Kaiapoi To Woodend Cycleway To Be Built In Stages

Friday, 28 March 2025, 8:30 pm
Article: David Hill - Local Democracy Reporter

A promised Canterbury cycleway from Kaiapoi to Woodend could be built in stages after it failed to get Government funding.

The Waimakariri District Council is proposing to build half of the 9km cycleway for now, by creating a pathway from Smith Street to Pine Acres, north of Kaiapoi.

The new plan would see cyclists take the route of a shared path, footpath and the road.

Speaking to Local Democracy Reporting, council roading and transport manager Joanne McBride said the proposal has the backing of the Kaiapoi-Tuahiwi Community Board and will now be presented to the council at its April meeting.

If the revised project gets the green light, Ms McBride said work could begin towards the end of this year.

The likely timeframe for the project is not yet known.

In a report to last week's community board meeting, council civil projects team leader Kieran Straw said the revised project can be completed without impacting on the construction of the Woodend Bypass.

The cycleway was originally going to be jointly funded by the previous Government’s Better Off fund and the Transport Choices programme.

But the Transport Choices programme was cancelled after the change in Government, leaving the cycleway project in limbo.

Mr Straw said $965,000 from the council’s Better Off funding allocation of $5.54m was put aside for the project and needs to be spent by June 30, 2027.

The Department of Internal Affairs has advised the funding needs to either be spent on the original project or reallocated to a water infrastructure project.

There is not expected to be any rates impact, Mr Straw said.

The revised project will see a shared pathway built from Smith Street to Lees Road, then a footpath from Lees Road to Pine Acres, with cycling on the Old North Road and speed humps installed to slow the traffic.

The community board asked staff to consult with Old North Road residents and with Environment Canterbury to co-ordinate works with planned improvements to the Sidey Quay floodgates.

Deputy Mayor Neville Atkinson said he is not a fan of speed humps, but agreed to support it to move the project forward.

‘‘This is a way of affording that end of the cycleway.’’

The council had hoped the Government would build the cycleway as part of the Woodend Bypass project.

A cycleway from Christchurch to Kaiapoi was included in the Christchurch Northern Corridor project, which opened in December 2020.

But a Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency spokesperson said walking and cycling facilities are ‘‘outside of the scope’’ of the Woodend Bypass project.

The agency did say it will ensure local connections for pedestrians and cyclists are maintained.

Once the bypass is operational, Main North Road (the existing State Highway 1), between Pine Acres and Woodend, will be handed over to the council.

The council will then be able to consider how to fund the remainder of the cycleway to Woodend.

Funding of $6m was approved in December 2022 as part of the Transport Choices fund to support several walking and cycling projects in the district.

The council was able to complete three projects, including gritted paths from Mandeville to Swannanoa School and from Mandeville Road to Ōhoka, and traffic calming and pedestrian facilities at Southbrook School.

Other cycleway projects at Rangiora (Southbrook) and Woodend to Pegasus were placed on hold.

The projects were developed as part of the council’s walking and cycling network plan, which was adopted in 2022 after consultation with the community.

The Kaiapoi to Woodend cycleway, when constructed, will complete a circuit with the Passchendaele (Kaiapoi to Rangiora) and Rangiora to Woodend pathways.

LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air.

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