Ord Street protected bike lane to improve safety

The City of Fremantle has made more improvements to its network of bicycle paths by creating a protected bike lane along Ord Street.

The improvements involved the installation of a series of traffic islands along the southbound cycle lane between High Street and Knutsford Street to create greater separation between cyclists and cars.

Fremantle Mayor Brad Pettitt said the Ord Street project was the latest in a series of upgrades designed to encourage more people to take up cycling.

“One of the silver linings with the COVID-19 cloud has been the explosion in the number of people getting out there and riding a bike,” Mayor Pettitt said.

“Cycling is a great thing to do. Not only is it fun and good for your health but it’s also an environmentally friendly mode of transport.

“There’s lots of evidence from all over the world that shows people feel a lot safer riding a bike when there is a physical barrier between them and the traffic.

“Ord Street is identified as a key bike route in the City’s recently updated Fremantle Bike Plan, so it’s great that we’ve been able to do this work and make that section a lot safer for cyclists.”

The Ord Street southbound protected bike lane was installed in conjunction with scheduled road resurfacing works between High Street and Knutsford Street.

The works also included widening the bike lane on the northbound carriageway through a minor relocation of the existing traffic lights at High Street, and improving the pedestrian crossing points near Knutsford Street by increasing the size of the refuge islands.

As with all City of Fremantle road renewal projects, waste materials such as the old asphalt and concrete kerbs will be recycled.

The City has also this week expanded the bike parking next to the Kiosk Café on Beach Street, opposite the East Street jetty.

The work was done using a new concrete called Envirocrete, which substitutes a percentage of the cement with a more environmentally friendly alternative and uses recycled water in the mix.

The City of Fremantle’s Bike Plan 2019-2024 was adopted in September last year and sets the City’s priorities for bike infrastructure projects, programs and promotional activities for the next five years.

To read the Bike Plan click here.