Description/context

Junee is a small town in the south west region of New South Wales, 40 kilometres north of Wagga Wagga, on the Olympic Highway. It has a population of 4,000 people. The town developed over the last one hundred years and, its street network was primarily designed around the use of motor vehicles. Some footpaths were constructed in the 1950s and 1960s on several of the major streets of Junee, but, generally speaking, the facilities for pedestrians and cyclists to travel safely around the township were limited.

In 1999, motivated by concerns for both road safety (particularly for children) and general health and fitness, Junee Shire Council began to develop a Bike Plan. This plan has guided the development of a network of shared walking and cycling paths in Junee that has been constructed gradually since 2000. The path network has been designed to link the town centre to key local facilities – particularly schools and sporting facilities – so that people can use the paths to meet their everyday needs. It also incorporates looped routes that are suited to more recreational use.

The construction of the paths has been made possible by funding from the NSW Roads and Traffic Authority (RTA) with annual grants of between $20,000 and $68,000 each year. This grant funding has been matched each year by Council.

Junee Shire Council’s Manager, Engineering Services recalls that the local community was initially skeptical about the need for the paths, and saw road improvements as a higher priority. However, he feels that over time the path network has come to be seen as an important community asset and now enjoys a very high level of user satisfaction and positive comment from the community. While it is difficult to determine how much the path network has reduced the reliance on cars, he reports “considerable anecdotal evidence from parents that they feel comfortable about sending their children off to sporting venues on foot or on their bicycle knowing that there is a good safe network for them to travel on”.

This council officer also reports anecdotal evidence that the path network is helping to make the town a more attractive place to live: “Our local real estate agent often talks about the positive reaction that he receives from new and potential residents of the town when they see our bike path network as an opportunity for exercise and improved fitness”.

There is also support for the path program from local medical professionals, as demonstrated by the inclusion of the Junee paths in the Riverina Division of General Practice and Primary Health’s ‘Town Tracks’ project. This initiative aims to identify, assess and establish safe walking routes that are accessible to all members of the community, thereby promoting and encouraging physical activity. As one of the partner Councils to this project, Junee Shire Council worked with the Division of General Practice, to identify four suitable walking routes in Junee. In 2009, the selected walking paths will be signposted and stencilled to show distances, and additional seating will be installed. A brochure with a map of the walking routes will then be distributed to local GPs (along with an electronic copy that links to their medical software). This will enable them to ‘prescribe’ physical activity to their patients by encouraging them to use these marked walking routes.