GREATER Wellington regional councillor Paul Bruce wants to see an off-road pedestrian and cycle facility on State Highway Two (SH2), and he wants it now.
The regional transport committee, comprised of mayors of the region, met this week to discuss the The Hutt Corridor Plan – which aims to improve the transport network between Ngauranga Gorge and Upper Hutt.  
At an estimated cost of about $500 million, projects planned for the next 10 years include a new link road between Petone and Grenada, rail improvements, and – most importantly for Councillor Bruce - an upgraded walk/cycleway between Horokiwi and Petone.
“It’s really great that we’ve got [the cycle/walkway] on the agenda, but the plan suggests the design of it should be done in the 2012-2013 financial year, and I find that really bizarre. Nobody disagrees that something should be done; we’ve realised how important this is and we’ve got cross-sectoral. We need to put this right at the front of the programme,” says Bruce.
Mayor Celia Wade-Brown strongly supports bringing the cycle/walkway in earlier.
Bruce says reclamation to build the path, planned to run from Petone to Horokiwi, would give the added benefit of protecting the rail corridor. He says trains are forced to stop five to ten days a year due to large swells and sea level change.
Current safety issues prevent the road being used by many cyclists who would like to, Bruce says, citing leading US cycling advocate Gil Penalosa, who says only one percent of “kamikaze” cyclists, will use a state highway with no cycling infrastructure. Penalosa says a white painted line may increase numbers by five percent, and a protected cycle way connecting major centres will lead to an increase of 10-30%. Recent road marking improvements and the addition of a peak lane along Thorndon Quay has led to a doubling of cyclist numbers there.
“They’ve also done really well on the cycle and walkway from Plimmerton up to Pukerua Bay, Te Ara Harakeke, where they’ve seen an 800% increase in cyclists since they made improvements. These changes will actually reduce congestion by taking cars off the road,” he says.
The SH2 cycle/walkway will be part of the Great Harbour Way - Te Aranui O Poneke, which will wind around Wellington’s harbour from Sinclair Head near Owhiro Bay to Fitzroy Bay on the Wainuiomata Coast.
Also included in the Hutt Corridor plan are projects planned for beyond ten years, at an estimated cost of about $156 million. This includes safety improvements to SH58 and a range of improvements to SH2 at Silverstream.  The estimated cost of other projects, beyond 10 years, has yet to be calculated.