Greens push $18m bike plan for an active capital

THE Greens are pushing an $18m plan to get Hobart residents on their bikes.

Greens senators Peter Whish-Wilson (right) and Sarah Hanson-Young said that the possibility of a power-sharing parliament might create an opportunity for the Tasmanian capital to be propelled to the front of the peloton of active transport cities.

During the Gillard Labor government, the Greens negotiated an $80m national bike path fund.

Senator Whish-Wilson said that the new policy built on this legacy.

“The Greens are proud to be working with bicycle communities and have pledged $18m federal funding to match the ask from greater Hobart council mayors for an Active Transport Network,” he said.

“This is a positive initiative we can all be proud of and we urge both Tasmanian Labor and Liberal Senate candidates to match this pledge to help make Hobart a national leader in the rollout of active transport networks.

“We need a reset of cycling policy in Tasmania to promote this climate-safe and healthy form of transport.”

The Greens said more than one in six Tasmanians ride a bicycle at least once a week but federal funding had not matched the appetite for bicycle infrastructure.

They said $18m in federal funding would also help expand the existing cycling network by building a shared path along the Tasman Highway from Mornington to the Tasman Bridge, a path linking Lutana to Glenorchy, an extension of the Intercity Cycleway to Austins Ferry, and a further extension of the Whitewater Creek Track.

The party’s transport spokeswoman Sarah HansonYoung

said Tasmania was as good a place as any to start.

“We need a cycling revolution across the country and the beautiful Apple Isle is a great place to start,” Senator Hanson-Young said.

“Cycling is an important part of protecting our environment from pollution and the green recovery we need in the face of the climate crisis.”