Skip to main content

Melbourne fast-tracks 40km of new bike lanes

Australian city binned its bike-share scheme but is now making more space for two wheels
By Adam Hill June 17, 2020 Read time: 2 mins
The Melbourne bike-share scheme was scrapped last year, but the city is still keen on bikes (© Rafael Ben Ari | Dreamstime.com)

The City of Melbourne is making more space on its roads for bicycles, adding 40km of dedicated bike lanes to its road network. 

Lord Mayor Sally Capp said they would be 'adaptable', which means they "can be constructed and installed more quickly".

The city, which scrapped its own bike-share scheme last year, said lanes will be built in two stages, with the first 20km in 2020-21 via a $16 million investment.

The new routes are part of the Australian city's Transport Strategy 2030, which sets out a 10-year plan to become a "premier cycling city with a network of protected cycling lanes and intersections, lots of bike parking and facilities for cyclists".

"We've seen other leading cities around the world such as Paris, London and Milan successfully integrate cycling as a key mode of transport to reduce congestion and accommodate growth," said councillor Nicolas Frances Gilley, transport portfolio chair.

"We will use plastics, rubber and recycled materials than can be installed quickly so we can accelerate bike lane delivery. The infrastructure we install will be functional for years to come and can be progressively replaced with fixed lanes over time as required."

The authorities have carried out research which suggests that it is essential to create physical protection from motor vehicles if people are to have the confidence to ride in the city centre.

The first priority routes include:

Exhibition Street stage one (Flinders Street to Bourke Street)
Rathdowne Street (Victoria Street to Faraday Street)
William Street (Dudley Street to Flinders Street)
Abbotsford Street (Flemington Road to Queensberry Street)
Swanston Street (around the University of Melbourne from Grattan Street to Cemetery Road).

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Local residents back major safety improvements at Hammersmith gyratory
    August 8, 2016
    Transport for London (TfL) has released the results of the Hammersmith gyratory improvement consultation, which received a high level of public support. Nearly 80 per cent of respondents backed TfL’s plans for improvements, which will significantly improve cyclist safety at one of London's most intimidating and busy junctions. Dedicated cycling crossings will be installed, pedestrian facilities will be improved and a new bus lane added that will boost the reliability of bus services for customers. Th
  • Coloured Premark signs mark Moscow’s cycle lanes
    March 3, 2014
    Geveko Materials, which combined the sales forces of Plastiroute, Cleanosol and LKF, all of them long-established names in the road marking industry, will have a major presence at Intertraffic Amsterdam 2014. An indication of how the company is developing the sector, and providing flexibility involves a bicycle marking project in Moscow. As the company points out, there are many opportunities to include coloured symbols and white signs as informative and guiding elements for traffic. Some signs, symbols,
  • Ride-hailing firm Lyft highlights new bike-share service
    December 5, 2018
    Lyft, the ride-hailing firm which rivals Uber, has shown off the distinctive, pink-tyred bicycles which it is to use in its new bike-share programme. The company has completed its acquisition of US bike-share giant Motivate, which was announced in the summer, and will branch into two-wheel journeys soon. The company says this represents a “natural extension of Lyft’s vision to improve transportation access, sustainability and affordability”. Lyft says that 80% of all bike-share rides in the US were co
  • Lindsay zips-up lane closure solution
    May 11, 2017
    Moveable barrier systems are offering engineers a new traffic management options. Work zones - be they for maintenance or road widening - are a fact of life and when they occur on major highways, they create no end of problems for traffic planners and travellers alike.