The attitudes and actions of the entire Level Crossing removal project seem to firmly entrenched in the 1970s. Cyclists don’t count, pedestrians don’t count, footpaths don’t count. Interruptions to roads need to be managed, signed, detours provided, but anything else can be interrupted at a whim, on zero notice, for however long they like. If you’re lucky there’s a sign saying “Use other footpath”, but there’s never any information on where this mysterious other footpath is. The latest round of niggles:
– surprise path closure for the day
I’m not sure if this one was the LXRA or the builders on the adjacent site, this morning they’d put bollards and tape across the bike path and declared that Edward street to Downing street was closed. I queried the council and they promised to get back to me. Of course they never got back to me.
– Detours and bad design
Bizarre. First an LXRA “traffic mgmt” muppet told me not to follow the detour at Carinish road but “ride up the footpath on the far side” so I did…. head on into a couple of hundred pedestrians walking to Clayton station. Riding on the footpath is illegal, but since I was being directed to I’ll do as I’m told…. Then I got to Huntindale station and discovered the complete debacle that is the newly rebuilt bike path – the bike path with “Cyclists dismount” signs at either end. The latter is so bad it has an dedicated to it.
https://www.strava.com/activities/1431896024
– bike path blocked again
Surprise! LXRA have closed the bike path from Oakleigh station to Huntindale station for the day. You don’t find out until you enter the car park and get to the far end where the path exits. No notice, no signage, no detour provided, just a workman wiring a gate shut who told us “Nah mate, path’s closed for the day.” The path has only been open for just over a week, after the previous three month closure from Edward street to Huntindale station! I queried the council and they promised to get back to me…
https://www.strava.com/activities/1431896029
– bike path blocked for a month
Surprise repeat. A couple of new signs have appeared, cable-tied to the fence around the car parks at Oakleigh station. Hidden as a footnote on the map, not even amongst the confusing text, is the message that the Station trail from Oakleigh station to Huntingdale station will be closed for a month, starting yesterday.
Updates
– better late than never
Last week I queried Monash Council about the surprise path closure on , they forwarded it to the Level Crossing Removal Authority, who then wrote back on to say that:
Three signs were installed along the shared use path on Monday 26 Feb - one sign at each end of the path and one in the Hughesdale car park.
We apologise for any inconvenience this may have caused.
Strangely, not one cyclist that I’ve spoken too, nor my wife who walks past where the new sign is four or five times a week saw anything last Monday, Tuesday, or indeed any day up until Friday when the path closed. Now today they’ve told me:
Signs were placed at Huntingdale car park & either end of shared-use path. While the sign at Oakleigh is in place, other signs were removed by a third party.
We’ve replaced the missing signs & apologise for any inconvenience
– closed for another two months
It just gets more farcical. of further two month’s closure, even though the path hasn’t yet reopened.
