Northern Beaches - Manly, Akuna, Westhead, Palm Beach

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Re: Northern Beaches - Manly, Akuna, Westhead, Palm Beach

Postby AUbicycles » Thu Mar 17, 2016 10:09 am

It would be worthwhile to have a reminder - such as a traffic sign with the recommended cornering speed.

The responsible 'contracter' who looks after this road is Downer Mouchel (http://www.downermouchel.com" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;) so I am reporting this - if others report it is will elevate the importance. The number I was provided was 1300 776 069


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Re: Northern Beaches - Manly, Akuna, Westhead, Palm Beach

Postby numb3rsman » Sat Mar 19, 2016 1:51 pm

Hi All

I;m cycling from Palm Beach to Manly the Thursday after Easter.

Never ridden the roads before and will be on a tourer.

Any warnings/advice on routes or danger spots?

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Re: Northern Beaches - Manly, Akuna, Westhead, Palm Beach

Postby trailgumby » Sat Mar 19, 2016 6:34 pm

Yes. Avoid peak hour. Avoid Pittwater Rd as much as possible. Starting before dawn would be advisable, otherwise after 0830. Can be very scenic, especially if you detour via the beachside streets.

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Re: Northern Beaches - Manly, Akuna, Westhead, Palm Beach

Postby AUbicycles » Sun Mar 20, 2016 2:46 pm

Definately take the beach / easterly route and then consider, in Avalon, switching and down the back streets into Monavale. Then take a left after the Golf Course and take the beaches route to South Narrabeen. In Dee Why, at the petrol station, head left again and take the beach route past Curl Curl, Freshwater and over to Manly. Have a look at Google maps - it can be hilly but if you have time, it is beautiful and far nicer than the Main Road.
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Re: Northern Beaches - Manly, Akuna, Westhead, Palm Beach

Postby numb3rsman » Sun Mar 20, 2016 3:14 pm

Thanks everyone! I was definitely thinking of the back streets as much as possible!

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Re: Northern Beaches - Manly, Akuna, Westhead, Palm Beach

Postby AUbicycles » Wed Mar 30, 2016 3:45 pm

For the Mona Vale Road and Forest Way / Myoora Road intersection in Terry Hills, on Mona Vale road east bound, there is consideration to widen the cycling approach.
I raised this with the local council and RMS many years ago as it is an 80 kmh zone with bike riders merging into a comparatively narrow single file curb-side area.

If you want to encourage a widening of this area and a safer / clearer cycle path / approach and through-fare, get in touch with Mouchel Downer. An email address has been provided:
enquiries_nsw@downermouchel.com
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Re: Northern Beaches - Manly, Akuna, Westhead, Palm Beach

Postby biker jk » Thu Apr 21, 2016 3:03 pm

The road has been dug up right at the Church Pt Post Office (runs across the whole road so both directions are effected). There's a 25cm channel which has been poorly compacted and there's gravel on top. Be careful.

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Re: Northern Beaches - Manly, Akuna, Westhead, Palm Beach

Postby AUbicycles » Fri Apr 22, 2016 7:27 pm

Is it well marked and posted? Hard to believe with the number of bicycle riders on the Northern Beaches, and particularly on this road, that the council and the contractors are not placing a deserving priority on bike rider safety.
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Re: Northern Beaches - Manly, Akuna, Westhead, Palm Beach

Postby biker jk » Fri Apr 29, 2016 9:37 am

AUbicycles wrote:Is it well marked and posted? Hard to believe with the number of bicycle riders on the Northern Beaches, and particularly on this road, that the council and the contractors are not placing a deserving priority on bike rider safety.
No it wasn't well marked and posted. It's now sealed but there's a hump, which could still catch a cyclist by surprise and cause an accident.

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Re: Northern Beaches - Manly, Akuna, Westhead, Palm Beach

Postby AUbicycles » Fri Apr 29, 2016 1:11 pm

biker jk wrote:It's now sealed but there's a hump, which could still catch a cyclist by surprise and cause an accident.
The entire stretch, from the Cabbage Tree Road roundabout through to the National Park is littered with obstacles for bike riders so you could argue that it is no more dangerous than the rest of the holes.

I think that if the council had all bicycle accidents on this stretch reported to them, they would prioritise the road improvement for the entire stretch.
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Re: Northern Beaches - Manly, Akuna, Westhead, Palm Beach

Postby biker jk » Fri Apr 29, 2016 1:44 pm

Not many of those obstacles go right across the road.

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Re: Northern Beaches - Manly, Akuna, Westhead, Palm Beach

Postby trailgumby » Fri May 06, 2016 10:57 pm

I sent in a complaint last month to Manly Council concerning the unsafe state of the Burnt Bridge Creek Deviation shared use path.

Foliage overgrowth and accumulation of leaf litter and wood chips on the path itself has rendered it quite dangerous in places, particularly the northern end, and especially in the wet. A slippery surface, very poor sight lines, and face-height overhanging branches heavy with rain are far from ideal.

I was thinking about sending in a second email as I had heard nothing, but this popped up in my inbox today.
Manly Council wrote:Good morning Mr Hawkins,

I refer to your email of 8 April 2016 wherein you raise concerns regarding the Burnt Bridge Creek Deviation bike path. Please accept my apologies for the delay in providing you with this response. To explain, the maintenance, cleansing and remedial works involved in this matter involves several departments across Council so we have taken a coordinated approach.

To update you, we have had contractors work on clearing vegetation away from the cycle path to make it safe. Further and more extensive clearing is scheduled to take place on Wednesday of next week, weather and circumstances permitting. Council’s Cleansing team have carried out much work on cleaning the path.

The aim is now to have these tasks put on cyclical programs so that the area is maintained to a satisfactory state that meets safety and standard requirements.

I trust this update is useful to you and thankyou for taking the time to write to Council bringing the matter to our attention.

Yours sincerely,

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Re: Northern Beaches - Manly, Akuna, Westhead, Palm Beach

Postby AUbicycles » Mon May 09, 2016 8:21 pm

Improvements are planned at the Mona Vale road intersection with Myoora Rod - specifically for east bound cycle traffic.
Work on the new cycling lane is expected to start in mid-2016.
This proposal includes widening the eastbound side of Mona Vale Road, between 105 metres west and 15 metres east of Myoora Road, to provide cyclists with a safe on-road bicycle facility in accordance with Austroads and NSW Bicycle Guidelines.

Further work to improve cycle lanes in the area are outside the scope of this proposal however we will consider them in planning for future improvements. We have referred relevant suggestions to Council for its consideration.

The wide road shoulder for mixed use will continue through the extent of the project. The width will reduce from 3.5 metres at the start to 2 metres plus kerb through to the intersection of Myoora Road.

There is a 2.5 metre allowance through the intersection and the wide shoulder opens out to about 3.5 metres at the end of the project.

Work in the West Head National Park is outside the scope of this proposal, we will consider this suggestion in future planning.

Additional signage is not proposed as part of this work, the existing signage in the area has been determined appropriate to meet the needs of cyclists and motorists in the area.

The NSW Government is proposing an upgrade on Mona Vale Road from two lanes to four, to be delivered over three stages between Terry Hills and Mona Vale. More information can be found about the three stages of the proposed Mona Vale Road upgrade at www.rms.nsw.gov.au under Projects.
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Re: Northern Beaches - Manly, Akuna, Westhead, Palm Beach

Postby Mjainoz » Tue May 10, 2016 11:32 pm

I rode into and back to CBD from Seaforth way for the first time in a while last week. I was shocked by the new handrails at the Sth end of the western side shared path. Is it just me or does it seem skinnier than before? Also the rail could be better designed as it juts out in spots. Just me?

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Re: Northern Beaches - Manly, Akuna, Westhead, Palm Beach

Postby sobmal » Mon May 16, 2016 8:51 am

Mjainoz wrote: Is it just me or does it seem skinnier than before? Also the rail could be better designed as it juts out in spots. Just me?
Not ideal, but I'm very happy they have continued the rails, I considered it was very dangerous when overtaking/passing as a bump could send someone into 60-80 kph traffic!

Fact is that this whole shared path is just too narrow for pedestrians and bikes traveling in both directions, I have lost count of the number of moron cyclists encounters (refuse to slow down) and the odd ignorant/crazy/angry pedestrians that I meet crossing this bridge.

One of the classics that sticks in my mind was a couple walking side by side northbound at the start of the crossing; I was in a line of cyclists calmly waiting behind them to pass (as is the norm for this bridge) after a while she (on the right side of pair) noticed us, now that I had her attention I politely ask "can I please pass", to which she absolutely loses it.. "oh $*^(AT)#%..(AT)$^#... &&(AT)^$#.. #%%$* " went on for a while about it as well and then let us pass; I thanked her and rode off feeling sorry for the poor guy she was with as must be a whole bunch of fun living with a nut case like that, I wonder how she handles life when stuff really hits the fan? Perhaps there's even an Australian walkers forum where she's posted a rant about a polite cyclist that once dared to ask if he could pass her on the bridge..?
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Re: Northern Beaches - Manly, Akuna, Westhead, Palm Beach

Postby AUbicycles » Thu May 26, 2016 11:16 pm

The big news for the whole area is the council amalgamation which suddenly happened and will now mean a single council to deal with all bike issues across the Northern Beaches. It means some great plans and initiatives may fly of the agenda.
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Re: Northern Beaches - Manly, Akuna, Westhead, Palm Beach

Postby sobmal » Thu Jun 02, 2016 6:20 pm

Didn't take too long for a car to take out that new metal fence on the Spit bridge.. did it even last 2 weeks?
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Re: Northern Beaches - Manly, Akuna, Westhead, Palm Beach

Postby Gorillaz3030 » Mon Jun 06, 2016 8:43 am

6th june 8:30 am mccars creek road closed west bound just after waterfront cafe

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Re: Northern Beaches - Manly, Akuna, Westhead, Palm Beach

Postby AUbicycles » Wed Jun 08, 2016 7:02 pm

McCarrs Creek Road was reopened 3 hours later. With the amount of debris adding to the already crappy road surface condition, a good area to stay clear of directly after storms.
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Re: Northern Beaches - Manly, Akuna, Westhead, Palm Beach

Postby caneye » Mon Jun 13, 2016 1:12 pm

AUbicycles wrote:Improvements are planned at the Mona Vale road intersection with Myoora Rod - specifically for east bound cycle traffic.
Work on the new cycling lane is expected to start in mid-2016.
the work has started but closing the whole breakdown lane and forcing cyclists onto traffic is terrible.

any idea how long the concrete barriers will stay in place?

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Re: Northern Beaches - Manly, Akuna, Westhead, Palm Beach

Postby Strawburger » Mon Jun 13, 2016 6:07 pm

caneye wrote:
the work has started but closing the whole breakdown lane and forcing cyclists onto traffic is terrible.

any idea how long the concrete barriers will stay in place?
should be around 4 weeks. Good to see they were working on it on the saturday of a long weekend!

I don't think you can do construct it any other way to be honest. Closing the shoulder to widen it would require closing the entire shoulder. i drove past it on saturday and i reckon they have done the best they could do in a tight situation.

Did you have a better option in mind caneye?
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Re: Northern Beaches - Manly, Akuna, Westhead, Palm Beach

Postby AUbicycles » Mon Jun 13, 2016 8:03 pm

I agree - currently it is not optimal. I can't recall if a reduced speed limit has been imposed, but that would be worthwhile. Bike riders need to be particularly careful - likewise motor traffic.

The result will, I am certain, be good because it is so logical.
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Re: Northern Beaches - Manly, Akuna, Westhead, Palm Beach

Postby caneye » Tue Jun 14, 2016 9:47 am

Strawburger wrote:
caneye wrote:
the work has started but closing the whole breakdown lane and forcing cyclists onto traffic is terrible.

any idea how long the concrete barriers will stay in place?
should be around 4 weeks. Good to see they were working on it on the saturday of a long weekend!

I don't think you can do construct it any other way to be honest. Closing the shoulder to widen it would require closing the entire shoulder. i drove past it on saturday and i reckon they have done the best they could do in a tight situation.

Did you have a better option in mind caneye?

perhaps temporary barrier (red-white plastic ones filled with water) rather than the big concrete ones that take up a lot of space themselves?
i suppose the barrier is to protect council workers working on the new left-turn. but installing temporary barrier further down the road and erecting temporary signage earlier, might help mitigate the risk.

at the moment, i believe the electronic sign only says - cylists merging ahead. nothing about speed or slowing down.

finally, keep in mind, the speed limit is 80 for most stretch of Mona Vale road (and 60 at the intersection). you'll get idiots trying to beat the lights and may not react fast enough if cyclists were to suddenly merge onto traffic.

but i agree, the outcome of the roadworks will be favourable to everyone.

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Re: Northern Beaches - Manly, Akuna, Westhead, Palm Beach

Postby biker jk » Wed Jun 15, 2016 5:53 pm

caneye wrote:
Strawburger wrote:
caneye wrote:
the work has started but closing the whole breakdown lane and forcing cyclists onto traffic is terrible.

any idea how long the concrete barriers will stay in place?
should be around 4 weeks. Good to see they were working on it on the saturday of a long weekend!

I don't think you can do construct it any other way to be honest. Closing the shoulder to widen it would require closing the entire shoulder. i drove past it on saturday and i reckon they have done the best they could do in a tight situation.

Did you have a better option in mind caneye?

perhaps temporary barrier (red-white plastic ones filled with water) rather than the big concrete ones that take up a lot of space themselves?
i suppose the barrier is to protect council workers working on the new left-turn. but installing temporary barrier further down the road and erecting temporary signage earlier, might help mitigate the risk.

at the moment, i believe the electronic sign only says - cylists merging ahead. nothing about speed or slowing down.

finally, keep in mind, the speed limit is 80 for most stretch of Mona Vale road (and 60 at the intersection). you'll get idiots trying to beat the lights and may not react fast enough if cyclists were to suddenly merge onto traffic.

but i agree, the outcome of the roadworks will be favourable to everyone.
I recall seeing a 40 kmh speed limit.

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Re: Northern Beaches - Manly, Akuna, Westhead, Palm Beach

Postby trailgumby » Fri Jun 17, 2016 10:09 pm

biker jk wrote:I recall seeing a 40 kmh speed limit.
Hmmm. I must have missed it. :|

That intersection is now a shocker. I hope they're quick with the build, otherwise I reckon a cyclist is going to get hit.

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