We are pleased that Council have responded to concerns raised by Brisbane North BUG about poor connections between Chermside and Aspley by announcing a route along Gympie Road from Robinson Road West through to Webster Road, where it will connect to the new bikeway recently opened along the western edge of Marchant Park to Murphy Rd. From Murphy Road there are existing links to Chermside, and to the Downfall Creek Bikeway.
Aspley to Chermside is less than 5 km, so this promises to make utility cycling convenient in an area which is currently let down by poor connections and infrastructure.
We don’t yet have any details of what Council are planning, as investigations only started in November 2017 but these are the possibilities and key issues as we see them:
We suggest that the main access route could utilise the service road alongside Gympie Rd which runs from the Aspley Hotel to Webster Rd. An on-road bike lane here could work in combination with traffic calming, as traffic volumes on the service road are typically low.
At the Aspley Hotel end, there are currently two choices to access the service road from Nevin St. One is to cross Nevin St via a poor quality ramp on the northern side, then proceed via the hotel driveway to access a footpath designed to service a bus stop. The footpath is very narrow and in places runs perilously close to busy Gympie Rd.
The second option, (which is unsatisfactory for 8-80 riding) is to ride through the Aspley Hotel car park to join the service road southbound. At least there are refreshment options if required!
North of Nevin St towards Robinson Rd West, the path is narrow for about 100m before widening to a good size up to the intersection of Robinson Rd West. However it is far from ideal in its current form with a blind driveway from a retail parking area, dangerously placed bollards, and an advertising hoarding infringing on the path.
There is also a very poor ramp to the crossing point for Gympie Rd opposite Jaycar.
The scope of the project finishes at Robinson Rd West which is a shame, because the path continuing north from there is also narrow and poor quality, but it does at least connect with the Cabbage Creek Bikeway near Zillmere Rd. The pathway on the opposite side of Gympie Rd is much higher quality, but the wait to cross 6-lane Gympie Road can seem interminable.
We will be following Councils plans for this area with interest.
Space for Cycling Brisbane 
[…] path), and the path along Gympie Road through Marchant Park – although that will require the next link through to Aspley before its full value is […]
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