Property developer One Living, backed by former Macquarie banker turned investment manager Chris Green’s investment firm, has unveiled plans to bring more institutional capital into housing to help address the national supply crisis.

The New York-based investor has focused his firm, GreenPoint Partners, on addressing the supply shortage hitting middle market housing in Australia.

It is backing the new One Living business to develop more than 1000 units along the eastern seaboard. The new firm is starting with a development on Mona Vale Road, on the border of Mona Vale and Pymble, in Sydney’s Northern Beaches, with around 140 apartments planned. They are eyeing off more sites across the city.

With cost pressures rising in the industry, One Living’s model is to be a vertically integrated developer-builder, so it can respond directly to the housing gap by removing the cost inefficiencies embedded in traditional residential delivery.

“We are building a platform designed to operate at scale and starting in a market where there’s a clear need for quality, attainable housing,” One Living joint managing director Joseph Scuderi said.

“It’s that missing middle – it’s that attainable end of housing… that’s what most Australians invest into and what Australians can actually afford.”

<img alt="Mona Vale" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="798dfa93-4941-4db6-a696-31e9dc18e81c" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Screenshot%202026-05-28%20at%202.31.50%E2%80%AFPM.png?VersionId=mKBqi5C_DmeiXS.AtJkcR8LQIxqCqmFi" />

GreenPoint Partners brings years of experience assembling and scaling real estate operating businesses across major markets. And Green sees a big opportunity in Australia.

“For its size, sophistication and importance to the community, Australia’s living sector has remained largely under-institutionalised, which represents significant opportunity,” Green said. “GreenPoint identified that gap, assembled the right team, and is backing One Living to build a platform that is aligned to market needs.”

Green said being a builder-developer would give the company the capacity and flexibility it required to deliver reasonably-priced homes.

“We want it to be at that attainable level; not super high end luxury but at that attainable level,” he said.

<img alt="Mona Vale" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="74a5344a-4b26-4d4a-ada3-056b1220be77" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Screenshot%202026-05-28%20at%202.32.15%E2%80%AFPM.png?VersionId=vY8hXHO4reBMdO8ZXMWCNtGZJofUPQ3j" />

&nbsp;

One Living will undertake a component of affordable housing in its schemes, which it will own and operate, and it could also run build-to-rent on some sites.

Green praised local policy settings.

“The NSW government is being very supportive, strategic and pragmatic in terms of how do we generate more supply of housing,” he said. “We think it’s actually positive for development and the bit that’s been lacking at that attainable level is that it’s lots of relatively small private developers, whereas we want to create an institutional platform.”

One Living is also&nbsp;looking at high-density projects and could take on more institutional funding in the future.

“The way we will be able to achieve economies of scale is through size,” Green added.

Joel Robinson

One Living enters Sydney's new apartment market with Northern Beaches site acquisition

It's been several years since there's been an opportunity to buy a brand new townhome in Melbourne's coastal suburb of Mordialloc. Even apartment developments in recent times have been few and far between in the area.

Local developer LDS Property identified the gap in new housing, securing a site on White Street, directly opposite&nbsp;Woodlands Golf Club Mordialloc. They've recently launched&nbsp;<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-townhouses/wm-residences-mordialloc-102-white-street-mordialloc-vic-3195">WM Residences</a>, just 13 townhouses which they have already started building.

Projects by Buxton Director Heath Thompson, who is selling WM Residences, says the townhouses x that perfect middle ground be

"Mordialloc residents have had limited options to downsize within the suburb, often forcing them to look elsewhere despite long-standing ties to the area," Thompson says.

"With very little comparable new supply coming to market, projects like WM Residences are well placed, particularly as buyers look to capitalise on current conditions amid constrained supply."

[smartcode_project:default project_id=134646 project_image_fid=6109]

The development, designed by regarded architecture firm&nbsp;<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/architects/ewert-leaf">Ewert Leaf</a>,&nbsp;adopts a deliberately restrained architectural approach, focusing on simplicity, durability and liveability rather than overt design gestures.

The boutique scale is central to the offering. With only 13 three-bedroom residences, each home is configured to prioritise functional layouts and everyday use, supported by private terraces and secure two-car garages.

Ewert Leaf’s design response leans into a calm, neutral material palette. Interiors are defined by oak flooring, white walls and soft finishes, creating a consistent and understated backdrop. The approach avoids trend-driven detailing in favour of longevity, with an emphasis on natural light and spatial clarity.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=134646 project_image_fid=6110]

Beyond aesthetics, the homes are designed to meet contemporary performance expectations. Each residence targets a minimum 6-star energy rating, incorporating double glazing, comprehensive insulation and all-electric Bosch appliances.

The project’s location supports a walkable coastal lifestyle, sitting within close proximity to Mordialloc’s foreshore, Main Street retail strip and the train station. Local cafés and dining venues, including Suburbia Deli and Hendriks Café, are within a short walk, reinforcing the area’s established neighbourhood character.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=134646 project_image_fid=6116]

While <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developments/mordialloc-vic-3195">Mordialloc</a> is often defined by its beach and pier, the project taps into other areas of day to day living, offering easy access to local food, casual dining and transport, rather than positioning itself purely as a lifestyle retreat.

WM Residences reflects a continued trend across Melbourne’s coastal suburbs towards smaller-scale, design-led townhouse developments, particularly on infill sites where proximity to amenity is already established.

With construction commenced prior to its market entry, the project aligns with a growing preference among buyers for developments with visible progress and defined delivery timeframes.

[smartcode_project_cta:default project_id=134646]

WM Residences fills gap in Mordialloc townhouse market

&nbsp;

Developer GURNER™ Group has revealed $1.65 billion in residential sales nationally across the 12 months to December 2025, driven largely by the continued momentum of its Docklands wellness-focused precinct, Elysium Fields.

The sales result was generated across seven projects in Victoria and New South Wales, headlined by Elysium Fields, GURNER™’s $2.75 billion mixed-use precinct planned for Harbour Esplanade in Docklands.

The project has recorded more than $500 million in sales across the first three towers, equating to around 580 apartments sold.

The first tower, Helios, has now sold out of its 240 private residences, with GURNER™ preparing to release a premium penthouse collection comprising 15 three-bedroom penthouses in coming weeks.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=144441 project_image_fid=370975]

Elysium Fields is being developed on the long-held 20,000 sqm Docklands site at 208-226 Harbour Esplanade, which had remained undeveloped for more than two decades prior to GURNER™ taking over the project around four years ago.

Construction has now commenced across four towers ranging between 18 and 30 storeys, with Hamilton Marino and Maxcon appointed as builders.

Once complete, the precinct is expected to comprise around 1,100 residences, alongside retail, hospitality and public realm uses integrated throughout the site.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=144441 project_image_fid=370981]

Designed by Fraser &amp; Partners in collaboration with GURNER™ Design House, the project has been positioned around the developer’s broader focus on wellness-led residential living.

“We don’t sell apartments. We create a true luxury lifestyle that simply doesn’t exist elsewhere in the market today,” Founder and Executive Chairman Tim Gurner said.

“To deliver that requires an extraordinary level of detail, coordination and discipline across multiple verticals, from design and hospitality through to wellness and service.”

“We’ve always believed that living extends far beyond the physical residence. It’s about how you feel the moment you arrive, how you live day-to-day, and the ecosystem that supports that.” 
[smartcode_project:default project_id=144441 project_image_fid=370977]

The project’s design places a heavy focus on landscaping, wellness amenities and biophilic design principles.

Plans include around 3,700 sqm of landscaped gardens and open space throughout the precinct, alongside a retail and dining offering spanning approximately 5,000 sqm.

The broader public realm strategy centres around what GURNER™ describes as the “Path of Life”, an urban forest and landscaped pedestrian environment intended to connect the various buildings and wellness spaces across the precinct.

The apartments themselves will incorporate a range of wellness-focused inclusions, including purified air and water systems, circadian lighting, antimicrobial surfaces, and optional in-home wellness upgrades.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=144441 project_image_fid=370980]

Gurner said the company’s experience through its Saint Haven wellness clubs had directly informed the residential offering now being incorporated into Elysium Fields.

“We’re seeing a clear global shift toward longevity, performance and proactive health,” Gurner said.

“Our role is to deliver that in a way that feels seamless, highly private and beautifully resolved within the environments we create.”

A large component of the wellness offering is planned through the resident amenity and health facilities proposed within the precinct.

That includes plans for bathing and recovery facilities spread throughout the towers, incorporating mineral pools, saunas, steam rooms, flotation therapy, red light therapy and wellness lounges.

The developer is also seeking approvals for what it describes as a “reverse ageing medical clinic” within the precinct.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=144441 project_image_fid=370978]

According to project information released by the group, the proposed facility would include cryotherapy, IV infusion therapy, infrared and dry saunas, PEMF beds, MRIs, DEXA scans, brain scans and blood analysis services.

Within the first tower, Helios, residents will also have access to a dedicated amenity offering known as the Sky Private Club.

The upper 15 levels of the building will include private lounges, dining spaces, rooftop amenities and optional private wellness studios integrated within residences.

The Helios tower itself comprises 260 apartments ranging between 60 sqm and 300 sqm, including a collection of penthouses.

That includes a planned two-storey penthouse spanning around 600 sqm with uninterrupted bay views.

The Elysium Fields precinct is being delivered in partnership with Digital Harbour Holdings, a consortium that includes the Liberman family, which controls the development rights across the Docklands site.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=144441 project_image_fid=370979]

The sales result comes as GURNER™ continues expanding its national development pipeline beyond Victoria.

“We have a strong pipeline across Australia and are now focused on scaling into key markets including New South Wales and Queensland, while continuing to build on our Melbourne base,” Gurner said.

“We currently have more than $3 billion in the market, growing to over $5 billion by October, and expect to materially outperform last year in the 2026 calendar year.”

The result also reflects the continued strength of the upper-end apartment market in Melbourne, particularly for owner-occupier-focused product with large-scale amenity and lifestyle offerings.

[smartcode_project_cta:default project_id=144441]

Record result anchored by the Group’s “utopian” Elysium Fields precinct – defying market headwinds in Docklands.

Elysium Fields drive Gurner to $1.65 billion in apartment sales over 2025

National Australia Bank (NAB) will fund <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/palmera-residences-gold-coast-18-garfield-terrace-surfers-paradise-qld-4217">Palmera</a>, a $1 billion, 52-level luxury residential tower being developed by Central Equity in one of the Gold Coast’s most tightly held coastal locations at Northcliffe.

The project, launched recently by <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/central-equity">Central Equity</a>, one of Victoria’s largest private residential developers, comes at a time when construction funding for large residential developments has become increasingly competitive as lenders tighten exposure to the sector.

Multiplex has been appointed the builder, and construction is now underway.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=108274 project_image_fid=365784]

Since its first project, Central Equity has delivered more than 85 residential developments with a combined end value exceeding $8 billion.

Palmera reflects Central Equity’s growing focus on the Gold Coast luxury apartment market and continues a relationship between Central Equity and NAB that dates back to the late 1980s, when the bank funded one of Melbourne’s earliest inner-city residential towers at a time when high-rise apartment living in the CBD was largely unproven.

“NAB’s funding of Central Equity’s $36 million CBD development in the late 1980’s to the financing of the billion-dollar tower today highlights the long-term relationship between the two organisations in delivering major residential projects” said Central Equity Founder and Chairman Eddie Kutner.

He said NAB’s early support was instrumental in helping establish the company’s development model.

“When we commenced our first residential tower in the late 1980s the concept of funding off-the-plan apartments was still largely untested in Australia,” Kutner said.

“NAB recognised the opportunity early and supported the project when others were uncertain. That relationship has now continued for more than 37 years across many developments.”

[smartcode_project:default project_id=108274 project_image_fid=365771]

Central Equity was established in 1987 when Melbourne’s CBD and Southbank precinct were still dominated by warehouses and commercial buildings. Fewer than 100 residents lived in Southbank at the time, and large-scale residential development in the inner city was not widely considered.

Recognising changing demographics and lifestyle preferences, the company began developing high-rise residential projects designed to bring permanent residents into the city centre.

Central Equity has provided accommodation for approximately 40,000 residents across Melbourne’s CBD and Southbank, while also incorporating supporting infrastructure including essential lifestyle facilities like retail spaces, childcare facilities and neighbourhood activity centres.

Central Equity has spent many years assembling the Palmera development site on the corner of Garfield Terrace and Frederick Street in Northcliffe, creating a supersite of around 3,300 sqm.

The developer said the Palmera apartment tower reflects its long-term view of the Gold Coast as a growing and increasingly diversified economy.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=108274 project_image_fid=365768]

Supported by infrastructure including the light rail network, major road upgrades expanded education, hospital and medical facilities and continued expansion at the Gold Coast Airport with more international and domestic flights.

Positioned in the tightly held Northcliffe precinct, the 52-level tower will deliver 347 apartments, targeting buyers seeking a high-end coastal lifestyle, from downsizers to interstate investors.

Designed by Marchese Partners with interiors by DBI, Palmera has been conceived as a next-generation residential offering, featuring a collection of oversized apartments, with premium three-bedroom residences offering sweeping northern views stretching from Surfers Paradise through to Burleigh Heads.

[smartcode_project_cta:default project_id=108274]

NAB funds $1 billion Surfers Paradise apartment development, Palmera

Two years after completing one of the newest developments in North Sydney, developer <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/aqualand-australia">Aqualand</a> is turning its attention to the rapidly evolving St Leonards apartment market.

The developer, which completed AURA by Aqualand on North Sydney's Walker Street, has lodged plans for a 5,918 sqm site at <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/33-37-herbert-street-st-leonards-nsw-2065">33-37 Herbert Street, St Leonards,</a> seeking approval for a pair of residential towers rising above a shared podium opposite Royal North Shore Hospital.

The proposal forms part of the broader transformation underway across the St Leonards-Crows Nest precinct, where former industrial and commercial sites are increasingly being redeveloped into high-density mixed-use projects tied to major transport infrastructure.

<img alt="Aqualand" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="2cc428cf-fe70-4cac-9cd5-264ad53af62c" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Screenshot%202026-05-28%20at%209.51.56%E2%80%AFAM.png?VersionId=otKSnHtbjAvAddOnovyXQMgcAwE6DMe1" />

According to the planning documents, the site sits “within the St Leonards–Crows Nest Strategic Centre, identified by the NSW Government as a key area for accommodating future jobs and housing across Sydney.”

The proposal has been designed by fjcstudio, formerly FJMT Studio, and is being progressed through the State Significant Development pathway due to its scale and affordable housing provision.

The scheme would comprise 413 apartments, including 46 affordable housing units, alongside retail and commercial uses fronting Herbert Street. The project would also include communal open space, landscaping, a swimming pool, gymnasium, children’s play areas and podium-level resident amenities.

Planning documents show the development would consist of a part-13, part-39 storey tower form positioned above a four-storey podium.

“The development comprises a unified podium that activates the street interface, and two setback towers to accommodate new housing supply while maintaining an appropriate human scale at ground level,” fjcstudio noted in its Design Report.

The northern and southern towers have been shaped to respond to the surrounding skyline while also limiting overshadowing impacts to nearby public open space, particularly Talus Reserve.

The design report said the differing tower heights were intended to “contribute to a varied skyline while responding to the surrounding built form context and solar access considerations.”

<img alt="Aqualand" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="36da62dc-ff9e-41f2-a7e3-7be38373751c" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Screenshot%202026-05-28%20at%209.51.45%E2%80%AFAM_0.png?VersionId=Mo6Rp2r.XRLTzIfg_PEEpw8NepDH8UBs" />

The site sits directly opposite Royal North Shore Hospital and within walking distance of both St Leonards Station and the new Crows Nest Metro station.

While the site itself sits just outside the formal Crows Nest Transport Oriented Development boundary, the planning documents repeatedly reference its alignment with the broader TOD objectives reshaping the Lower North Shore.

“The site is located adjacent to St Leonards Station and in close proximity to Crows Nest Metro which is within the Crows Nest Transit Orientated Development Accelerated Precinct which has been identified by the NSW Government to support housing delivery,” the Design Verification Statement noted.

According to fjcstudio, the project has been designed to respond to the broader transition occurring across St Leonards, where increasing residential density is being concentrated around transport infrastructure and employment hubs.

“The broader precinct is undergoing significant change, with a mix of existing mid-rise buildings and newer high-density developments,” the report stated.

“Recent and approved projects indicate a consistent shift toward taller built form, typically organised as tower-and-podium typologies with more active ground levels.”

The proposal includes close to 6,000 sqm of retail and commercial space across the ground floor and podium levels, designed to create a more activated street edge along Herbert Street.

Aqualand’s plans would also introduce a landscaped podium shared between the two towers, with communal open space in the form of a podium rooftop designed to support resident interaction and improve urban greening outcomes. The scheme would also introduce pocket parks at the northern and southern ends of the site, including a landscaped area at the corner of Herbert and Ella streets designed to improve pedestrian amenity and soften the streetscape.

&nbsp;

The proposal is being progressed through the NSW Government’s Housing Delivery Authority pathway, which was introduced to accelerate housing supply across the state. The application was declared State Significant Development in April 2025 following an expression of interest process.

<img alt="Aqualand" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="faf6d97d-2671-454f-b85a-fe1c6a7be608" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Screenshot%202026-05-28%20at%209.51.49%E2%80%AFAM.png?VersionId=diVd28OBVr5.YV.7prrOz.uAanwwwm7a" />

St Leonards has been particularly active with new developments in recent weeks. Developer SP Setia’s <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/news/nsw/first-look-sp-setia-targets-st-leonards-skyline-with-40-storey-tod-tower">plans for a new 42-storey tower</a> recently went on exhibition through the same pathway, while <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/news/nsw/first-look-stockland-plans-52-storey-538-apartment-st-leonards-tower">Stockland’s 52-storey tower proposal</a> was also recently unveiled.

Aside from the St Leonards project, which is expected to take around nine months to move through the approvals process ahead of a potential 2027 launch, Aqualand is also preparing to launch Boronia, a new apartment project in Roseville comprising around 111 apartments on Larkin Street.

The developer also has approvals in place for the next stage of the Barangaroo precinct, which will feature new residential, retail, hospitality and community uses, alongside a new metro entry across the five-hectare site.

More than 50 new retail destinations are planned for Central Barangaroo, alongside a 270-metre-long boulevard connecting Hickson Park to Nawi Cove. Together with Harbour Park, more than 50 per cent of the precinct will comprise public open space and parkland.

First look: Aqualand joins St Leonards apartment party

Cycling

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I was cycling through Preston the other day, riding to the left of a lane shared with cars as the “bicycle lane” was full of parked cars. A motorist in a four-wheel drive overtook me at some speed with less than a foot between us. I came up to his window at the next red light, tapped on it, and asked him whether he was aware that he’d passed me so narrowly.
“Nah, I gave you plenty of room.”
“You should have been in the bike lane.”
“You f***ing cyclists think you have all the rights.”
Although this person didn’t raise his voice at me (nor did I to him) or threaten me – this was not the worst encounter I’ve had while cycling – at no point did he apologise or even concede that it was important to be considerate of other road users and their safety. When I made the point to him that he would not want to be responsible for somebody’s death, he told me “not to be so dramatic”.
Tell that to the families of the 33 cyclists killed across Australia in 2012, the last year for which road fatalities were available from the <a href="http://www.bitre.gov.au/statistics/safety/fatal_road_crash_database.aspx">Australian Government’s Road Deaths Database</a>. While this figure is small compared to the total fatality figure of 1303, the fact that more people travel by car than bike means that cyclists have a higher injury and death rate than motorists and their passengers. <a href="http://www.darebinbug.org.au/images/2010/JACRSV21N3_037.pdf">A 2010 study by researchers from Deakin University and the University of Sydney</a> found that cyclist fatality rates per kilometre between 2002 and 2008 were anywhere from 4.5 to 18.6 times that of car occupants.
We as a society tend to fix these kinds of problems through legislation or physical infrastructure. Councils across Melbourne have been installing more bicycle lanes, including <a href="https://www.bicyclenetwork.com.au/general/bike-futures/11522/">physically-separated lanes</a>, such as in Albert Street in East Melbourne and Swanston Street in Carlton. <a href="http://www.couriermail.com.au/news/queensland/queensland-cyclists-to-get-1m-clearance-on-roads-permission-to-ride-without-helmets-under-proposed-laws/story-fnihsrf2-1226770826919">The Queensland Government is soon to pass legislation requiring motorists to leave a metre gap when passing cyclists</a>, increasing to 1.5m when travelling at 60km/h or more. Do these solutions address the whole problem, however, when it is impractical to install best-practice bicycle infrastructure all over the city or to always enforce road rules?
<a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/pictures/article-images/swanston.GIF" rel="gallery-all" title="Separated bike lane on Swanston Street, Carlton"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-702px" src="/sites/urbanmelbourne.info/files/styles/article_full_width_702px/public/pictures/article-images/swanston.GIF?itok=0BJ8Lq01" title="Separated bike lane on Swanston Street, Carlton" typeof="Image"></a>
In my opinion, a large part of cyclists’ safety problem is that of some motorists’ attitudes relating to how and where cyclists should ride, and what rights should be afforded to them. The man who narrowly overtook me had no issue doing so presumably because he assumed he posed no threat to my safety and because I shouldn’t have been there in the first place. Had he considered me as a fellow human being foremost (rather than a member of a different “road user type”), acknowledged my right to share a lane with cars where it was impractical to travel in the bicycle lane (<a href="http://www.austlii.edu.au/au/legis/sa/consol_reg/arr210/s247">Australian Road Rules Regulation 247</a>) and been cognisant of the hazard that his vehicle posed to my safety, he would have likely been happy to wait an additional five seconds to overtake me safely.
One solution towards this attitude problem could be more education campaigns for motorists in relation to vulnerable groups such as cyclists. These would need to include the rights and responsibilities of various parties, such as the legal position on where and how cyclists may ride, and who gives way to whom in various situations. While some members of any road user group would continue to break the law, correcting misconceptions on road rules would help decrease situations where a motorist’s mistaken outrage at a cyclist sharing the road blinds him or her to compassion and common sense.
Another would be greater awareness that cyclists are not a fundamentally different type of animal life, even when dressed in spandex, but fellow human beings. Too often, we categorise others into rigid out-groups – even when the basis for these groups cease on alighting from our vehicles. Family members have told me that they have begun driving more carefully around cyclists since I began cycling, having greater empathy and awareness of the risks involved. It is my hope the increasing numbers of cyclists will mean that more people will know one and see them as somebody’s family member or friend, rather than an obstacle to getting through the next set of green lights. However, we may need safety campaigns reminding us that people – however they travel – have lives and aspirations that can too easily be extinguished by carelessness or impatience.
In a perfect world, technological and infrastructural solutions would remove the all-too-present element of human error from transportation. Although we continually strive to fix accident blackspots and physically separate vulnerable road users from threats, these solutions alone cannot be the answer. Greater compassion, awareness and patience on our roads would make a world of difference.
Alexander is a member of <a href="https://www.facebook.com/linkmelbsus" target="_blank">Students Linking Melbourne Sustainably</a>.
</body></html>

apsheko

Cycling safety solutions - infrastructure or attitudes?

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<h1>
	By <a href="http://theconversation.com/profiles/steven-fleming-104420" style="font-size: 12px;">Steven Fleming</a>, University of Tasmania 
</h1>
This article was originally published at <a href="http://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a>. Read the <a href="http://theconversation.com/ride-to-work-youll-need-a-bike-barrier-for-that-19111">original article</a>
Between 1% and 3% of Australian commuters are out on the roads today proving cycling is often the <a href="https://theconversation.com/not-so-fast-how-car-commuting-is-taking-your-time-9682">fastest transport choice</a> in Australian cities.
Why don’t more people join them?
It is not for a lack of interest. Australians have already stocked their households with an average of 1.6 bikes. The reason most of those bikes gather dust in garages is that few of us are prepared to risk our lives riding near cars, as Australian traffic and planning authorities expect us to do.
Now even the US has decided to make it easier for cyclists. Will Australia ever catch up?
In-carriage cycling – mixing it with car traffic – is the primary reason our death rates per million kilometres cycled are three times higher than in the Netherlands. We may have helmets, but the Dutch have the protection that matters: barrier protection from cars.
<a href="http://injuryprevention.bmj.com/content/17/2/131.full?sid=21375136-54bf-4e1a-a192-9e448892d3cf">A study</a> led by Anne Lusk at Harvard found what common sense tells us, that injury rates are much lower on barrier protected cycle-tracks than on comparable roads without bicycle provisions.
<a href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23078480">Another</a> led by Kay Teschke, which interviewed injured Canadian cyclists, found barrier protected cycle tracks were one-ninth as likely to have been the site of their accident compared to a randomly selected control site on the route they were cycling.
Studies such as these highlight the greater risk of what <a href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12971922">Herslund et.al.</a> call “looked-but-failed-to-see errors” by drivers when cyclists have to use roads, plus the well understood danger posed by opening car doors.
Many cyclists have been killed when a carelessly-opened car door has clipped their handlebar and caused them to fall in the path of the vehicle travelling behind them. Many, many, many more have been injured.
A mountain of evidence favouring barrier protected cycle tracks over painted bike lanes has caused an about-face in policy direction in the United States. In July 2013 the US Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) put an invitation out to protected cycle track experts, after 40 years of their advice being ignored by the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Engineers.
The journal Injury Prevention rightfully <a href="http://blogs.bmj.com/injury-prevention/2013/09/20/u-s-federal-highway-administrations-new-policy-informed-by-cycle-track-research-published-in-ip/">takes some of the credit</a> on their blog.
A sad irony in the history of bicycle transport is that keen cyclists aided and abetted motoring lobbyists, who wanted the whole road for cars.
<figure><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="350" scrolling="no" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/hleXB6oXAJ8?wmode=transparent&amp;start=0" width="100%"></iframe>
	<figcaption>Painted bike lanes don’t get much respect from certain motorists.</figcaption></figure>Bike store owner <a href="http://www.johnforester.com/">John Forester</a> was a keen “vehicular cyclist”. He could keep pace with cars, assert his right to a lane, and gracefully somersault onto the grass if ever a driver looked but didn’t see him. He published these tips in his 1976 book <a href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/http://www.amazon.com/Effective-Cycling-John-Forester/dp/0262516942">Effective Cycling</a>, with some good intentions, but also a hint of male pride.
By the way he opposed the Dutch-modelled cycle tracks he feared would spread to the US, you could be forgiven for thinking his secret fear was being made to <a href="https://theconversation.com/bikes-as-transport-getting-australian-women-along-for-the-ride-2157">ride beside women and children</a>.
Authorities throughout the Anglosphere nations where Forester’s book was read most were happy to listen to a male voice of cycling. There was no way though that Forester’s ideas were going to have sway with the Dutch.
Too many Dutch mothers were already active in the <a href="http://www.aviewfromthecyclepath.com/2011/01/stop-child-murder">Stop the Child Murder</a> rallies that began in 1973 after 450 children were killed on their bikes in one year. The Netherlands was developing feminine and juvenile bike infrastructure that did not exclude men. Australia, like the US, did the opposite.
In every nation, including Australia, bicycle transport was <a href="https://theconversation.com/wide-open-road-how-did-australia-plan-pedestrians-cyclists-and-transit-out-of-its-cities-3944">mainstream</a> until the second world war. In every nation, including the Netherlands, most of those cyclists were wooed, cajoled and bullied into driving during the 1950s and 60s.
But then the Dutch, closely followed by the Danes, gave bikes their own protected space in the road matrix. Each nation’s bike patronage soared and with it their economies benefited from increased discretionary movement and chance interaction, and their hospitals had less road trauma and morbid illness to treat.
With the rest of Europe, the UK, and now even the US moving to broad-appeal bike transport policies, we must ask why Australians still mistake paint on the road for bike infrastructure.
That could be changing. A few local governments are already defying state level policies by building protected cycle tracks, like the <a href="https://theconversation.com/biking-bourke-street-sydneys-cycleways-make-sustainable-transport-possible-6032">Burke Street cycle track</a> in Sydney.
Transport economists serving the former Labor commonwealth government issued <a href="http://www.infrastructure.gov.au/infrastructure/mcu/urbanpolicy/active_travel/files/infra1874_mcu_active_travel_report_final.pdf">a report</a> last July recommending protected bike infrastructure be included with every new urban road, because A$14.30 indirectly <a href="https://theconversation.com/bike-lanes-economic-benefits-go-beyond-jobs-6081">flows back to our economy</a> each time one of us chooses a bike for a 20 minute commute.
The automatic association Australians make between cycling and sport indirectly hinders the development of bike transport infrastructure. As a competitive cyclist myself for more than 20 years, I would be the last to <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-cadel-effect-australias-cycling-industry-enters-a-yellow-jersey-era-3546">blame Cadel Evans</a>, or even our <a href="https://theconversation.com/amgen-and-abbott-whos-that-on-the-pms-cycling-kit-18142">MAMIL prime minister</a>, for how things have played out.
I would blame any daring competitive cyclist though who presumed to speak on behalf of all cyclists, from their experience, without recognising that most other Australians can ride a bike too, but are rightfully scared to.
Steven Fleming does not work for, consult to, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has no relevant affiliations.
<img alt="The Conversation" height="1" src="https://counter.theconversation.edu.au/content/19111/count.gif" width="1">
Lead image credit: City of Melbourne
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theconversation

Ride to work? You'll need a bike barrier for that

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Recently at Apartments.com.au the transport focus has been on the big ticket modes: rail and bus. Whilst their mode share has increased steadily over the last decade, the underlying trend towards inner city living has seen a dramatic uptake for the humble bicycle. Fueled by rising petrol costs, an increasing interest in exercise, and a population explosion of hipsters in the inner north, Melburnians have been blessed with a plethora of new cycle paths, and not so blessed with the popularity of faux vintage fixie bikes (Ok, Ok, I'll try to reframe from any further hipster bashing!).

Whilst we have seen rapid improvement in off road places to ride, Amsterdam we are not quite yet. Admittedly, they have about a 50 year head start on us, and a smaller, denser area to work with. We have come a long way in a short time though; as a kid it was basically run the gauntlet on the road, or risk bowling over a few grannies on the footpath. These days there are a variety of cycle paths and cycle 'highways' dedicated to the commute of the lycra army. Just go to Melbourne on Google Maps and select the 'Bicycling' overlay; the amount of corresponding light and dark green lines is quite mind boggling.

Cycling is no longer a Sunday morning sojourn with the wife/husband and kids. Its now a serious weekday commuter option for many. Subsequently we now have a network of paths to lead to the CBD: the Gardiners Creek Trail, The Merri Creek Trail, The Upfield Path, The Maribyrnong Trail and the Capital City Trail just to name a few. However in the Western Suburbs it's a bit more problematic. Aside from the Coastal Trail which provides a good link from Altona/Williamstown via Footscray Road, further out residents are limited despite the presence of what should be the cycling jewel in its crown: the Federation Trail.

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/pictures/article-images/Image46_0.jpg" rel="gallery-all" title="Images courtesy wayfinding.com and Wikipedia"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="207" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files/styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/Image46_0.jpg?itok=2GEjJEzy" title="Images courtesy wayfinding.com and Wikipedia" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>Images courtesy wayfinding.com and Wikipedia</figcaption></figure>The Federation Trail opened in 2006, costing a purported $12.5 million. Starting in Werribee, it mainly follows the old sewer outfall, passing through parts of Hopper Crossing, Truganina, Williams Landing and Laverton North, before coming to an abrupt halt in Brooklyn at Millers Road, not unlike the Eastern Freeway at Hoddle Street. From here options to the CBD gets a bit tricky: Millers Road, Geelong Road and Francis Street all have major traffic volumes, and are truck routes to boot, restricting it as an option to everyone bar those with a death wish. The Westgate is of course off limits, especially now that the emergency lanes have been removed from the bridge.

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/pictures/article-images/Image8125.jpg" rel="gallery-all" title="The missing link, utilising Google"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="271" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files/styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/Image8125.jpg?itok=sq_IqvRF" title="The missing link, utilising Google" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>The missing link, utilising Google</figcaption></figure>The answer is the 'missing link'. Starting at Millers Road, it would wend its way next to the Westgate Freeway to Williamstown Road, before following Stony Creek to Hyde Street and connecting to the Coastal Trail. From here cyclists can go left and into the CBD, or right and onto the Westgate Punt, a ferry service to Fisherman's Bend. Its an important link; currently only the inner west is really served well. Building it means not only would the large suburbs or Werribee and Hopper Crossing be connected, but the major growth areas of Truganina, Point Cook and Williams Landing would have a much more direct path into the CBD than the much longer and more tourist orientated option of the Coastal Trail.

The best part is its relatively straight forward to construct: no houses need to be compulsorily acquired, no parks need to be savaged, and it wouldn't cost $9 billion to build! The cost to complete it has been estimated at less than $1 million; a drop in the ocean as a proportion of today's total infrastructure budget. And the west would finally have the (close to) complete commuter cycling network it deserves. Given that it would run through the trendy suburb of Yarraville, maybe, just maybe, some cafes will open up along the route, giving the hipsters somewhere to park their fixies and have a well deserved organic cider and gluten free salted caramel muffin…*

* no hipsters were hurt in the writing of this article.
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