News

Fact Sheet

23 November 2020

  • There is a portion of the Bronte to Bondi coastal walk at Calga Place, commonly known as Bronte Cutting, without a footpath. The missing link in the footpath and existing narrow footpaths result in pedestrians forced to walk along the road creating conflict between pedestrians and vehicles.
  • Over one million people use the Coastal Walk from Bronte to Bondi every year, and during peak times as many as 500 pedestrians per hour use this section of the coastal walk.
  • Whilst there have been no recorded crashes between vehicles and pedestrians in the last five years, it is important to reach beyond crash statistics to understand the related issues of pedestrian comfort and convenience. Some examples of the pedestrian discomfort and inconveniences that are likely to occur at Bronte Cutting include: moving aside for traffic, waiting for a car to parallel park, and car door/s opening in their ‘path’.
  • To improve pedestrian and vehicle safety and experience, Council is finalising plans to install a permanent footpath through Bronte Cutting, all the way from the park entrance at Calga Place, through the Cutting and up to Macpherson Street.
  • This decision has come after a two year pilot footpath and the completion of options analysis and feasibility studies.
  • Each option considered the following impacts – heritage, environment, costs, maintenance, existing infrastructure and parking.
  • Option 1 Footpath : widened footpath replacing existing footpath to the north of the cutting and extends to Macpherson Street
  • Option 2 Shared Zone: shared zone for both pedestrian and vehicle usage.
  • Seven options of slight variations of both Option 1 and Option 2 were considered as part of the options analysis.
  • The footpath is the preferred design solution as it reduces the risks of pedestrians walking on road by providing a wider footpath. This option will improve both pedestrian and vehicle safety through the cutting and on Calga place.
  • Currently, there is no lighting along Calga Place, reducing the experience of the coastal walkway for pedestrians. Therefore another objective of this project is to provide sympathetic lighting to improve safety in the late afternoon to evening.
  • A Review of Environmental Factors (REF), Project Feasibility Summary and concept design can be referred to for more detail.
  • Timeline of Bronte Cutting project.