June News
8 June 2023 | Announcement
Welcome to the June news for 2023 and a quick reflection on the work WeRide has done so far this year!
Even with the shorter days and colder mornings, there is still a lot going on.
You can see our e-news video in the latest video news update here or read the summary below.
The June News Video
WEBINAR – ACTIVE TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURE INVESTMENT IN CHINA
Coming up next week is a webinar we are co-hosting with the Australian Institute of Transport Planning and Management.
It will look at the investments being made in China and the economic rationale used to boost cycling and active transport and what Australia can learn from this boom in China’s active mobility infrastructure.
We know China has a history of moving by bike, but in recent decades China has become incredibly congested and polluted due to the scale of the increase in car use.
We often hear about European and North American approaches to walking and cycling infrastructure, but this pales into insignificance with Chinese cities investing in active travel at a truly astounding scale.
While Paris is creating its own revolution as a sustainable city with plans to add 182 km of new permanent protected bike lanes by 2026, Beijing alone has already renovated 3,200 kilometres of bike lanes in the 5 years to 2020.
WeRide was pleased to support the Climate Council with the recent launch of an important report that reveals a tripling of cycling will be needed to meet our 2030 Climate targets.
The ‘Shifting Gear – the path to cleaner transport’ Report by the Climate Council
commissioned research that looked at the changes in our everyday transport that will be needed to significantly lower our carbon emissions to meet nationally legislated targets.
And it’s good news for everyday cycling.
All of the scenarios they looked at involve a tripling of all trips to be undertaken by bike, investment which is a core WeRide priority we carry through all our advocacy.
We believe this is sensible and achievable given that half of all the more than 70 million trips undertaken in Australia each day for all purposes are just 5km or less, a distance which many of us can easily ride in around ten minutes.Around a third of all trips, and more in some large centres, are just three kilometres or less, making it healthy, fun and convenient to consider doing them by walking or bike.
LOCAL PROJECTS
WeRide is currently supporting state and local advocacy efforts and we encourage you to take a look if they are in your area.
Local voices are a powerful way of helping to get change and letting decision makers know that their constituents really want to see more provision for cycling in your local community.
In the ACT, WeRide lent its support to a petition calling on the ACT Government to act on its draft Active Travel Plan and build key missing links.
And in NSW we have supported BikeEast and Bicycle NSW’s petition to build the missing link bikeway between Oxford Streets and Bondi Junction – the Oxford Street West Cycleway.
And in Victoria we worked with The Amy Gillett Foundation and Auscycling to respond to the Parliamentary inquiry into road safety for Vulnerable road users
Lastly – a shout out to the Tasmanian Government, who has become the first Australian state to announce ebike incentives with the inclusion in the climate change action plan released last week.
As always, there is a lot happening, and we’ll have news on the upcoming Parliamentary Friends of Cycling event looking at accessible mobility options for those with diverse abilities.
If you have any questions or comments, please reach out to us or drop us a line.
We hope you enjoyed this update as we continue our work supporting bike riders across Australia.