Attempt to limit cycleway impact

An extra $18 million will be spent on Christchurch’s new cycleways this year as the city council tries to limit their impact on businesses and motorists.

The council’s $156m major cycleways project has divided ratepayers – prompting criticism from business owners, but receiving wide-ranging support from the public and cycling groups.

Some business owners blame the project for their shops nearly closing.

The project will now be fasttracked in an attempt to limit the affects on the community, including disruption caused by roadworks.

Council planning and delivery transport manager Lynette Ellis said some form of route assessment had been undertaken for 11 of the 13 planned routes so far.

Substantial design work is being carried out for the Nor’West Arc, Heathcote Expressway, Quarryman’s Trail and Northern Line.

Construction has started on the Papanui Parallel, Little River Link, Rapanui-Shag Rock Cycleway and Uni-Cycle.

The extra $18m being spent this year was because of the decision to ‘‘accelerate the programme in order to minimise the construction impact on the community’’, Ellis said.

‘‘The physical works contractors were asked for innovative ways to build faster when the work was tendered.’’

It meant the cycleways would be built earlier, she said.

The council had budgeted about $16m for cycleways this financial year, but expected to spend about $30m.

About $14m of next year’s financial programme would be ‘‘delivered early’’, Ellis said.

The total spend so far this year sat at $22m, and the overall spend to date reached about $34m.

Ellis said getting the money for the extra spending this year was ‘‘essentially paper exercises’’.

The council balanced its capital programme at the end of every year, and some projects would have overspend while others had underspend.

Numerous figures have been given for the overall cost of the cycleways, including $69m, $156m and $162m.

Ellis said that was because calculating theit cost was a staged process and, initially, the routes were not well defined.

While trying to limit the impact of the construction work, the city council is also racing to meet a $20m central government funding deadline.

Seven routes have secured the $20m of Government funding, but one requirement is that construction on the funded sections be completed by June 30, 2018.