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Topic:Urban Development and Planning

Cyclists say they have to weave through crowds heading to the new Sydney Fish Market.  (ABC Radio Sydney: Aston Brown)

Cyclists have slammed a new shared bike path outside the new Sydney Fish Market, saying it forces them to weave through busy crowds.

Former transport minister Rob Stokes said forces within the NSW government agency pushed against the idea of a separated cycleway.

The new Sydney Fish Market opened on January 19.

Link copiedShareShare articleCyclists say a shared bike path outside the new Sydney Fish Market is an accident waiting to happen because it forces busy crowds to clash with riders. 

Running beside the fish market is a crucial cycling route from Sydney's inner west to the city, used by hundreds of cyclists a day.

But instead of constructing a separated cycleway during the $836 million build, the state government opted for a wide pavement designed to be shared by pedestrians and cyclists.

City of Sydney Council Deputy Mayor Jess Miller said the decision had created a "nightmare".

Cyclists say a new shared bike path at the new Sydney Fish Market is an "accident waiting to happen". (ABC Radio Sydney: Aston Brown)

"We know from experience that whenever you put cyclists and pedestrians and cars and coaches [dropping people at the market] all in one busy environment, it's a recipe for absolute disaster," Cr Miller said.

"We had been advocating [to the state government] for a separated cycleway since the very start," she said. "At every juncture where we requested, pleaded, cajoled to have this bit of infrastructure included, we were just ignored."

Cyclist Bek Hawkins said the new shared path was an improvement on riding in traffic, but it had created a new hurdle.

Some cyclists say they prefer to ride on the road to avoid the foot traffic.  (ABC Radio Sydney: Aston Brown)

"You get to the markets [and] everybody is walking around looking at the new building, and you're just on your commute. It creates a clash," Ms Hawkins said.

"It just feels like an accident waiting to happen," said Emma Taviani, who also rides past the fish market on her commute.

Former Liberal transport minister Rob Stokes said the project's final design reflected "very ingrained views" inside some quarters of government that backed road traffic over pedestrians and cyclists.

Mr Stokes said "two clans" existed within Transport for NSW.

"There were those who were very people-focused, then there were those who were almost vehicle-focused," he said.

Transport for NSW opted against a separated cycleway to keep a lane for car traffic. (ABC Radio Sydney: Aston Brown)

Mr Stokes also described "very powerful vested interests" — due to a revolving door between government and the private sector — that prioritised large road and rail projects over active transport infrastructure.

In response to Mr Stokes's remarks, a Transport for NSW spokesperson said the government recognised Sydney's walking and cycling network as a "vital part" of the transport system and said it was committed to its expansion.

A preliminary design of the precinct, seen by ABC Radio Sydney, shows a fully separated cycleway running by the fish market along Bridge Road, with one less traffic lane than there is now.

A planning document shows plans for a potential separated cycleway outside the Sydney Fish Market.  (Supplied: City of Sydney)

As transport minister, Mr Stokes approved the final design but said it "definitely" should have included a dedicated cycleway.

He said the shared path was "the best we could do at the time" because the "early work hadn't been done".

A NSW government spokesperson did not specify why concept plans for a separated cycleway did not proceed. In a statement, they said the shared path at the fish market was constructed to "best accommodate" pedestrians and cyclists of all ages and abilities, and that the government would continue to monitor travel patterns in the area.

"Given the constrained environment and current demand, there is a need to cater for a wide range of different types of transport users to the fish market as well as through the area," they said.

"This includes pedestrians, bike riders, public transport, coach visitors, as well as motor vehicle traffic, given that Bridge Road is an important access point to ANZAC Bridge and the city."

The new Sydney Fish Market opened on January 19. (ABC News: Monish Nand)

NSW government policy recommends building separated bike lanes in busy areas along "strategic cycling corridors" such as this one.

Michael Harrison, a Sydney-based urban designer and planner with more than 40 years of experience, said the final design contradicted this policy and was "inexplicable".

"The excuse might have been that the traffic lanes are needed for traffic — and they are. But there still would have been space available for a dedicated cycleway due to the deep setback of the building," he said.

Mr Stokes said that while the fish market shared path was functioning better than he expected, his biggest frustrations were the "missing links" between it and existing cycling infrastructure.

Cyclist Bek Hawkins's commute between Glebe and Pyrmont only takes 10 minutes, but she is sometimes shaken up by the time she arrives at work.

Before passing the fish market, she says she has to negotiate "several dangerous pinch points" that require her to suddenly merge in and out of busy footpaths and traffic.

Because of these clunky connections, many cyclists, including Gemma Bassett, prefer to avoid the shared path altogether and ride on the road.

"It's disjointed and illogical," Ms Bassett said.

Peter McLean is the chief executive of the state's peak cycling advocacy group, Bicycle NSW. "The real shame is it'll cost so much more installing a bike path retrospectively," he said.

McLean said attitudes towards cycling were improving as more cycleway projects were opening across the city.

"But we have a long way to go before best practice and world-class bicycle infrastructure is rolled out without Bicycle NSW having to pester and harass the government," he said.

Another local cyclist, Ben, who asked for his surname to be withheld, rides past the fish market regularly. "You ride on the footpath and get in the way of pedestrians, you ride on the road and car drivers get frustrated," Ben said.

"Everyone just gets the shits. It makes us look bad."

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