A long-awaited bike trail between the southern suburbs and Frankton could be open next year.
The Queenstown Trails Trust has applied for consent to build a 2.3km section of the trail — from the Kawarau Falls Bridge to the Park Ridge subdivision — with boss Mark ‘Willy’ Williams hoping construction will start this summer.
He can’t give an opening date until the consent and final funding are confirmed, but would "love to see it open by next Christmas".
Williams says it can’t come soon enough for the rapidly-growing ‘Southern Corridor’ communities of Jack’s Point and Hanley’s Farm — with Park Ridge and Woolbrae coming on stream soon.
"Congestion’s getting worse, and particularly for kids from the Southern Corridor to get to high school, but also for active transport commuters who want to cycle into Frankton and to Queenstown, it is a vital link.
"We’ll be pulling out all the stops to get it delivered as soon as we possibly can."
The trust received a $313,500 grant for the trail from the Central Lakes Trust in March, and is working on finding the rest of the estimated $800,000 cost.
It’s also got the support of the landowners, he says.
Starting from the bridge, the trail will run beside the highway — including a crossing of Peninsula Rd — before continuing south across farmland along the base of Peninsula Hill.
It’ll continue along the western boundaries of Park Ridge and Woolbrae, with those developers required to build the trail as part of their consent obligations, before linking to existing trails in Hanley’s Farm.
Williams says the trust is working closely with those developers.
"They’re very supportive because they're as aware of the urgent need for this link as much as we are.
"We’re looking at how we can join forces with them, for efficiencies, and get it all delivered in one go."
The trail was first officially proposed in 2018 in the Whakatipu Active Travel Network business case, but the trust has had plans for the route, as a return loop from the lakeside trail between Kelvin Heights and Jack’s Point, for about a decade, he says.
It’s been stuck in limbo with the NZ Transport Agency for the past few years, with central government directives putting a lower priority on active transport projects.
Williams says it’s been frustrating to see the project "stall and stall again", and the agency’s managers are happy to see the trust take it on.
He’s expecting the trail to get "huge" use.
"There are a lot of families and people who’d be more than happy to jump on a bike and cycle into Frankton or to school.
"It’s just so unsafe to do that on State Highway 6 ... there’s been a number of pretty high-profile near-misses.
"The congestion’s getting to the point when in peak rush-hour — especially when it’s exacerbated by the skifield traffic — it’s really difficult."
