Professor Simon Kingham, Professor of Geography and Director of the GeoHealth Laboratory

• How many people would cycle if it was safe to in Christchurch?
• What knock on effects would there be of an increase in cycling, including negative impacts?
• Who would most benefit from a safe cycling city?
• What do we need to do to create a Christchurch where people feel safe cycling?
• What are the barriers to this happening?

The rebuild of Christchurch has created a unique opportunity to create a better Christchurch. Plans include reduced city centre speeds and a network of separated cycle ways into and around the city. Will this create a city where people feel that cycling is safe? To understand this we need to know what are the barriers that prevent people from cycling at the moment. This lecture will draw on research to understand what the barriers to people cycling are and assess the likely success of the plans for a rebuilt Christchurch in minimising those barriers. It will then assess what impact this would have on the city in terms; possible levels of cycling, quality of life and community, impacts on other modes of transport efficiency. It will finally question what else we might need to do to create a city where people they can choose to cycle without worrying about how safety; and ask why we aren’t implementing some of the policies.

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