network.
THE HILLS SHIRE’S PROFILE
Details of the various components and steps in the study approach used in the execution of this project are shown in the flow chart attached to APPENDIX 1. Some of the steps of these study components are not addressed at this stage due to project time constraints.
BACKGROUND
LANDUSE
ROAD NETWORK WITHIN THE HILLS SHIRE
CURRENT TRANSPORTATION ISSUES IN THE HILLS SHIRE
Statistical data obtained and published by the NSW Ministry of Transport Traffic Data Center (TDC) and the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) 2006 Census refer to FIGURE 1 below shows that more than half of the Shire's journeys are made by using private motor vehicles . The majority of trips made are for social and leisure purposes as indicated by the 2005 five-year aggregate Household Travel Survey (HTS) dataset, also collected and published by NSW Ministry of Transport TDC, refer to FIGURE 2 below.
TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURES
The North-West T-way was a $524 million public transport investment project and part of a plan to provide a modern, integrated public transport network for north-west Sydney. With the absence of a heavy rail network in the Shire, the local bus network has been the main form of public transport in the Shire.
CYCLING PROFILE IN THE HILLS SHIRE
Strategic Bus Corridors provide fast, direct and convenient bus services to serve travelers between major centers and the city. The local bus network is generally oriented around providing access to major centers and transport hubs.
GENERAL BICYCLE USAGE
In Baulkham Hills Town Centre, the NSW Government has also invested $10 million in a bus priority project to create a 24-hour southbound bus lane. Other corridors implemented gradually over time are Blacktown to Castle Hill (corridor no 3), Castle Hill and the city via the M2 (corridor 6), Castle Hill to Hornsby (corridor 5) and Castle Hill to Parramatta (corridor 40).
COMMUTER BICYCLE USAGE
- Origins of Cycling Trips – Travelling to Work
- Destination of Cycling Trips
- Commuter Bicycle Users by Gender
- Commuter Bicycle Users by Age
This means that men tend to cycle to work more often than women. An attached copy of the ABS Population and Housing Census 2006 – Method of travel to work by age for employed persons aged 15 and over in The Hills Shire LGA can be found attached to APPENDIX 7.
CURRENT CYCLING INTEGRATION WITH OTHER TRANSPORT
Details of the ABS 2006 Census Table are attached as APPENDIX 8 to this report.
RECREATIONAL BICYCLE USE
Highlights show Hills Shire 2006 recreational cycling participation rates higher than NSW averages. The popularity of recreational cycling has increased, from being ranked No. 8 in 1995 to being ranked No. 5 in 2006 as illustrated in Table 7 below.
INDICATORS OF COMMUNITY’S SATISFACTION TOWARDS
MOST DANGEROUS CYCLING LOCATIONS & ENVIRONMENTS
Other places that present cycling hazards are at pinch points where cyclists are forced into the flow of traffic by narrowing the available road space. A network of streams shown in MAP 4 crisscrosses the region that have cut deep valleys and steep escarpments into the surrounding landscape and present major restrictions and hazardous environments for cycling.
CYCLING TRIP GENERATORS & ATTRACTORS
Centres
Baulkham Hills, Box Hill – Potential, Carlingford, North Rocks, North Kellyville – Planned, Round Corner dhe Wrights Road. Baulkham Hills, Felton Road: Carlingford, Glenhaven, Memorial Avenue - Planned, North Kellyville - Potential, Samantha Riley Drive: Kellyville - Planned, Ventura Road: Northmead dhe Woodstock Road: Carlingford.
Public Transport at Centres
A bus interchange and railway station are proposed to serve the center as part of the North West Metro. The center is not on a main road, so access via public transport is limited to local bus services only.
IMPORTANT CYCLING IMPROVEMENTS
However, the M2 motorway and Old Windsor Road continue near the town centre, providing important vehicular access. 6 Secure bicycle parking 7 Bicycle maintenance classes 8 Bicycle registration scheme 9 Being able to take bicycles with you.
BICYCLE THEFT
IMPROVEMENT (Identified by Teenage . Cyclists) 1 Sealed shoulders on roads Traffic volumes 2 Marked bike lanes on roads Poor road surface 3 Bike training tracks for small. Importantly, the surveys found that cycling training for young children and classes in cycling and road rules rated higher than the construction of cycle paths.
BICYCLE ACCIDENTS
- Age groups of Pedal Cyclist Accidents
- Gender of Pedal Cyclist Accidents
- Location of Pedal Cyclist Accidents
- Type of Pedal Cyclist Accidents
Further analysis of the data showed that 47 per cent of all reported cyclist accidents from 1996 to 2007 occurred on state roads and highways that are within the Hills Shire LGA. Full data of the type of RUM involved in pedaling from 1996 to 2007 within the Hills Shire LGA is shown in FIGURE 13 below.
CYCLING ROAD ENVIRONMENT
Road Shoulders
The exact locations of each pedal cyclist accident are plotted and shown on MAP 7. The highest recorded road user movement (RUM) of a pedal cyclist accident was RUM 48 "Off Path".
Kerb Side Lanes
Provision of closed road shoulders should be considered in the upgrading of these types of roads in all future rural road projects.
Roads Around Cycling Trip Generators
EXISTING BICYCLE PATHWAYS
EXISTING LOCAL RECREATIONAL NETWORK
Toongabbie Creek Cycleway: - extends from Old Windsor Road under the M7 motorway north through Col Sutton Park, William Joyce Reserve, Sophia Doyle Reserve and Torry Burn Reserve to Windsor Road near Roxborough Park Road. A link is also available through Crestwood Reserve and MacKillop Drive Reserve to Windsor Road near the Castle Hill light industrial area.
PROPOSED LOCAL RECREATIONAL NETWORK
Cattai Creek Trail: - As part of the Kellyville/Rouse Hill Recreation Area, recreational access is planned along Cattai Creek from Glenhaven Bridge to Castle Hill Light Industrial Area through the Fred Caterson Reserve. There are then links to the Castle Hill Light Industrial Area via Harrington Avenue and Greenway.
EXISTING REGIONAL ROUTES
All new cycle paths are made of ocher-colored concrete that helps to steer and guide cyclists and pedestrians.
EXISTING REGIONAL RECREATIONAL ROUTES OR LINKS49
DEVELOPING THE BICYCLE NETWORK
Regional Bicycle Routes
These roads provide the fastest and most direct means of travel between regional centers (the equivalent of the road hierarchy is state and regional roads). The roads are under the care and control of the Council with the support of the NSW RTA.
Local Bicycle Routes and Links
Recreational and Regional Recreational Bicycle Routes
The total length of the proposed cycle routes in this conceptual plan within the Shire is shown in TABLE 14 below.
ENGINEERING TREATMENTS
- General
- Bicycle Provisions on Streets
- On-Road Separation Treatments for Bicycle Riders
- Treatment 1: Exclusive Bicycle Lanes (Full-Time) Adjacent to
- Treatment 2: Exclusive Bicycle Lanes – Protected Two-Way
- Treatment 3: Road Shoulders / Bicycle or Car Parking
- Off-Road Separation Treatments for Bicycle Riders
- Treatment 4: Shared Path
- Treatment 5: Separated Shared Path
- Treatment 6: Other Treatment Considerations
- Signage and Line-marking
- Regional (Commuter) Routes
- Local Routes
- Recreational Bike Routes
On roads with high traffic, high speeds and multi-lane roads, off-road paths should be provided. Off-road shared trails that are within the road reserve usually run alongside the roadway.
ACTION PRIORITY & IMPLEMENTATION
However, painted cycle pavement symbols should be set up on local routes to indicate the cycle route's existence. It is therefore emphasized that these estimated costs are indicative only and should be used as a guide.
IDENTIFY FUNDING SOURCES
- Council Rates
- The Roads and Traffic Authority of NSW
- Memorandum of Understanding (MOU)
- Block Grant – Signs & Line Markings
- Block Grant – Regional Roads
- NSW Department of Planning
- Metropolitan Greenspace Program
- Sharing Sydney Harbour Access Program
- NSW Department of Arts, Sports and Recreation
- Capital Assistance Program (CAP)
- Section 94 Contributions
- Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and
- Nation Building Program Roads to Recovery
Developers can either provide facilities as part of the development or make financial contributions to the Council's section 94 funds. The provision of cycling facilities in these contribution plans is particularly extensive within the new LGA relaxation areas.
BICYCLE PARKING
- Existing Locations
- Proposed Locations
- Requirements of Bicycle Parking in DCP
- Monitoring & Encouragement of Bicycle Parking Facilities
Future Castle Hill Bus Interchange Secure Cycle Lockers - Class 1 & Rails - Class 3 Stockland Mall, Baulkham Hills Rails - Class 3 & Secure. Bike lockers - Class 1 Westfield, North Rocks Rails - Class 3 Carlingford Branch Library Rails - Class 3 Post Office St Shops, Carlingford Rails - Class 3. Norwest Market Town, Bella Vista Rails - Class 3 & secure bike lockers - Class 1 Round the corner Shops, Round Corner Secure Bike Lockers - Class.
PLANNING CONSIDERATIONS
- Integrating Cycling into Local Planning Framework and other
- Current Provisions of Cycling in Council’s LEP
- Future Cycleway Development in the Shire
- Current Planning and Construction of Cycleway Practices
- Interactions of Social, Cultural, Economy, Political and the
- Cultural
- Social
- Economic Impacts
- Political Influences
- Environmental sustainability
The council is committed to providing cycling facilities for the community because of the benefits it can bring to the community. The Strategy (December 2007) was also used to help shape the Council's LEP and support the DCP. A review of the Hills Shire 2005 LEP indicates that cycle lanes can be built in the following zones below with Council approval.
BEHAVIOURAL STRATEGY
DEVISED EDUCATIONAL & ENCOURAGEMENT PROGRAMS /
Cycling road safety campaigns – Council to run road safety and cycling awareness campaigns in collaboration with other organizations such as Department of Education, RTA and the local Police Service. It also gives the Council the opportunity to promote cycling and educate children in road safety and cycle maintenance. Educate children through the Council's libraries by stocking cycling books, road safety books, posters and activity sheets.
ENFORCEMENT
It should be noted that the Council does not provide training for cycling in schools, as the Education Department has its own road safety plan and consultants who train teachers in schools on road safety issues. The RTA has also produced comprehensive road safety information packs that are administered to schools to help teachers educate their students about these road safety issues, which include bicycle safety. Bicycle safety is taught in elementary schools under the "Move Ahead with Street Sense" curriculum, which promotes and educates elementary school students with appropriate road safety messages.
NSW Roads and Traffic Authority Traffic accident data in The Hills Shire LGA, NSW Roads and Traffic Authority, Sydney. Stratcorp Consulting, 2007, Recreation Strategy - Prepared for The Hills Shire Council, The Hills Shire Council, Castle Hill, Volumes 1, 2 and 3. Sustainable Development Unit, Health and Environmental Protection Group, 2008, The Hills State of the Environment Report Shire Council Hills Shire Council, Castle Hill.
Hills Shire Council, 2008, Adopted Draft Local Strategy – New Strategic Direction for Hills Shire, Hills Shire Council, Castle Hill. Hills Shire Council, 2008, Environment and Leisure Management - Planning, Protection and Management of the Shire's Green Spaces, Hills Shire Council. Hills Shire Council, 2008, Integrated Transport Management for Hills Shire, Hills Shire Council, Castle Hill.
The Hills Shire Council, 2008, The Hills 2026 Community Strategic Direction, The Hills Shire Council, Castle Hill.
