North Taranaki Cycle Advocates
Chair: Graeme
Notetaker: Stuart
Present: Graeme, Stuart, Nigel, Joelle, Alan, Rowan
Apology: Nathanial
1. Bike survey
Agreed to purchase one $50 voucher (survey takers who provide an email address will go into a draw) from Bike Barn with possible top up.
Action: Stuart will contact Bike Barn to see if they will donate a top up and then forward suvey link and email blurb to Graeme (to go to email list), Nathanial (for Let's Go and other bike groups), Hive, and Joelle (for Frocks on Bikes Facebook page). She will also post it to the NTCA Facebook page and the Transition Towns page.
2. Joelle reported on Cycling Festival this weekend. Times listed in Midweek are wrong.
On Fri between 1 and 2 pm 4 schools will try to break the Guinees world record for the biggest bike bus. Plan is to converge at Te Rewa Rewa Bridge and proceed along shared footpath to cycle park.
On Friday evening there will be a free cycle powered movie at Puke Ariki landing (Film = The Flying Scotsman).
There will also be a Bike Expo in the Ruby Union rooms at Hickford Park Fri, Sat and Sun.
The website is www.nzcyclefest.co.nz and proceeds with go to bike clubs and bikes in schools.
3. Skills training is fully booked for terms 1 and 4 with a balance between scooter and bike training
Moturoa and Tikorangi school are set to have their teachers take on cycle skills training for grade 1.
Moturoa principal wants to developing cycling as school sport and develop a program similar to the Bikes in Schools program. Would involve construction of cycle tracks on school grounds and container with bikes and helmets kids can use at lunchtime. Would include cycle training every week at least once during PE. The school is applying for funding from Kiwi Sport and looking for project manager funding from Let's Go. NPDC is planning to refurbish cycle path from Ngamotu Domain through the school grounds to Breakwater Road and this would be one of the cycle tracks.
4. Tikorangi's Bertrand Road Bridge
NPDC seeking our input on making the Bertrand Road Bridge less risky for cyclists. There is a steep downhill approach to the bridge from both sides, which means cyclists have no advance warning they're approaching the bridge. Our recommendations:
- There need to be signs at top of hill on both sides warning cyclists to slow down.
- Green cycle lane strip needs to continue across centre of bridge, so cyclists don't get caught in lip on either side.
- The centre gap between the speed bumps needs to be wider (the same with as centre lane of bridge).
- Bike lane needs to be swept more often to remove debris.
- In winter cyclists need to walk their bikes across bridge because frost makes it slippery in the mornings.
5. Bell Block bypass
Discussed that there's still no way to get onto the bike path going up hill (towards Bell Block) opposite Fitzroy engineering.
6. NPDC Annual Plan - submissions open from 19 Mar to 17 April
Discussed that NTCA needs to make sure that there's transition funding when Let's Go funding runs out in June 2015.
Action: Graeme will agenda this for next meeting.
7. Discussed possibily forming incorporated society to help fund costs of Green Bike Project.
Action: Stuart will bring an example of a constitution for an incorporated society to next meeting.
8. Next meeting Wed 2 April 2014