Cycling advocates make plea to Auckland Transport for safer roads

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Cycling advocacy groups say Auckland Transport isn't doing enough to make the city's roads safer.

Two cyclists have died on Auckland's roads in the past month. Levi James was killed after a collision with a truck at the Royal Oak roundabout on March 6, and Melissa Rays died in Mt Wellington on April 4.

Nobody should be killed for choosing to get around by bike, says Street Safe, the organisation behind a protest at Britomart last Saturday.

"Auckland's streets aren't safe", and not enough is being done to change that, says organiser Phillipp Governale.

The group says deaths can be avoided if safety is given priority over convenience.

Auckland Transport (AT) is seeking feedback on its draft parking strategy, which would remove car parking on 240km of the city's busiest roads over 10 years.

The plan aims to "reprioritise" road space for cycleways and bus lanes.

"AT is being exceedingly modest in their aims," says Gabriel Gati, from another advocacy group, Bike Auckland.

Gati says the plan will remove 3 percent of car parks from across the city.

"For the vast majority of roads, there are no separated cycleways, and speeds are still 50km/h or more."

AT needs to be "more courageous", to make meaningful changes, he says.

"It's far more important … that people get to ride their bikes … and not get killed" than prioritising cars.

Some business owners are concerned about losing customers if car parks are removed.

But opposition is "ridiculous", says Gati, who fears AT may appease a "very loud minority".

"Almost all of the time, if people can safely ride [their bikes] to their local shops, the profit of those shops goes up, not down," says Gati.

"We know most Aucklanders would ride their bikes if there were safer cycling infrastructure."

About 30 people attended the protest at Britomart.

Among them was Paul Walker, who says it's a challenge to "confront the public and force change".

"Nobody likes change; it takes a long time to get used to."

He says that challenge means AT makes "easy changes" that look like they're making a difference "when they're really not making a difference at all".

The groups' pleas for more cycleways and safety improvements come as AT faces financial pressure.

Underfunding, cost increases and construction delays have created budget pressure, with Covid-19 hitting revenue from public transport patronage.