Hawthorn to Box Hill Trail Feasibility Study 2020

A feasibility study is underway for the Hawthorn to Box Hill Trail the $370,000 funding secured by Paul Hamer MP and John Kennedy MP.

The study, managed by the Department of Transport, is identifying options for the route including the preferred alignment and treatments along it.

Update November 2020 - Preferred alignment

BBUG and MeBUG members were briefed by the Department of Transport Project team on 28 October. We were collectively very pleased with the recommended route alignment that mostly follows the railway easement and provides a safe separated shared path. Update from DoT is below.

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The Department of Transport (DoT) is entering the final stages of the Box Hill to Hawthorn Safe Cycling Corridor feasibility study.

Over the last five months, there has been a significant amount of work that has been undertaken to identify options for a safe cycling corridor.

Throughout the journey, we’ve been liaising with key stakeholders to understand what a safe cycling corridor could look like while taking into consideration the constraints that exist along the rail corridor between Box Hill and the Main Yarra Trail in Hawthorn.

We’ve now completed our multi criteria analysis on a number of alignment options for the corridor taking into consideration the strategic cycling corridor key principles as well as several other factors which has resulted in two shortlisted alignment options for further investigations.

We’d like to thank all key stakeholder groups for their participation and feedback so far and for their ongoing support as the project continues into the future; with the hope that funding will be provided to further develop and potentially deliver the project in future budget cycles.

Being a feasibility study, the key focus is for DoT to understand the feasibility of a safe corridor between Box Hill and the Main Yarra Trail. The preferred alignment option will then require further investigation and broader community consultation once the project is funded.

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For more information about the feasibility study see: Box Hill to Hawthorn Shared Use Path (Dept of Transport)

BUG Submissions to feasibility study

• • Boroondara Bicycle Users Group (BBUG) input to the study on 3 June 2020 is available here

• Boroondara Bicycle Users Group (BBUG) input to the study on 2 July 2020 is available here

Timing

The approximate timings for the study are:

• 1. Options identification - Late June 2020

  2. Preferred alignment option - Mid August 2020

1. Preferred treatments along alignment - Mid October 2020

Examples of similar infrastructure

Here are some spans being built for the Federation Trail in Melbourne's west. Similar solutions could provide an elevated path next to Canterbury Station and other challenging locations.