Submission to 12 August 2025 Council Meeting

Item 7.1 Elizabeth Street Concept Plans

Streets Alive Yarra recommends that Council endorse the plans that were obtained under Freedom of Information (which retain the width of the bike lanes) for community engagement, or at the least, ask Officers to offer advice via a report that compares them with the concept plans presented in the agenda (which drastically narrow the bike lanes).

The concept plans presented in the agenda do not comply with Yarra’s adopted policies:

  • Community Vision 2036
    • Yarra is a vibrant, safe and inclusive environment
    • Our community is safe for all
    • A transport system that is innovative, efficient, sustainable and accessible
  • Council Plan 2025-2029
    • Making our streets cleaner, greener and safer for everyone to enjoy 
    • Helping people travel and commute more easily via all modes of transport
    • Maintain and develop our cycling network
  • Transport Strategy 2022-2032
    • Allocate road space to preferred transport modes and other activities
    • Prioritise walking, cycling and using public transport over car use
    • Implement a New Deal for Cycling – make the network useable for bike riders and scooter users of all ages and abilities
  • Transport Action Plan 2024-2034
    • Upgrading 30 kilometres of the New Deal for Cycling Network to be compliant with Yarra’s standards
    • Increasing overall cycling levels by 40%
    • Doubling the number of women cycling
  • Social Justice Charter
    • the following groups have been identified as more likely to face issues related to social justice: women
    • From the Officer Report to the Council Meeting on 18 April 2023: 32% of bike lane users are women which is more than double the pre-trial percentage
    • From the Officer Report to the Council Meeting on 8 April 2025: Data has shown significant increase in the proportion of women cycling on Elizabeth Street. This result correlates with research and results from other projects that make it easier and safer for people to ride.

Nor do the concept plans comply with:

  • Austroads Guide to Road Design Part 3: Geometric Design
    • Protected bike lanes have a minimum width of 2.0 metres
  • Victoria’s Road Management Act 2004
    • Division 1, Section 20, 1(B), priority is to be given to the following modes of transport in respect of the specified roads for that mode of transport—(c) bicycles on specified bicycle roads
  • Victoria’s Plan for Victoria
    • It’s better to walk, cycle and scoot in your suburb. We need active transport infrastructure that people want to use and that connects where they live and the places they want to go.
  • Victoria’s Cycling Strategy 2018-2028
    • We will draw on the experiences of Amsterdam, Copenhagen, London, San Francisco, Portland and other cities that have built safer, lower-stress and better-connected networks to increase cycling for transport
    • We will invest in high quality infrastructure for strategic cycling corridors to make cycling on them an attractive mode of transport for people of all ages, especially interested but concerned people
  • Victoria’s draft Cycling Guide
    • Protected bike lanes are 2.0 to 2.5 metres wide
  • Victoria’s Urban Design Guidelines
    • Where high levels of cyclists are predicted, locate kerb separated bicycle lanes on the kerbside of an on-street parking lane. Set the path width to accommodate the anticipated or predicted levels of pedestrian and bicycle traffic.
  • Victoria’s North Richmond Master Plan
    • Allows for the safe movement of people, bikes, and vehicles through well-designed streets and connections
  • NSW’s Cycleway Design Toolbox
    • should maintain a preferred width of 3.0 m
    • Reallocate space used for carparking
  • SA’s Active Travel Design Guide
    • minimal design width for a one-directional path or lane is 2 metres
    • desirable width is 2.4 metres
  • TAS’s Cycling Infrastructure Design Guide
    • One-way path/lane 2.0+ metres wide
  • City of Melbourne’s Bike Lane Design Guidelines
    • Protected bike lanes are 1.8 to 3.0 metres wide

By contrast, the alternate plans, obtained under Freedom of Information, offer:

  • bike lanes that meet standards and guidelines for a Strategic Cycling Corridor
  • car parking on both sides of the street
  • protections for bike lanes near intersections
  • large canopy trees along the street for shade and greenery
  • improvements to sight lines for people driving

Regarding access to parking, we highlight the Officer Report to the Council Meeting on 15 September 2020, showing that there is abundant parking in the area:

  • It is noted that extensive parking surveys of nearly 450 on-street parking spaces on Elizabeth Street and surrounding streets were undertaken in February 2020.
  • Off-street carparking spaces in the public housing blocks were also counted. In total 2,506 parking spaces were counted in the locality over the course of a Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday (pre COVID 19 restriction time).

Also, we highlight Attachment 3 from the Officer Report to the Council Meeting on 18 April 2023:

  • Seven counts of car parking data on Elizabeth Street and in the immediate vicinity have been conducted (by independent consultants) over the course of the trial.
  • Overall car parking occupancy remained relatively stable throughout the trial. Prior to the trial and COVID-19 pandemic, average occupancy of car parking bays was 58%. In December 2022, this figure was 51%. This shows that car parking is generally available in the immediate vicinity of the site.

If some residents or visitors continue to state that they have difficulty in finding parking near their home or destination, then the solution is to better manage the abundant parking in the area. Options include:

  • highlighting the presence of the off-street parking garage accessible from Butler St
  • adding time restrictions to any unrestricted parking in the area, e.g. on Jonas St and the western end of Butler St 
  • converting one side of each local street in the area to an all-day permit zone, e.g. sections of Shelley Street and Garfield Street
  • converting some bays in the area to loading zones or disabled parking
  • asking commuters (all-day non-resident visitors) to pay a moderate fee, similar to the price of a daily Myki fare, to park in Yarra

Further information:

Overall, considering that:

  • governments are obliged to manage our city for the benefit of all
  • our population is expected to nearly double by 2050
  • traffic congestion shows that many of our streets are already at capacity

Council must seek to enhance and expand our cycling network, not degrade it. We recommend that Council endorse the plans that were obtained under Freedom of Information for community engagement, or at the least, ask Officers to offer advice via a report that compares them with the concept plans presented in the agenda.

Published 10 August 2025