Relocating to Perth

[sz0h0s]

Hi,

A little later this year we will be relocating to from Melbourne to Perth with work. I will be working in the city and plan to cycle to work. I have never been to Perth before so don't know much about the place. It appears as though it has an extensive network of bicycle paths - so that's good. At this stage we have kinda picked Scarborough as our home, it appears that I can cycle from Scarborough to the city using the bicycle path network.

Can anybody confirm/add to this?

[Kneedown]

Welcome to Perth! It's an awesome place to live and very laid back compared to Melbourne.

The cycle path network is pretty extensive around the CBD. I live south of the river so not sure about the travel from Scarbs.

You can find maps to all the Perth bike paths here;
http://www.dpi.wa.gov.au/cycling/14679.asp

[gauchoracer]

sz0h0s,
You Lucky BBBBBBBBB Bicyclist......
and especially the fact you are escaping Melbourne..... (Lets see how long it takes for a Sydney -Melb war to start..... NOT My intention, just I am Not fond of Melb. Personal Opinion Only.....)

Thats all i wanted to say, I have no useful information for you, just jelous......
Enjoy, and remember Rule No 1....

Max....

[sim-o]

Welcome to Perth. Scarborough has some nice beaches, so you may want to ride in that direction instead of towards the city on some days .

[Aushiker]

Hi

There are no direct Scarborough to the city shared paths. Best shared path option is to head south on the coastal shared path before picking up the shared path at Oceanic Drive for the run towards the city. Even then it is not shared path all the way.

Andrew

[sz0h0s]

Thanks Andrew,

In your view is the shared pathway suitable for everyday commuting? i.e. not too many pedestrians etc?

[Aushiker]

Thanks Andrew,

In your view is the shared pathway suitable for everyday commuting? i.e. not too many pedestrians etc?

Hi

The path that run south along West Coast Highway is mostly ridden by cyclists. You will need to go onto a local road with a lane for the City Beach section. Again a popular section of road with cyclists. The section along Oceanic Drive should be good riding too including the cut-through to Underwood Avenue (and I would go on through to the Shenton Park train station to pick up the City bound path). I am not that familiar with this section through to Shenton Park (well Selby Street anyway) so can't comment. The shared path trough Subiaco and into the City will be a slower due to pedestrian traffic but is a popular route with cyclists so can't be that bad.

Andrew

[Colin_T]

Welcome to Perth. Where shops are shut on weekends and it never rains. Scarborough is pretty expensive for real estate. As for cycle paths around Perth, what a joke. There are paths but many lead nowhere or cover twice the distance as the same bit of road. And a lot of pedestrians don't know how to keep left. But if you want the best place to have a BBQ, then Perth it is, especially in autumn or spring

don't mind me, I just hate the plae

[sz0h0s]

I dunno, riding alongside the beach on your way home from work watching the sunset over the ocean, hmmmmm, doesn't sound too bad to me.

Thanks for your info Andrew, sounds like that commute will be fine.

Thanks everybody for your responses.

[casual_cyclist]

I think Perth is brilliant for cycling. There are some sections of shared path where there is pedestrian conflict but for the main part they are excellent. Also, some of the routes on the shared paths are very scenic. Riding along them makes me feel privileged that I live in Perth.

[Colin_T]

I dunno, riding alongside the beach on your way home from work watching the sunset over the ocean, hmmmmm, doesn't sound too bad to me.

that part is nice in autumn and early spring, but in summer it's way too hot and then it depends on which way you are going. You could get stuck riding into the seabreeze and that can be a pain. Mind you from Perth to Sarborough you will probably get a tail wind, lucky sod

[Aushiker]

that part is nice in autumn and early spring, but in summer it's way too hot and then it depends on which way you are going. You could get stuck riding into the seabreeze and that can be a pain. Mind you from Perth to Sarborough you will probably get a tail wind, lucky sod

Hi

Come on Colin you need to HTFU I ride the route pretty much daily through summer and it is hardly hot compared to other parts of Perth. The sea breeze (aka Fremantle Doctor) is another matter but you soon harden up or of course you ride north instead

Andrew

[Colin_T]

Hi
Come on Colin you need to HTFU I ride the route pretty much daily through summer and it is hardly hot compared to other parts of Perth. The sea breeze (aka Fremantle Doctor) is another matter but you soon harden up or of course you ride north instead :)
Andrew

LOL, yeah you slacker, ride north so you get the tail wind

[nickobec]

Colin_Tyou only live in Riverton ;-) that is not far enough to feel the full strength of the Freo Doctor try the CBD to Kwinana on a single speed

[Colin_T]

Colin_T you only live in Riverton that is not far enough to feel the full strength of the Freo Doctor. Try the CBD to Kwinana on a single speed

LOL, no thanks, that's why I ride a bike with lots of gears
I have done Riverton to Fremantle on a number of occasions and that was into the breeze all the way out there. However, I got the tailwind on the way back so it wasn't as bad.

[nickobec]

LOL, no thanks, that's why I ride a bike with lots of gears

And I take the bike on the train after riding 0 to 20km most nights

[Thoglette]

Thanks Andrew,

In your view is the shared pathway suitable for everyday commuting? i.e. not too many pedestrians etc?

Hi

The path that run south along West Coast Highway is mostly ridden by cyclists. You will need to go onto a local road with a lane for the City Beach section. Again a popular section of road with cyclists. The section along Oceanic Drive should be good riding too including the cut-through to Underwood Avenue (and I would go on through to the Shenton Park train station to pick up the City bound path). I am not that familiar with this section through to Shenton Park (well Selby Street anyway) so can't comment. The shared path through Subiaco and into the City will be a slower due to pedestrian traffic but is a popular route with cyclists so can't be that bad.

Andrew

+1 It's do-able, the City Beach road lane section is low stress (it's on a quiet stretch of road, quite unlike the highway). There are other shorter and/or faster routes available from Scarborough (eg NW9 and NW23 via http://www.dpi.wa.gov.au/cycling/14679.asp ) but most have an "icky" bit or are easy to get lost on.

[sz0h0s]

Thanks Thoglette.

Multiple commuting routes is very appealing. I'm looking forward to it

[Aushiker]

Thanks Thoglette.

Multiple commuting routes is very appealing. I'm looking forward to it

Hi

The more I think about it, the more alternatives I come up with Another option could be taking Hale Road (no path but and a nice 11% grade heading to the City) or local roads to bail out at Lake Herdsman which has a nice ride on its northern boundaries. From the east side you can cut across to the northern PSP (local roads pretty much for the cut through). Might be a better option than my first suggestion.

Regards
Andrew

[sz0h0s]

Thanks Andrew,

Checked you route on google maps, looks gr8. Seems there r many variations on possible routes - although its hard to beat riding along side the beach - I'm sure that will be my favorite!

[Colin_T]

Thanks Andrew,
Checked you route on google maps, looks gr8. Seems there r many variations on possible routes - although its hard to beat riding along side the beach - I'm sure that will be my favorite!

watch out for jay walking pedestrians

[Aushiker]

Thanks Andrew,

Checked you route on google maps, looks gr8. Seems there r many variations on possible routes - although its hard to beat riding along side the beach - I'm sure that will be my favorite!

Hi

South of Scarborough to City Beach whilst along the coast does not provide much of a view. Through Scarborough in summer is another matter

Andrew

[Thoglette]

Thanks Thoglette.

Multiple commuting routes is very appealing. I'm looking forward to it

As Auskhiker points out, the trick is to find a route across the coastal dunes that doesn't involve more traffic than you want to deal with. (So avoid Scarborough Beach Rd like the plague). Or more gradient (east side of Ewen St) than you really need - Google maps terrain really doesn't give a good indication on how up and down the dunes area is.

At the end it will come down to exactly where you end up living.

[sz0h0s]

Thanks Thoglette.

Multiple commuting routes is very appealing. I'm looking forward to it

As Auskhiker points out, the trick is to find a route across the coastal dunes that doesn't involve more traffic than you want to deal with. (So avoid Scarborough Beach Rd like the plague). Or more gradient (east side of Ewen St) than you really need - Google maps terrain really doesn't give a good indication on how up and down the dunes area is.

At the end it will come down to exactly where you end up living.

I think of Perth as having no hills, am I wrong? Are there any good hills to ride on the road bike? In Melbourne we have beach road as a kinda cycling mecca, does Perth have an equivalent?

[Thoglette]

I think of Perth as having no hills, am I wrong? Are there any good hills to ride on the road bike? In Melbourne we have beach road as a kinda cycling mecca, does Perth have an equivalent?

Perth has no mountains - the hills on the east of the city max out at c. 300m. The dunes along the coast max out at c. 70m.

Having said that, there's plenty of short but sharp slopes - double figures are pretty common if rarely sign posted.

Look around the WA forum for hill related threads. And things like the 5 Dams will test the legs.

The "mecca" here is "round the river" - Perth to Freo return on either side the river. About 55km depending on the exact route. And can include the delightful little climb on Johnson Parade through Jabe Dodd Park