FAQs
- Supportive: 29
- Unsure: 5
- Not supportive: 12
- 10km/h speed limit
- Self-explaining roads
- High levels of pedestrian activity
- Road space is shared safely by vehicles and pedestrians
- Pedestrians have right of way
- Limited, substandard or no formal footpath
- On-road parking restricts free movement
- CBDs, tourist, heritage and residential
- Movement and Place function
- Set 10km/h speed zone throughout Wilson Street
- Raised continuous footpath (Campbell Street / Wilson Street intersection)
- Introduction of 4 speed humps
- Signage indicating 10km/h speed zone and 'Give Way to Pedestrians'
- Alternate parking to be both on the left and right side of the road (note northbound travel direction)
- Asphalt surface treatment to road in a palm design
What is the purpose of the additional round of engagement in September 2024 ?
During the engagement in May 2024, there was mixed feedback on the proposed Shared Zone. This round of engagement is to confirm what the preference is of the community for changes to Wilson Street – whether it be the short-term solution of a Shared Zone or a longer-term solution of a permanent footpath.
Why is Council making changes to Wilson Street?
The proposed changes, whether it be the Shared Zone or footpath, are solutions to improve safety for pedestrians and cyclists in Wilson Street. For a long time, the community has been asking for better safety measures in Wilson Street, as there is currently no continuous pathing for the length of the street.
What were the outcomes of the engagement in May?
As part of the engagement strategy lead by Council, including letters to affected residents, onsite signage and an online survey, 46 people left their feedback. When asked the question ‘Do you support the change of use of this street to a Shared Zone to improve pedestrian safety?’, the outcomes were:
In response to the exhibition of the proposed Shared Zone, 40 residents met with Council staff onsite on the 10 May. An additional meeting was arranged with a smaller group of elected members in early July to discuss the proposal. The resident meetings showed that some in and around Wilson Street prefer pursuing a footpath.
The favoured design for the asphalt to be treated with was Ferns as pictured.
Why hasn’t a footpath been installed already?
A footpath has not been installed yet as budget has not been allocated. Footpaths are prioritised against a set of scoring criteria to ensure requests are fairly considered. Current Council resolution is to prioritise footpaths near schools.
Where did the idea of a Shared Zone come from?
The idea of Shared Zone was to reduce the speed of vehicles while providing pedestrian access and safety.
Our Council officers investigated the area and watched the behaviours and patterns of the road users which saw pedestrians and vehicles both using the road.
The Shared Zone proposal formalises the way the area operates to allow for both pedestrians and vehicles to use the road space in a safer manner and permitted under the NSW Road Rules.
What is a Shared Zone?
Transport for NSW describes a Shared Zone as "A Shared Zone is a road or network of roads where the road space is shared safely by vehicles and pedestrians. The maximum speed limit is always 10 km/h.
There may be no road lines, kerb or gutter in a Shared Zone to show that pedestrians and vehicles are equal. Drivers must give way to pedestrians at all times.
Vehicles can only stop in a Shared Zone if they obey the parking signs and park in marked bays, if they are provided.
Drivers travelling at a lower speed are better able to control their vehicles and safely avoid impact with other road users "
What are the criteria of a Shared Zone?
Example of signage:
Where are examples of Shared Zones?
There is currently a Shared Zone located in Wollongong CBD, in the small road between Market Street and Victoria Street. The speed in this street is 10km/h.
An example of a Shared Zone in a residential area includes the streets beside Redfern Train Station. The image on the right is Little Everleigh Street, which was converted to a Shared Zone following consultation held by Transport for NSW.
Other Shared Zone examples include:
What were the proposed changes as part of the Shared Zone in Wilson Street?
The key elements being proposed in the Shared Zone for Wilson Street would include:
In the Shared Zone's proposal, will parking be affected?
The project proposes parking will now alternate along either side of the street to provide the additional traffic calming effect and assist in the change of environment with a new speed limit. The traffic team have assessed that only 1 parking space will be lost because of these changes.
What changes will there be for vehicle drivers?
Had the Shared Zone been assessed by a flood engineer?
Why couldn’t the funding be changed to install a footpath instead?
Following the engagement in May and feedback from some parts of the community wishing for a footpath, we went back to Transport for NSW as the funding body of this project and explained the outcomes of the engagement. We asked Transport for NSW if the funds could be allocated to a footpath instead, however it didn’t meet the grant funding criteria, so the request was declined.
During our engagement in May, we didn’t propose the option of a footpath to the community. We are now providing an opportunity for you to advise us of your preference of either a Shared Zone or a footpath.
If the Shared Zone was to go ahead, what would happen and when?
If the Shared Zone were to proceed, Council would develop and finalise the Design and have it endorsed by Transport for NSW. This process would also involve a Speed Zone Review. All of this would be undertaken in the 2024/25 – 25/26 Financial Year.
What are the next steps?
This engagement will run for 3 weeks and will collect feedback from residents, owners, users and businesses in the area of Wilson Street. The feedback will be reported to the Transport Team to confirm what the community’s preference is for the future of Wilson Street.
Should the Shared Zone be the preference, then it is proposed a workshop would take place to finalise the design of the Shared Zone before being finalised and have it endorsed by Transport for NSW. You can elect to participate in a future workshop to inform the design of the Shared Zone by completing the online form and sharing your contact details. Please note that if the footpath is the preferred option for Wilson Street, no workshop will take place.