New numbers show bike lane beneath Parliament slowing buses

Thursday, 31 October 2024

Bus commuters have taken a hit from a new Wellington cycle lane

New figures show that a “frustrating” cycleway beneath the noses of a disapproving Government has made for a longer bus commute.

The issue of the new Molesworth St bike lane, outside Parliament, was brought to the fore this week with reported “gridlock” on surrounding streets stretching all the way to Bowen St, where one person reported a 20-minute bus ride to Karori took an hour on Tuesday night.

While the Wellington City Council said a number of factors including a traffic light issue and construction caused Tuesday evening’s congestion, new figures from the Greater Wellington Regional Council show that bus commutes through the area are taking longer since the new cycle lane was installed.

The average bus travel time from the end of Lambton Quay to the top of Molesworth St between 4.30pm and 6pm was six minutes and 19 seconds pre-cycleway. This increased to nine minutes and 45 seconds with the cycleway. This was then brought back down to seven minutes and six seconds after a change of traffic light phasing, regional council data shows.

Wellington is on track to have 30km of new bike lanes by the end of the year, but the fast changes are leaving behind a trail of disgruntled shopkeepers.

Transport Minister Simeon Brown has been critical of city council spending, including on cycleways, and has sent an observer in to keep a close eye on its books. With the Government, via NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi, generally sharing the cost of cycleways, Brown has said this will end for any new cycleways not locked in.

“It’s clear that the cycleways on Molesworth St and Murphy St are frustrating motorists trying to drive up Molesworth St with increased congestion on this key arterial road,” Brown said on Wednesday.

City council spokesperson Richard MacLean said a traffic light on the corner of Lambton Quay and Whitmore St, linked to three other traffic lights on Molesworth St, was crashed on Friday, forcing the lights into safety mode until they were fixed by 5.15pm on Tuesday.

The council says that as the project neared completion, it appeared traffic was settling down as people adapted to the new layout.

There was also a lane taken away on Tinakori Rd for routine maintenance work as well as construction sites on Molesworth St, he said.

The council had received just four complaints about the Molesworth St and nearby Mulgrave St cycle lanes.

“Molesworth St is still under construction and delays seen during this period are expected and managed as best as possible,” he said.

As the project neared completion, it appeared traffic was settling down as people adapted to the new layout, he said.