Must do better: Wellington rapped over cyclist safety

Wellington City Council has been scolded by Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency for a poor track record of cyclist and pedestrian safety, in a report obtained by The Dominion Post.

The council was given a grade of ‘‘significant improvement needed’’ on road safety in the Waka Kotahi 2020 Investment Audit.

Wellington cyclists and pedestrians were over-represented in injuries and deaths in crashes, based on the number of active users, and the council had not taken sufficient action to fix the problem, the audit found.

The council had built just 16 kilometres of cycle lanes in the past 10 years, while the number of regular cyclists had doubled since 2018.

‘‘That’s really pathetic, we need to be doing a lot better than that,’’ said councillor Tamatha Paul, who holds the climate change portfolio.

Green Party transport spokesperson Julie Anne Genter said the lack of bike lanes was putting people in danger.

‘‘It’s not good enough, especially when the council has voted to acknowledge a climate emergency,’’ she said.

‘‘The council and public have to realise they have a responsibility . . . even if you don’t ride a bike, the people who do deserve to be safe.’’

The council was particularly criticised for a lack of action on safety improvements for cyclists on Thorndon Quay.

The council was told to change the parking on Thorndon Quay from angled to parallel to make room for safer cycling by Waka Kotahi during the last audit in 2015. Five years later, Waka Kotahi ‘‘found little evidence of improvement’’.

Improvements for cycling and buses on Thorndon Quay are wrapped into the Let’s Get Wellington Moving programme, but the auditors wanted the changes fast-tracked.