A Hobart councillor who chairs the region’s peak cycling body and is a paramedic by trade says concrete barriers installed to protect riders on the Collins Street bike lane are not fit for purpose and have already broken a cyclist’s arm.
Speaking to Pulse, Ryan Posselt said he has been raising the concerns with council “behind closed doors for more than a year” but has now chosen to speak out publicly, accusing council staff of not listening to the public or elected members.
“The feedback that I gave in the council meeting [on Monday], I have consistently given behind closed doors for more than a year,” he told Pulse.
“It’s consistent with public submissions made by Bicycle Network, where staff haven’t listened to the public and haven’t listened to elected members who have expertise and knowledge in these areas.”
Posselt said the rigid concrete bollards separating the bike lane from traffic and parking sat too high and were too hard to see, creating a hazard for the riders and pedestrians the trial was designed to protect.
“If you need to swerve around a pedestrian or a bit of rubbish on the road as a cyclist [and] you hit one, then it’s enough to throw you over the handlebars,” he said.
“As we’ve unfortunately seen, break an arm.”
He said off-the-shelf separators with a lower profile and closer-set poles were available and would be more visible and more effective at keeping vehicles out of the lane.
“I’m not really sure why they weren’t used in the original design,” he said.
Posselt said he remained a supporter of the two-year trial, which hit its halfway mark last month.
“I don’t think it’s been a failure,” he said.
“I do think it’s been a success, but there are elements that need to be adjusted, based on the feedback of the user groups that it targets.”
At Monday night’s meeting, Posselt moved an amendment calling for investigations into two-way vehicle access on Victoria Street, allowing vehicles leaving the Centrepoint carpark to travel towards Harrington Street. It was voted down.
The council instead endorsed a motion from Councillor Louise Elliot to resolve safety concerns at the Collins and Harrington street intersection and restore a drop-off zone near Village Cinema.
Elliot said the motion was intended to improve accessibility, support local businesses and ease traffic congestion.
The council also endorsed a community awareness campaign, including on-site signage, to remind the public that e-scooters are not permitted in the separated lanes.
The trial has been contentious since approval, removing dozens of car parking spaces between Molle and Murray streets.
The project has also seen the bus stop on Collins Street moved into the middle of the road, blocking traffic while picking up and dropping off passengers.
Transport Minister turned Treasurer Eric Abetz pulled nearly $200,000 in state funding in October 2024 after community backlash, saying at the time “there was considerable concern” in the community about the proposal.
The council drew $170,000 from its emergency contingency fund to keep the project moving, at the direction of Lord Mayor Anna Reynolds and council staff.
