Travelling by bike, foot, scooter or skate between the central city and Castlecliff just got safer and easier with the completion of another section of the City to North Mole shared pathway.
The new concrete shared pathway between Balgownie Avenue and Gilberd Street has opened two weeks ahead schedule. The 2.5 metre wide section is approximately two kilometres long and is built on top of the existing stopbank.
Construction started at the City Bridge end of Taupo Quay with enhancement of the existing riverbank pathway and has worked its way along the riverfront to link up with Bedford Avenue.
The final phase of the City to North Mole pathway is scheduled for completion in the 2017/18 financial year. That section includes the Port area which is currently the focus of a major redevelopment project.
Damien Wood, Development Engineer for Whanganui District Council, commended contractors W&W Construction 2010 Ltd on their speedy completion of the pathway's fifth stage.
"I'm very pleased with the way the build has progressed. With fantastic work from this team, we've achieved a great result very quickly."
Mayor Hamish McDouall said progress on the shared pathways was exciting for Whanganui.
"The construction team have done a superb job and to have it completed two weeks ahead of schedule is a real bonus. With only two kilometres of pathway left to complete, the end is now quite literally in sight."
On Wednesday people were making the most of the brilliant weather and using the new pathway.
Cyclist and dog walker Ngaere Orlowski has been a regular user of the pathway over the years and is delighted with the upgrade.
'Infrastructure such as road surfaces in Whanganui is getting degraded and you pay for it through wear on your bike tyres. It's also dangerous on the roads but the pathway gets me off the road and that's where I want to be. I come down to Castlecliff all the time and this is great."
Ivan Boothby took advantage of the fine weather and walked along the new section of pathway.
"I reckon it's great - they've done a marvellous job of it and it's good to be beside the river," he said.
The City to North Mole pathway is one of two Whanganui urban shared pathways being developed with funding assistance from the government's Urban Cycleways Programme. The other pathway is Te Tuaiwi which will run from the City Bridge through the central city to Whanganui Intermediate School, providing a safer route. Construction of Te Tuaiwi started in February this year and is due for completion in mid-2018.
For more information on the Urban Shared Pathways project visit www.whanganui.govt.nz/pathways