On 2 July 2015, the shared pathway to Longburn was opened by the Minister of Transport, Simon Bridges. It is the first project in New Zealand to open paid for by the Urban Cycleway Fund!
Funding was approved for the project after the 2WALKandCYCLE Conference in October 2014. Several parties really bent over backwards to make this happen before the end of government's financial year (30 June 2015). ViaStrada was privileged to be asked to contribute the scheme design. Seeing the project opened was a proud moment; the community was out in force on a weekday. Well done, Palmerston North City Council!
There will be much more to come in the next three years in New Zealand; collectively, the country will spend between $380m to $400m by mid-2018. This was just the first of many satisfying opening events that were enabled by the Urban Cycleway Fund.
More photos from the opening event can be found on Flickr; feel free to use the photos for your own purposes.
