We’ve previously highlighted the lack of safe east-west connections on the south side of Brisbane. The new bikeway currently under construction along the Ipswich Motorway to Granard Road provides an opportunity to start such a connection along the Brisbane Urban Corridor – which includes Granard Road, Riawena Road, and Kessels Road.
One section already exists: the original Salisbury Bikeway runs along the northern side of Riawena Road from Beaudesert Rd, Rocklea to Orange Grove Rd, Salisbury. It’s a little hidden away behind the sound screens from Riawena Rd, and could be mistaken for just a footpath at either end, however it has potential to become part of the missing southside link. Importantly it crosses Stable Swamp Creek and the railway lines while avoiding very busy traffic on Riawena Rd.
Much of this old bikeway is in poor condition, so we were happy to see it included in Council’s 2018-19 budget under “bikeway reconstruction”. As of December 2018, they have replaced the pathway (and banana bars) between Tuckett Rd and Harlen Rd. We hope this work will continue in 2019, as there are many more cracked and uneven patches further east.
Thinking about how this might connect to the Granard Rd end of the new Ipswich Bikeway; one possible route is via an upgraded path through Short Street Park, along Marshall Rd, and through Granard Road Park behind Bunnings at Rocklea.
At the intersection of Riawena/Granard Rd and Beaudesert Rd, there are slip lanes on each corner, but at least these have marked zebra crossings to remind motorists of their requirement to give way when turning.
The alignment of the path from the corner, through Short St Park, to Marshall Rd is quite poor, but could easily be improved to provide a quality cycle route.
Marshall Rd between Short St and Balham Rd is 40kph, and has traffic calming. This would make a reasonable bike route as it is, and certainly with some further improvements.
Marshall Rd west of Balham Rd is a higher-speed road, with some heavy traffic, so cyclists would require protection and a crossing to reach Granard Road Park. However we think this could still be better than dealing with the traffic turning in and out of Bunnings on Balham Rd. A bikeway behind Bunnings could also open up the park. We note that the property opposite (at 161-167 Marshall Rd) has recently sold, but there doesn’t appear to be a Development Application on it.
We’re keen to pursue this connection in 2019 so that it could be completed by the time the Ipswich Motorway project is finished in 2020.
We’re also exploring options to continue a cycleway east from Orange Grove Road, past the QEII Hospital and Griffith University to connect with the Bulimba Creek Bikeway and SE Veloway at Garden City.
Space for Cycling Brisbane 