Clover’s George St campaign far from over

Sydney Lord Mayor Clover Moore is continuing to push for the expanded pedestrianisation of George St, despite already signing a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the State Government on the boundaries.

While the government has agreed to pedestrianise George St from Hunter to Bathurst St to facilitate the implementation of light rail, Ms Moore hopes to extend the pedestrian-only zone from Liverpool to Bridge St – an extra 200 metres both north and south.

The government has already ruled out any amendments to the MOU, but Ms Moore said the mood may change after construction begins.

“We think that the people and the market will respond once they have seen the first stage in operation and might lobby for such an extension then,” she said.

“If we design to allow for it now, it will be much easier to cater for it in the medium to long-term.”

The City of Sydney released plans for a 25,000 square metre tree-lined pedestrian boulevard on George St last week. The street will be torn up in 2014 and 2015 once construction begins.

Ms Moore is broadly supportive of the current MOU signed with the government, but said traffic flow could improve substantially with a longer pedestrian-only zone.

“A short extension to Bridge St with an additional east-west crossing between Bond and Jamison Streets may well improve traffic flows substantially and help keep bus movements operating efficiently, with only a very minor effect on general traffic,” she said.

“At the southern end, the original traffic studies showed there was an advantage in using Liverpool St, but that will depend on how buses are routed. For the public having the whole entertainment precinct pedestrianised would be fantastic.”

Patricia Forsythe, Executive Director of the Sydney Business Chamber, said she is comfortable with the current government plan on George St and does not support a longer proposal.

“Hunter St to Bridge St … that doesn’t strike me as being a pedestrianised area. You do need to be able to move traffic. Hunter St is a fairly significant thoroughfare and so is Bridge St,” she said.

“Why the State Government has talked about the area south of Hunter St is about the capacity to move traffic. We’ve got buses to move around as well.”

Ms Forsythe said vehicular access should be incorporated as part of the pedestrian-only zone.

“When we talk pedestrianisation, there’s not a complete ban on cars. We are certainly encouraging people to be open to taxis, particularly taxis at night,” she said.

Ms Moore’s stance attracted criticism from City of Sydney Liberal Councillor Christine Forster.

“Rather than pushing her own agenda for a longer pedestrianised section, which would not be an optimal outcome in terms of addressing traffic congestion in the area, it’s time the Lord Mayor got on with working cooperatively with the State Government on this crucial infrastructure project,” she said.