Slowly but surely, the transport mode shift we've been told is required to cut carbon emissions is happening around the country. In some places, it's also having unintended consequences. In my part of Wellington, Oriental Bay, a new bike lane at the entrance to the bay has made it easier for people to cycle through a busy part of town. But from my apartment, I now watch rush-hour and weekend traffic back up along the bay in a way it never did before.
Wellington City Council tweaked the traffic light phasing on Kent Terrace to try to fix the problem, but in February admitted that congestion monitoring showed "queues are still longer than they were before installation".
I'm not entering the fractious cars vs cyclists debate. We need to make more room for cyclists on our roads but clearly the incentives to leave the car at home and either cycle to work or catch the bus aren't yet strong enough.
This story is from the April 27-May 3, 2024 edition of New Zealand Listener.
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This story is from the April 27-May 3, 2024 edition of New Zealand Listener.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
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