Architect’s tunnel vision for the city

ARCHITECT Scott Balmforth says Hobart is ready for a tunnel that will allow pedestrians to travel from the city to the sea — easily.

The “City to Cove” report, by Terroir Architects, was commissioned by Hobart City Council to devise a link from the CBD to the waterfront and improve pedestrian crossings at Macquarie and Davey streets.

The $7 million Terroir plan includes a tunnel, lifts and escalators to carry pedestrians from the CBD to the waterfront.

Mr Balmforth says his plan would be “transformative” for Hobart — and “a catalyst” to make people move more between the waterfront and the CBD.

“It would change how people think about their city and the cove and that would be an amazing thing,” he said.

From Franklin Square the highest point, to Sullivans Cove, the lowest, Mr Balmforth says the city deserves a walkway link that would take pedestrians through a tunnel via Brooke St under Davey St and up again, via stairs, escalator and a lift into Franklin Square to a vista of the fountain, large oak trees and the GPO clock tower and city rising in the background.

“This is an opportunity to link two really significant public spaces — the waterfront and Franklin Square as the forecourt to the city. What better way to arrive in the city?”

Hobart’s hilly terrain is a challenge to pedestrians, but nowhere more than the climb from Sullivans Cove up Murray St, Mr Balmforth said.

The 2010 council headcount of 100,000 foot journeys along Elizabeth and Murray streets to Sullivans Cove has increased and explodes during festival times.

Pedestrian movement numbers are “historical and not updated,’’ Mr Balmforth said. “In the last four weeks the amount of movement by Dark Mofo would have skewed these numbers.”

As part of the Terroir report to council, a national specialist access consultant calculated that the steepness of Murray St was almost impossible for people with age or mobility issues to walk up and down, Mr Balmforth said.

“He found that Elizabeth St is quite a long continuous climb. For a manual wheelchair person to go from the corner of Murray and Morrison St to the Elizabeth St mall, they would need to go right down almost to the City Hall. That’s about a 980m journey.

“We’ve done the numbers — the tunnel link is a bit over 400m — using a lift as part of that mobility access. What the numbers don’t tell you is the number of journeys people might take if the movement was easier for them.”

A group calling itself Better Hobart has criticised the idea as outdated and belonging to the ’50s and ’60s.

Mr Balmforth agreed there were some catastrophic examples worldwide.

Alderman Anna Reynolds, a member of the Hobart City Council infrastructure committee, said the $7 million price tag for an underpass was ridiculous.

“Imagine how many thousands of metres of footpaths around Hobart we could repair or bike paths we could create with this money?” she said.

Mr Balmforth said the $7 million price tag was “a significant amount, but well spent because of the returns to the city and the locals who live here — it’s not just for visitors, it’s for everyone.”

The City to Cove plan will be considered by council next month.