PortBUG & Bike Adelaide met again with members of the Port Dock Rail Station design team yesterday to review progress with their planning. Representatives from Bike Adelaide & PAE Council was also present.
Unfortunately the meeting saw no resolution of the key issues we have raised to date, notably the likely disruption of existing walking, cycling & active travel activity in the area directly affected by the project due to the:
- removal of the current level crossing across the rail tracks adjacent to the Aviation Museum
- closure of the Greenway entrance/exit on Lipson St.
Pedestrians & bicycle users travelling into the Port CBD will still be faced with 2 choices:
- climb up & over the Red Hill Bridge & then travel down to the southern end of Lipson St (or on to Commercial Road) or…
- travel along the eastern side of the new rail line (via existing pathways & Barlow St) & then turn to the left through the new rail station precinct & car park/bus interchange to enter or cross Lipson St (see blue-dotted rectangle in our header image & the ed dotted line in the connectivity map below).
Apart from protesting the closures & pointing to the obvious inherent hazards & inconvenience of the obviously ‘non-compliant’ Red Hill Bridge route in particular, we have raised several other issues including need for improved pedestrian & cyclist crossings at both St Vincent Street & across Lipson Street (opposite the proposed car park & bus interchange).
The designers have come up with some bicycle refuge & crossing options at St Vincent St which should make the crossing relatively safe for experienced bike users. Unfortunately little further thought appears to have been given to the safety of pedestrians crossing St Vincent Street nor for those needing to cross Lipson St – either travelling to or from the train, or because this crossing point is the preferred route through to the Port’s CBD.
This was disappointing given concerns we have raised in previous meetings. PortBUG expects road safety for those crossing Lipson & St Vincent Streets to be a major consideration given the location of the new rail station, yet it appears to have been given no thought at all! Following yesterday’s discussion the designers have undertaken to get together with Council to see what might be possible at the likely crossing point on Lipson Street, bearing in mind that Lipson St is also a B-Double route! On an encouraging note, Council tell us that Lipson St is likely to become part of a general ‘Port CBD’ 40km/h zone in the not too distant future!
With regard to the proposed Red Hill Bridge crossing (refer to the arrowed blue line in our header pic & below) – apart from some realignment of the ramp way’s entrance the project will not be investing in any improvements to the steep, narrow, poorly protected & non-compliant pathway at all! Nor will they project be investing in lighting or surface improvements on Barlow St (solid green line) – although we do understand that Council may be able to do something in this regard.
The project will be improving the 2 abrupt corners at the Barlow Street/Rail Yard entrance & exit with wider radius turns & improved sight lines. They have also undertaken to see what can be done to improve sight lines at the junction of Barlow & Baker Streets although options here seem limited. Our Bike Adelaide colleague spoke strongly to the need to ensure safe routes for bicycle users through the car park/bus interchange area (blue-dotted rectangle) & the project has undertaken to look more closely at what can be done.
Previous discussion of the Port Dock project here.
DIT: Pedestrian & Cyclist Fact Sheet
DIT: Feedback & Online Survey here
There will be two ‘drop-in sessions’ where plans can be studied & discussed – details below!
Session 1: Saturday, 15 April 2023, between 10am and 12pm.
Port Adelaide Uniting Church, 169 Commercial Road, Port Adelaide.
Session 2: Tuesday, 18 April 2023, between 5pm and 7pm.
Port Adelaide Uniting Church, 169 Commercial Road, Port Adelaide.
Project mailing list & web page.
From an active-travel p.o.v this is quite a complex project that will have a significant impact on walking & cycling access into & around the Port CBD. Options to improve things appear relatively limited – these seem to be the realities we face when different transport modes compete for limited space & funds! PortBUG will stay engaged & report as best we can on any further developments.
PortBUG: The Port Adelaide Bicycle User Group. 
An interesting comment from Daniel O’Connor (Posted on his behalf, emphasis is ours – Ed):
“Hi,
…thank you for advocating for some sanity around this [I have also submitted my feedback to the department via the consultation links].
If all pedestrian and cycling access is cut at the proposed location; that’s more than a bit disappointing, and separates everyone who lives in a big chunk of Rosewater from a large shopping complex.
While I don’t particularly *like* coming across abandoned trolleys at the exit of the greenway into the Rosewater streets, it’s a tangible sign of people who are low income who need walkable pathways.
With a median weekly income of $1300 (2021 census) and the poverty line for a 2 child family at $1,027 a week, a segment of people can’t afford to “just drive to the shops”.
Since the conversion of a local asian supermarket into a discount goods store, and fire destroying the local butcher; the north west segment of Rosewater now faces a food desert – boxed in by railway lines & major roads. The major alternatives are Ottoway, where the access to the shopping centre is at best, hazardous; or Alberton – involves crossing a major road.
While ultimately I want a railway station in the original location, the original point of the station being there was its connectivity to a bustling wharf and industrial area.
https://collections.slsa.sa.gov.au/resource/C+314/1
We are no longer in a reality where we need a complex, bustling rail switching yard to be isolated from the population. We manage in many other locations to put in pedestrian crossings across rail, and automated gates are the gold standard we should aim for.”
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