Cyclists living on the eastern side of Canberra' inner north have been waiting a long time for a cycling route connecting their suburbs with the city and each other.
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On Monday, 20 years after the ACT government first identified it as a priority, the first stage of works on the Garden City Cycle Route will be launched.
The project on the eastern side of Northbourne Avenue is designed to mirror Canberra's first off-street cycle way on the avenue's western side, the Sullivan Creek shared path, which opened in 1973.
The full project, which is mostly unfunded, is planned to eventually connect Braddon with Ainslie, Dickson, Hackett, Downer and Watson.
Stage 1A, which includes the section along Torrens Street between Cooyong Street and Ipima Street in Braddon, is expected to take about seven months to complete - "weather permitting" - and be open for use in early 2025.
That part of the cycle way, along with a second segment between Cooyong Street and Ijong Street, and third between Torrens Street and the intersection of Angas Street and Limestone Avenue, are jointly funded with $10 million from the ACT and federal governments.
But no timeline has been given for the second or third segment, which are both out to tender.
And the remaining five segments - which would connect the Braddon intersection with other suburbs - are yet to be funded.
Federal Transport Minister Catherine King said the Albanese government was investing in infrastructure "that supports growing populations, reduces congestion, and gets more people outside and active".
ACT Chief Minister Andrew Barr said the Garden City Cycleway "will connect Canberrans to schools, local health centres, businesses and green spaces from Watson to the city".
The plan is for the Garden City route to use streets and green corridors to link those suburbs before connecting to the city, creating connections between schools, local shops and green spaces.
Cycle way an Albanese government election promise
An injection of $5 million was promised by Canberra senator and soon-to-be Finance Minister Katy Gallagher just weeks before the May 2022 federal election, with funding announced in her first budget that October.
In June last year, the ACT government matched this with $5 million of its own for detailed design and construction of the first stage of the route.
As for the rest of the route, a spokesperson said this would be "subject to future budget consideration".
ACT City Services Minister Tara Cheyne said: "This is just one part of our significant active travel infrastructure investment with a forward program of more than $94 million."
Canberra MP Alicia Payne said Garden City cycle way would make Canberra "an even more liveable and sustainable city than it already is".