Oxford Street East Cycleway
Project overview
The Oxford Street East Cycleway project provides an essential link in Transport’s strategic cycling vision, connecting the Sydney CBD to suburbs in the east.
About the Oxford Street East Cycleway Project
This corridor is one of the busiest corridors in Sydney, a cycleway will help rejuvenate Oxford Street by improving its amenity, encourage people of all ages to ride, improve safety for cyclists and assist in reducing congestion, noise and pollution.
There are numerous Active Transport projects underway or recently completed in the city and surrounding areas of Bondi Junction, Surry Hills/Darlinghurst, CBD and Randwick. This is the missing link to connect these cycleways for safe passage to the Sydney CBD.
The Oxford Street East Cycleway Project proposes a two-way cycleway on the south side of Oxford Street between Paddington Gates and Taylor Square. The Project will change the allocation of road space, reducing four traffic lanes to two, and retaining two bus lanes and kerbside parking.
The Oxford Street East Cycleway would connect to the Centennial Park Cycleway, which has been completed, and the Oxford Street West Cycleway, which is being delivered by the City of Sydney. Together, these bike lanes will create a continuous separated cycle corridor between Bondi and Sydney CBD.
Building on early work by the City of Sydney, Transport has finalised a high-level strategic design for the cycleway. We are keen to get the thoughts of residents, stakeholders, and businesses on this early proposal to help with the development of a concept design.
Benefits
- The cycleway would help to rejuvenate Oxford Street. Historically Oxford Street has hosted a mix of businesses, educational institutions, health facilities and visitor destinations. Replacing two lanes of traffic with a separated cycleway will enhance the amenity of Oxford Street and provide opportunities for place making by reducing traffic, noise and air pollution.
- The cycleway would improve safety. According to the City of Sydney, about 2,000 people ride a bike along Oxford Street every day. They have no choice but to ride alongside cars and share the bus lane with buses during the peak period. Cycling research shows that to create a mode shift change to cycling we need to ensure people of all ages and abilities have a safe passage. A separated bike lane would provide a dedicated and safe bike route for a wide range of riders.
- The cycleway would encourage more people to choose bikes over cars. Cycling has been identified as a critical part of Sydney’s future transport solution - especially for short trips under five kilometres. That’s roughly the distance between Bondi Junction and the City. Completing a separated cycleway between these two destinations would make cycling a safe, reliable and viable transport option for more people.
Interactive Map
In February, Transport sought feedback on the strategic design via an interactive map.
Feedback closed on 28 February, but you can still view comments by clicking the link below. We will soon publish a Consultation Outcomes Report with an analysis of the feedback received.
Timeline
| 2021 | City of Sydney commence strategic design |
| Late 2022 | Transport for NSW completes strategic design |
| Early 2023 | Early stakeholder and community feedback on strategic design |
| Investigations and studies to inform concept design | |
| Early 2023 | Concept design starts |
| Q3 2023 | Concept design complete |
| Public display of Review of Environmental Factors |
Frequently Asked Questions
When will the project be delivered?
Funds are in place to develop a concept design, Final Business Case and planning approval for the project. This will help to determine delivery funding and timeframes.
How does the Oxford Street Cycleway connect to the rest of the bike network in the area?
The Oxford Street West Cycleway is being delivered by the City of Sydney and is scheduled to open before Oxford Street East. This western link of the Eastern Suburbs Cycleway will deliver immediate benefits upon opening by connecting Bourke Street cycleway with the CBD.
Will the project cause congestion?
The project would provide the community with more travel choices. There are many examples which show reallocating road space to bikes and buses helps to reduce congestion. During the concept design stage, we will model the possible effects of the new bike path on the road network to understand any impacts.
The Oxford Street East and West bike lanes are situated on opposite sides of Oxford Street. How will the two connect?
The Oxford Street West project runs on the north side of Oxford Street between Liverpool Street and Flinders Street. It is proposed riders would transition between the eastern and western sections of the bike lane via a signalised intersection at Flinders Street. This transition will be looked at more closely as part of the concept design phase.
How wide will the lanes be along Oxford Street?
The width will vary, however it would be three metres wide in most places (1.5 metres in each direction). Where there are floating bus stops, the cycleway would be 2.4 metres wide (1.2 metre in each direction). Traffic lanes would be 3 metres wide, which is wider than the current width of 2.5 metres, and bus lanes would be 3.2 metres wide, which is greater than the current width of 2.7 metres. Lane width will be looked at more closely as part of the concept design phase.
Where can I find out more about the project?
To find out more visit our interactive map or email projects@transport.nsw.gov.au, or call 1800 684 490