Dozens of parents and their kids biked through central Nelson over the weekend in support of the planned East-West cycle link.
The event, marketed as a “bike rave”, saw cyclists bedecked in brightly coloured clothes and playing music as they cycle the proposed route despite the Saturday drizzle.
Extending from Waimea Road to Nile Street, the route aims to connect the Brook and Maitai areas in eastern Nelson to the cycle network around the hospital to the west.
The $4.9 million cycleway is also proposed to travel past seven learning centres, from primary schools to tertiary institutions, providing a safe network for students.
Andrea Ewing is part of the newly-formed Families for Safe Cycling group, which organised the Bike Rave.
She was “delighted” by the turnout.
“It’s great to see how many people want to see the East-West link go ahead.”
Andrea says that biking to school results in mental and physical health benefits for children, saves parents the time and fuel costs of doing the school run, and reduces congestion in the traffic network, but many parents are too concerned about how dangerous it was to cycle.
“Nelson should be a place where kids can ride to school safely. We don’t think it’s there yet,” she says.
“The ideal is that you kiss your child goodbye at the front door and you send them off, and you know that they will get to school safely.”
More than 60 people turned up for the Bike Rave and cycled from Hampden Street School to the Prince Albert Backpackers and Bar.
One of them was Nelsust convenor Peter Olorenshaw.
He says that Nelson is “blessed” to have a safe arterial cycling route, but adds that one route is not a network.
“Until people can have safe cycling routes end-to-end, it is only the brave and fearless that will leave their car at home.”
The East-West cycle link was important as a cross-town link, he says, but he has concerns with its currently-proposed path.
“Those proposed routes, either on upper Collingwood Street or part of Bronte Street, are more than… three times the desirable and double the acceptable gradients,” he says, referring to Austroads guidance.
Instead, Nelsust have suggested routing the cycleways down Waimea Roads and Rutherford Street – which are both proposed to get cycleways under current Nelson City Council strategy documents – before connecting with Nile Street.
Andrea says that she is less concerned with the specific route, as long as it was actually delivered and was separated from motor vehicles.
“What we’re really fighting for is that it exists, and it gets kids from the doorstep to school without parents having to worry.”
Nelson City Council’s manager capital projects Rebecca Dawkins says the project has received strong community input during pre-engagement, with 500 submissions received through Shape Nelson and direct engagement with six central city school communities.
“This feedback is now being assessed against key criteria, including safety and practicality, to inform any refinements to the route.”
Wider public consultation is planned for April/May for further community input before the route is finalised
Construction is expected to begin in the first half of 2027 and be completed by 2028.
