Sept 2012. At the Hobart Council Infrastructure Services meeting held on 27 August a report was adopted that provides amendments to the original concept plan for the section between Marieville Esplande and Long Point Rd in order to address community issues raised during the consultation period. The main issues were:
- loss of on street parking in front of properties on the water side of Sandy Bay Rd
- retention of car parking in front of St Stephens Church and Sandy Bay Infant School which created potential conflict between people getting out of parked cars and cycleway users going past the shared zones on the footpath.

The amended plan recommends the following changes:
- widening the footpath and painting a cycleway on it
- maintaining car parking along the entire length

Bicycle Tasmania is disappointed with the amended plan and outlines the reasons why on the Bicycle Tasmania website.

An example of the original proposal (without car parking alongside)	An example of the amended proposal which would be wider but still have no clearance between the cycleway and parked cars and only a painted line to separate pedestrians.

The consultation found the section with the most support was the Taroona boundary to Lower Sandy Bay so it would seem sensible that HCC tackle that section first and leave the more complex and controversial middle section for later.


Apr 2012. At the Hobart City Council meeting held on 16 April 2012, Council unanimously agreed to approve, in-principle, the Sandy Bay Cycleway project with design and engineering work to be undertaken for all sections of the Sandy Bay Cycleway to the shovel-ready stage and seek sources of funding for the project. The design phase will provide opportunity for concerns raised in the consultation on some sections of the concept plan to be addressed. A full copy of the report summarising the Sandy Bay Rd consultation can be viewed under the Agenda for the Infrastructure Services Committee meeting held on 28 March 2012. 

Consultation results
Approximately 1500 people and organisations provided direct input to the project through feedback forms, submissions or letters. Six petitions with a combined total of approximately 2900 signatures were also received by Council.

The statistics show there is clearly a high level of support for the project, except for some of those residents living along the route who provided feedback. For the Council a key issue will be how to alleviate the concerns of those residents living along the route and elsewhere in Sandy Bay with regard to the perceived impacts on traffic management, parking, property access and the interaction between pedestrians, cyclists and motorists.

- Total level of support for the project was 71% (an average of 638 respondents) for all road sections.
- The road section with the greatest level of support is Section 5 (Lower Sandy Bay shops to Taroona boundary) at 74% (673 respondents)
- The section with the lowest level of support is Section 3a/3b (St Stephens Church and Sandy Bay Infant School) with 65% (563 respondents). This section recorded a higher 'unsure' vote, reflecting the concerns surrounding these zones raised through the consultation.
- For residents identified as living along the proposed route, opposition outweighs support with 66% opposed (60 respondents).
- For other residents of Sandy Bay, the level of support is marginally above that of oposition for all sections except for Section 3a/3b, again reflecting the concerns of those zones.
- For people living in other Hobart suburbs, the level of support far exceeds that of opposition with an average of 240 respondents registering support compared to only 14 in opposition per section.
- For people from other municipalities, interstate or no recorded address, the level of support is also very high with an average of 271 respondents in support comparted to 35 in opposition per section.


June 2011. A report is being prepared on the public consultation feedback and is likely to be presented to the Aldermen later in the year. Over 1000 submissions were received by Hobart City Council on the proposal for improving Sandy Bay Rd for walking and cycling. This has resulted in a lengthy process to analyse the feedback and prepare a report for Council.

Mar 2011. Hobart City Council was presented with a petition of over 2000 signatures in support of the proposed cycle/walkway along Sandy Bay Rd in February. Deputy Lord Mayor, Alderman Helen Burnet, who presented the petition at the Council meeting said the number of petitioners offering their support for the cycle way was a clear sign of overwhelming support, and in contrast to petitions tabled in September 2010 asking for retention of parking. The petition received stated that the undersigned ‘Support the current consultation process in regard to the Sandy Bay Walking and Cycling Project and the proposed designs for the cycle facilities and road infrastructure changes ‘. Alderman Burnet said: “It is very encouraging to see the widespread public support for the concept of a cycleway along Sandy Bay Rd. Signatories are from Sandy Bay to other areas of our city and beyond. The very strong show of public support for improved cycle infrastructure along Sandy Bay Rd should be a clear message to all that there is widespread support for the current proposal and the extensive consultation already undertaken. Utmost in my mind is the safety of people riding to and from work, for recreation and we know full well that the current situation can and should be improved."

Bicycle Tasmania Family Fun Day to support the Sandy Bay Rd bike lanes – Sunday 6 Feb 2011
Over 250 riders showed their support for the proposed bike lanes by joining a group ride along Sandy Bay Rd. To view photos visit Healthy Transport Hobart website. Over 2000 signatures have been collected in a petition in support of the Sandy Bay Rd cycleway and will be submitted to Hobart City Council on 15 February 2011.


Photo courtesy Healthy Transport Hobart

Sign the petition to show your support
Bicycle Tasmania has been collecting hundreds of signatures on a petition to go to Hobart Council to support the current public consultation process in regard to the Sandy Bay Walking and Cycling Project and the proposed designs for the cycle facilities and road infrastructure changes. You can sign it at your local bike shop or download a copy from the Bicycle Tasmania website and get your friends, family and work colleagues to sign it.


In October 2010 Hobart City Council voted to review it's approach to carrying out community consultation on cycleways by inviting Harry Barber, CEO of Bicycle Victoria and Jonathan Daly from GHD to run a workshop on how to better introduce such changes. For more see The Mercury website.

Put up a Sandy Bay Rd bicycle project poster in your workplace and encourage colleagues and friends to fill in the on-line feedback form.Bicycle Tasmania has prepared a poster and flyer - Click here to view (6MB)

Click here to view similar bike lanes used in Paris, Montreal and Sydney.

To follow the progress of community reaction to these plans see Healthy Transport Hobart website.

July 2010. Hobart City Council has developed a detailed concept plan for the route following the wide-ranging public consultation during 2008-2009 which found broad support for improved facilities for walking and cycling along the Sandy Bay Rd alignment. The proposal includes a protected 2-way bike lane along the water side of Sandy Bay Rd with a separate footpath alongside for pedestrians. Families and other people who want to ride their bikes but find riding on Sandy Bay Rd with traffic intimidating will have a comfortable and traffic-free place to cycle between the park at Longbeach and the Marieville Esplanade park.

Broader benefits of the design include:
- Improved access for drivers to Sandy Bay Rd from side streets through installation of roundabouts
- Improved traffic flow by providing designated turn lanes and roundabouts at intersections.
- No loss of traffic of capacity for motor vehicles
- Protected space for Sandy Bay residents to ride their bikes in comfort and safety
- Improved amenity for people walking on the footpath who won’t have to share with people cycling on footpath any more.
- improved crossing of Sandy Bay Rd for pedestrians through installation of pedestrian refuges and reduced crossing distance.

The design includes separated footpaths from the cycleway (in most cases), better crossing points, upgrade of the "scenic esplanade" section from the Casino to Maning Ave and improvements to bus stops. We have requested that the two shared zones shown outside Lipscombe Ave and Sandy Bay Infant School be changed to a deliniated footpath and cycleway.

Changes likely to receive opposition from some residents
The proposed design would see some loss of parking along the water side of the road but the installation of roundabouts will provide turning opportunities for vehicles accesing available parking on the other side of the road. Two of the outbound bus stops will require buses to stop in the middle of the road to let passengers off (creating a delay of up to 10 seconds) but this will be offset by the installation of designated turning lanes which will reduce the incidence of drivers blocking the lane while waiting to turn right into sidestreets.

Public displays will be held at the Hobart Council Centre at 16 Elizabeth St from 23-July to 27 August. For more information or to provide feedback or show support for the project see Hobart City Council website for more.

City to Southern Boundary Cycling Route
June 07. Council has called for Expressions of Interest to carry out stakeholder and community consultation in relation to options for improving cycling and pedestrian facilities from the City to the Southern Boundary. This is an important first step in moving this process forward. Part of the corridor that will be examined as part of this process is Sandy Bay Road, an imporant cycling route into Hobart from the south of the city.