Cycle Facility Design Principles for the LCTP.

While in general Austroads 14 gives excellent cycle facility design principles covering most aspects, there are some areas that are not covered in adequate detail. Also in Austroads there are many places where choices can be made as to which treatment is appropriate. This section clarifies the guidelines and choices that we believe should be applied to the LCTP. Extensive reference should be made to most parts of Austroads 14.

1. Cyclists must be treated as equal to every other road or path user and not be at the end of the pecking order. This means that cyclists should compromise at the same time and to the same level as other users. Cycle facilities should only be downgraded to another level or reduced in width if similar compromises are made to road and pedestrian facilities.
2. The cycle facilities should be continuous and as consistent as possible for the entire length of the facility. Transitions will be necessary between treatment types but these should be carefully designed.
3. All attempts should be made to reduce conflict between motor vehicles and bicycles by means of separation of their facilities. When allocated cycle space is adjacent to motor vehicles, then separation should occur by means of a barrier such as a "New Jersey Barrier" (preferred), Low fence, median strip, road blisters or Vibra-Line (at a minimum).
4. All attempts should be made to reduce conflict between pedestrians and bicycles by means of separation of their facilities. When allocated space is adjacent, then separation should occur by means of a kerb (preferred when the cycle path is separated) or painted centre-lines on the pavement (on a shared facility).
5. To reduce conflict with pedestrians and enhance pedestrian safety, pedestrians should cross the cycle path at marked pedestrian crossings. Such crossings must be signposted to both cyclists and pedestrians, and at these points cyclists should give way to pedestrians in a similar manner to a normal road pedestrian crossing. At other places pedestrians must give way to cyclists under Australian Road Rule, Regulation 239. Pedestrians should be encouraged to behave in this manner by a stepping down from the kerb to cross the cycle path without lingering in a manner similar to crossing a roadway.
6. Car parking should be banned in cycle lanes. If parking is required in any section, then a completely separate parking lane of at least 2.2m in width must be provided. When there is not enough room for a separate parking lane, then parking should be omitted rather than compromise the safety and utility of cycle facility.
7. Cycle facilities must be wide enough to cater for safe passing of cyclists and other path users:
1. For a cycle lane at the edge of the road, the lane must not be wide enough to be perceived as a car lane. We request that the width be 2.0m
2. For a two-way dedicated cycle path we request that the width is 3.0m
3. For a shared footpath in areas of high pedestrian activity we request a width of 4.0m.
8. There must be no fences or walls or handrails within 0.5m of either side of the cycle path pavement to allow for handlebar clearance at the edges. Thus, while the pavement width will be 2.0 or 3.0 or 4.0 metres, the area clear of obstructions should be 1m wider, i.e. 0.5m on each side.
9. To promote clear sight lines all vegetation within 1m of the cycle path edge should be restricted to 1m high. On curves and corners this distance should be considerably extended to ensure sight lines. This affects the type of plantings that can be made in these areas. Low herbs and grasses would be appropriate at the edge of the cycleway. (Refer Austroads figure 6-5)
10. All the commuter cycle facilities in this project should be built in accordance with Austroads 14 to cater for speeds of 30km/hr on the flat and 40km/hr on slopes. While cyclists will be slower uphill they more than make up for this deficit downhill. Any slope will allow for higher speeds in one direction so the cycle facility should be constructed with this in mind. The design should include aspects of minimum radius of corners, sight lines, gradient and facility width.
11. Minimum radius of curvature is affected by speed, sight distance and superelevation (banking). All curves must have a minimum radius of 25 metres with Austroads 14 preferring 30 metres. When a path is on a gradient then the minimum radius should be 50 metres to cope with a 40 km/hr cyclist. Superelevation (see Austroads 14 Table 6-2) can reduce the radius requirement but not by a substantial amount.
12. Sight distance is critical to cycle way construction and is something which is very often designed poorly. The view around corners is the critical issue, and the most important aspect is to intruding vegetation over time, although other obstructions are also common. Austroads 14 (figure 6-6) suggest a stopping distance of 40 metres for a 30km/hr cyclist. On a 30 metre minimum radius curve this equates to about 6.5 metres of clear sight back from the edge of the curved cycle path! This means 6.5 metres which does not have vegetation tall than 0.5 metres so that all cyclists can clearly see around the corner.
13. Gradient is an aspect of cycling that most cyclists are very sensitive to. Apart from the difficulty in climbing a steep gradient another issue is safety on the downhill run. With higher speeds there needs to be more cycle path width provided on sloping facilities. Austroads 14 (section 6.3.6) recommends that gradients do not exceed 3% as a desirable maximum. Sections may be up to 5% in grade, which is considered by Austroads 14 to be the maximum gradient for downhill safety.
14. All bridges and ramps should be aligned with the direction of travel and be designed to match the path speed. In particular minimum curve radius, maximum gradient and minimum path width are critical.
15. At intersections between roads and cycle paths or shared paths should be painted a distinctive shade of green.
16. At intersections cyclists on the two-way path or in an cycle lane should have right of way over motor vehicles turning across the cycle path or lane. This should be reinforced by "give way to cyclists" signs. Signs should be placed on the approach via the local street as well as on the main road.
17. On shared cycle/pedestrian paths appropriate signage should be constructed to
1. warn pedestrians and cyclists that this is a shared facility
2. indicate that all path users should always keep well to the left of the painted centre-line
3. instruct cyclists to ring their bells when approaching other path users
4. encourage users to be courteous and considerate to each other.
18. Wherever a kerb must be crossed by cyclists the drop kerbs should have no lips at all, should be broadly dished with no sudden change of angle and should be at least the width of the facility so it can be approached at an angle. The wider kerb ramp also allows for longer and wider bicycles. Thus kerb ramps will typically be 3.0m wide.
19. All cycle facilities must allow for use by all non-standard human powered vehicles. These would include longer vehicles such as tandem bicycles (length 2.5 metres) and wider vehicles such as recumbent tricycles and children's bicycle trailers (width 0.9 metres). All bollards, squeeze points, kerb crossings must accommodate these dimensions with ease.
20. To enhance safety and reduce debris on the cycle path materials such as bark chips, sand, or loose soil should not placed such that it can be washed, blown or fall on to the cycle path
21. Bollards on the cycle path should be avoided. Only where a recorded problem exists of intrusion by motor vehicles should bollards be considered. At that stage they can be retro-fitted. We believe that bollards are not automatically needed on cycle facilities. If bollards are demonstrably required to be fitted then please consult with BNSW on the detailed planning for each site and only in accordance with the following:
1. Only a single bollard should be used and it should be placed in the centre of the path.
2. All bollards should be a light and distinctive colour so they stand out
3. All bollards should have distinctive reflective material for night time safety on at least 25% of each surfaces which faces the cycle traffic,
4. All bollards should have a centre-line leading up to them in a broader and distinctly different colour
22. Where a dedicated cycle path or shared cycle path crosses a road then holding rails must be provided on the left hand side of the pathway set back 0.3m from the edge of the path.
23. Where a cyclist must cross at a cyclist/pedestrian crossing then any crossing signal button should be place on the left side 0.3m back from the edge of the path.
24. Where cycle lanes are provided, every traffic signal must provide a detector to detect cycles in the cycle lane to change the lights. This detector must be sensitive to every type of bicycle.
25. Where a bus priority traffic light is provided we recommend that cyclists also be able to start earlier to reduce travel times.
26. At key points along the facility there must be appropriate destination signage. Both short term waypoints and the cycle facility destination should be given along with distances. For example a sign may have "Lane Cove Shops 1.3km, City 17.5km".