Decision details

Original motion moved by Councillor Scott, seconded by the Chair (the Lord Mayor) -

It is resolved that:

(A)        Council note:

(i)          Shared Traffic Zones are roads or networks of roads with a speed limit of 10km/h where pedestrians and vehicles safely share road space. The implementation of these spaces has been proven to lower pedestrian injury and mortality from road accidents;

(ii)         the 2013 Sydney Streets Code outlines movement of people around streets and access to infrastructure and services as priorities for the City of Sydney in the design of streets;

(iii)        the 2013 Sydney Streets Code outlines the aim of Shared Traffic Zones as “creat[ing] a shared safe street corridor of movement for pedestrians and vehicles”, with design objectives that promote safety for pedestrians in these streets;

(iv)       Transport for NSW is responsible for changing speed limits on all New South Wales roads;

(v)         in 2020, Transport for NSW installed a 40 km/h Local Traffic Area speed limit in all local streets within Darlington;

(vi)       the City has developed an internal Speed Reduction Implementation Plan to reduce the speed limit on all local roads in the Local Government Area to 40km/h. The Plan also includes investigation for 30km/h opportunities;

(vii)      as a result of the Lord Mayor’s advocacy to the NSW Government to reduce roads speeds, around 75 per cent of all streets in the City of Sydney are now proposed to be 40km/h or less;

(viii)     the City’s Local Pedestrian, Cycling and Traffic Calming Committee which includes representatives from Transport for NSW, must review and approve all new applications for Shared Traffic Zones, as well as some other traffic changes in the City of Sydney;

(ix)       Transport for NSW has specific criteria for streets to meet the threshold for Shared Traffic Zones including traffic volumes and numbers of vehicles per hour/day;

(x)         the area between Redfern Station in West Redfern and Darlington Public School is heavily utilised by pedestrians accessing the station, school and the University of Sydney;

(xi)       upgrades to Central Station, Darlington Public School, Eveleigh and neighbouring development projects are likely to see increases in pedestrian density in this area;

(xii)      a petition to extend Shared Traffic Zones in West Redfern and Darlington has gained over 200 signatures from local residents and businesses with many petition signatories citing that current speed limits and traffic calming measures have been ineffective in the area;

(xiii)     as part of the Pemulwuy redevelopment near Redfern Station, upgrades to and extension of traffic calming measures were approved affecting Caroline Street, Caroline Lane, Vine Street, Eveleigh Street and Louis Street, which will make those streets safer for pedestrians; and

(xiv)    on 19 August 2019, Council resolved to develop a traffic management plan for the area when the Pemulwuy site is completed, and the impacts of traffic are realised.

(B)       the Chief Executive Officer be requested to:

(i)          write to petitioners to obtain feedback about their specific safety concerns and potential civic improvements in relation to Abercrombie Street, Vine Street, Hugo Street, Caroline Street, Eveleigh Street, Edward Street, Thomas Street and Lawson Street in the Redfern/Darlington area so staff can review their submissions, assess the effectiveness of any existing traffic calming measures on those streets and suggest appropriate solutions to make those streets safer and calmer, as required; and  

(ii)         report back to Councillors on the outcomes of that consultation in the CEO Update.

The amended motion was carried unanimously.

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