The University of Otago is not budging on its ban on cycling through the central area of the Dunedin campus.
Chancellor Dr Royden Somerville said the university was ‘‘not in a position to reverse its stance’’, because of heavy pedestrian demand and safety issues.
Responding to questions from Dunedin city councillors Andrew Whiley and Lee Vandervis at a 10-year plan hearing this week, Dr Somerville indicated the university could work with the council to develop the cycleway network.
He later clarified this would not extend to lifting the campus cycling ban.
Advocates of a safer north-south cycling route have long argued the campus should be part of it.
Cr Vandervis said the university’s policy preventing this was unhelpful.
In a submission to the university’s Vision 2040 document, the council argued a cycle-friendly campus should be a strategic imperative.
Otago University Students’ Association president Michaela Waite-Harvey said the association strongly supported having a cycleway connection through the campus.
Otago University student Lane McLeod said, among other improvements for cycling, allowing cycling on campus should be looked into.
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Good on the University of Otago for not budging on its ban of cycling through the central area of the Dunedin campus, Some sense at long last. Its about time too that this dangerous cycling folly is banned in all areas of the city...
Congratulations to the university for taking the safety of pedestrians a priority rather than bowing to the self serving cycling lobby. The DCC could learn from this.
Couldn't agree more with these comments. Let's get rid of this dangerous cycling nonsense and replace it with safe driving, through the campus also of course. Like cycling, only some limited fragmented roads will be needed, the cars will safely co exist with pedestrians otherwise. And as for the self serving cycling lobby, how dare a lobby be so self serving. Madness. It all went wrong when they brought in decimilisation if you ask me.
Yep. cycling and e-bike claims to ACC for Dunedin in 2019 were $1.9m, and that doesn't include the money DCC have wasted.
They already did - blanket ban on cycling means cars & trucks are allowed on parts of the campus area but not cycles. This policy also forced cyclists to use the 1-way instead, before the cycle lanes. With resulting tragic outcomes.
The problem is, the university elites don't want to give up their car parks.
Usual story. All do as I say, not as I do.
There is plenty of scope within the university to provide a thruway that would enhance cycling and get them off the oneway system into safer space.
They could even proved cycle parking so cyclists know when it's time to become pediatricians.
You'd think the uni would know intersectionality keeps going until you end up with the individual by now or are they still stuck with the idea of catering to identity groups rather than people with needs that span more than one mode of operating.
Oh silly me. I forgot about all their other identity issues.
I wonder how other uni consider the issue.
https://www.transportation.harvard.edu/commuterchoice/bike.
Car parks have nothing to do with it, as almost all of them are on or near the campus boundary. And there are already plenty of 'safe space' cycleways.
This is one policy Otago University has got exactly right — allowing cyclists into a densely-populated inner-city campus with a hill is a recipe for disaster. In fact, it was exactly such a disaster that saw the introduction of the policy in the first place.
It's quite simple — ride your bike to campus, but then get off and walk it. That treats cyclists in exactly the same way as pedestrians, motorists and bus users.
Several years ago a professor was run down and so badly injured his health suffered permanently. Good on the University! I like the idea of cycling but only yesterday was nearly run down by two bikes on a walkway as they silently came up behind me. As a child I rode a bike but it had a BELL and I used it. Seems either bikes today either do not have them or they are not used. Bikers need a licence test And the same goes for scooters--
One lecturer (Rels) travelled by skateboard. Are all non motorised wheels banned?