Cycle network and route planning guide - NZ Transport Agency

6 POSSIBLE CYCLE
ROUTE COMPONENTS
6.1 Introduction
Planning cycle routes involves considering the most appropriate facility for any
particular situation. This chapter identifies the available facility types and their
advantages and disadvantages.
6.2 Provision requirements
The New Zealand supplement to Austroads Guide to traffic engineering practice: Part 14:
Bicycles (Transit New Zealand, 2004) (CDS) is the main design guidance tool for cyclist facilities
on roads and paths.
Figure 6.1 is a guide to the desirable facilities in the road corridor for cyclists in relation to
traffic volume and speed and is most useful when planning for new situations. In practice,
constraints on space, presence of side roads and driveways, type of users and costs
will also dictate the choice of facilities to retrofit to existing situations. These and other
considerations are discussed below.
The flow chart in Figure 6-15 of the Cycle design supplement is a guide to choosing the
desirable path facilities for cyclists in different circumstances.
6.3 Mid-block facilities
Cycle facilities that can be provided between intersections include:
• kerbside cycle lanes
• cycle lanes next to parking
• contra-flow cycle lanes
• wide kerbside lanes
• sealed shoulders
• bus-bike lanes
• transit lanes
• mixed traffic
• paths.
Cyclists do not always need special or dedicated facilities. They do need provisions
appropriate to their needs. For instance, wide kerbside lanes on arterial roads have similar
benefits for cyclists as bicycle lanes (Hunter, 1998). However, cyclists prefer marked cycle lanes
wherever possible.
Depending on the circumstances, cyclists may find the following provision quite adequate,
without dedicated facilities:
• wide kerbside lanes
• sealed shoulders
• bus-cycle lanes
• shared paths
• slow, mixed traffic
• lightly trafficked streets of adequate width
• unsealed roads and paths
• one-way streets where signs and markings permit two-way use by cyclists.
However, it may be necessary to use special guide or route signs to ensure a cycle route
that includes such provision forms part of a coherent network.
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