Porirua cycle path scrapped

‘‘There are some places where it's not even wide enough to put a path in.’’

After 10 years of planning, Titahi Bay’s cycleway has been scrapped.

Porirua City Council has abandoned the $1.7 million pathway along Porirua Harbour, blaming coastal erosion that would take too much money, and time, to fix.

With work due to begin this year, the 1.45-kilometre route was planned to run along Titahi Bay Rd, between Onepoto Road and Wineera Drive, and link Titahi Bay with Porirua city.

Instead, the money will be spent on improving and linking existing pathways within the city, the council decided last week.

The planned pathway was previously heralded by the council as a safety improvement for pedestrians and cyclists using the busy road, and was intended to be a 2.6-metre-wide shared route.

It was given the go-ahead last year, after being in the council’s Long-Term Plan for nearly 10 years.

In 2016, the need to control erosion saw the ratepayer portion of the project rise $40,000 to $368,000, with the NZ Transport Agency contributing $700,000 from its urban cycle and national transport funds.

The urban cycleway funding was available only for work that was well under way before the end of June 2018, which meant there would be no time to carry out erosion repairs and control.

Porirua City Council roading manager Geoff Marshall said it was a shame the pathway had been canned, but the work needed to stabilise the side of Titahi Bay Rd was currently out of the council’s budget.

‘‘There are some places where it’s not even wide enough to put a path in.’’

The option of an inland track had been considered, but there were still hopes for the ‘‘ultimate’’ path, along the harbour’s edge, he said.

Improvements throughout the city would connect the cycling and walking paths and provide lighting for poorly lit areas along the harbour.

‘‘A lot of commuters use that path, and in early morning or the evening it’s very dark.’’

Improvements to the path that gets flooded at high tide would also be carried out, he said.

Councillor ‘Ana Coffey was disappointed the cycleway would not be built this year, particularly as the community was consulted last year. It had been added to the future Long-Term Plan and, with existing paths due to be updated, was still ‘‘a win’’ for the city, she said.