Plans have now been released for the Woolloongabba Bikeway – which includes 2-way protected bike lanes on Stanley St from Dock St to Ipswich Road, and painted bike lanes on Annerley Road from Stanley St to Gladstone Road.

Although we’re happy that this important project will go ahead, it is concerning that the intersection of Stanley St and Ipswich Rd appears to have been left out of scope. That’s despite it being the connection between the new bikeway and the CBD to Carindale route.

We believe it would be possible to greatly improve this intersection with very little extra work, as illustrated in the drawing below. The focus should be on providing sufficient well-marked space to allow people walking and those on bicycles to safely cross Ipswich Road. In particular, the high-speed left-turn slip lane for vehicles turning left from Stanley St into Ipswich Road creates a danger point for pedestrians and cyclists. The risk of someone being injured at that intersection will increase as the new bikeway encourages more bicycle traffic, and we consider it remiss not to address the issue at this time.

The reference designs for the Woolloongabba Bikeway are available at Council’s project page.