The key problem is the loss of parking. Current estimates put it at 65 car parks, however people who have walked the route claim it is likely to be more.
RDC claims that parking is only at 70 per cent capacity, leaving room to spare, but these numbers are from studies that do not take into account peak times like Christmas, school holidays and Labour Weekend. At these times our CBD is packed and there is a serious shortage of car parks.
There is no cycleway in the world that would make up for this.
Another reasonable concern is over safety. Cyclists who have tried to cycle the route report a hellish experience
The proposed route will traverse no less than seven major intersections. This is asking for trouble, especially if we are asking tourists to take this route. This route is downright dangerous.
If the council had taken its time and done some real research, it would have realised these problems and potentially chosen a different route, such as 400m away where it could have done all this with very little impact. Or it could have taken the route via the Lakefront. That would be far more interesting for visitors than our inner city. This certainly won't help the CBD.
Lost car parks aside, I doubt people will shop more because they can balance shopping on their handle bars and cycle home.
How many people want a dedicated cycleway into our CBD anyway and how many people will use it? The chances are it will end up poorly used and unrecognised.
My only hope is it won't be added to the roll-call of other under performing council projects such as the airport, stadium, events centre and museum cafe.
- An earlier version of this article ran in the Rotorua Weekender
