Page 1307 - Week 04 - Tuesday, 23 March 2010
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The design of the north-south arterial road will see a shared car and bus lane. It will include bus stops at strategic locations, at intervals of about 800 metres. Local collector roads will also be designed to accommodate buses. Pedestrians will be able to safely cross the north-south arterial road at signalised intersections at local centres and bus stops. Underpasses will also be provided, at 400-metre intervals.
There is no doubt that the ACT is the national home of commuter cycling. The extra 700 kilometres of cycle paths delivered by this government since 2001 make Labor the party of commuter cycling and sustainable transport. And we will build on this record in the Molonglo Valley. Four sets of cycle lanes will be provided in Molonglo. This is more per population than anywhere else in the ACT and possibly amongst the highest in the world.
Bike paths in Molonglo will include on-road and off-road trunk routes and extensive local and recreation networks. These include off-road paths through the landscape buffer near Holder and Duffy, off-road paths along the north and south sides of the Molonglo River and on-road paths on both sides of John Gorton Drive.
The pedestrian and cycling paths of Coombs and Wright will generally follow environmental conservation corridors and natural drainage paths. This integrates ecological and recreational planning. The active and healthy lifestyles of Molonglo residents will also benefit from a high-level provision of major parks. This includes the close proximity of Stromlo Forest Park, the Molonglo River corridor, the Canberra international arboretum and the Weston Creek pond.
The area of land provided for arterial roads in Molonglo will be less than any other part of the ACT and, again, amongst the lowest in Australia for greenfields development. Arterial roads will represent approximately five per cent of the urban area. This compares favourably with Gungahlin, at 11 per cent. This also represents approximately one hectare of arterial road per 1,000 people at Molonglo, compared to three hectares at Belconnen. This is largely due to the design of the roads as integrated corridors servicing public transport, cyclists, pedestrians and cars and the higher density and mixed land uses immediately around them. These multi-use boulevards will invoke the qualities of Griffin’s original ideas of tree-lined avenues and rapid transport.
As the climate continues to change, droughts like we have experienced over the last decade are likely to be even longer and deeper in the future. Water, therefore, is central to the sustainability of the Molonglo Valley. The Molonglo Valley will be built under this government’s urban water sensitivity guidelines which are already seeing the use of potable water reduced by 40 per cent at all new developments.
The government, through the ACT Planning and Land Authority, is preparing a major triple-bottom-line study on stormwater management options for the Molonglo Valley. The proposal currently under consideration includes building a pond or ponds to capture water to irrigate playing fields. This could also be extended to Stromlo forest park, with additional stormwater quality ponds being used for stormwater harvesting. The decision on which option to adopt is also anticipated to be the subject of a detailed environmental impact statement process.
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