Tag: active transport

Categories
Bikeway detours and closures

Queen’s Wharf Bikeway changes for Brisbane Festival 2025

During September, The Landing at Queen’s Wharf will be used for select events and event setup as part of the Brisbane Festival. The programme has 9 nights of events using this location, which bisects the Bicentennial Bikeway.

Bicycle Queensland has been informed that barriers will create a separation between walkers and riders, and that crowd control staff will be on hand to help direct pedestrians. As in any shared space, Bicycle Queensland encourages all users to reduce their speed as appropriate for the conditions – the posted limit is 10km/h.

Note that the bikeway will be closed from 4pm on Saturday 6 September for Riverfire. At all other times the bikeway remains open.

Event Dates and Times 

Venue: Queens Wharf Brisbane, The Landing and Queen’s Wharf Plaza 
Installation:
Thursday 4 September from 6.00am – 10.00pm 

Event Dates: Friday 5 September – Saturday 27 September (Brisbane Festival Program) 
Event Times: 6:00pm – 10:00pm – Friday 5 September (Brisbane Festival Opening Night) 
12.00pm – 9:00pm – Saturday 6 September (Riverfire by Australian Retirement Trust) 
6.00pm – 8:30pm – Thursday 18 September – Sunday 21 September (Baleen Moondjan) 
5.00pm – 10:00pm – Thursday 25 September – Saturday 27 September (Drone Show) 

Dismantle: Monday 29 September – Friday 3 October 6:00am – 6:00pm 

A full list of road, bridge, bikeway and river closures are listed online. Feedback can be given here.

Categories
Advocacy

BQ Supports Road Vehicle Standards Amendment Bill 2025

Bicycle Queensland has welcomed the introduction of the Road Vehicle Standards Amendment (Safer E-Bikes) Bill 2025 by Dr Sophie Scamps MP in Parliament on Monday September 1. The bill calls for the reinstatement of the EN15194 standard for imported e-bikes in Australia, matching one of the requests Bicycle Queensland has made through our submission to the Queensland Government’s Inquiry into E-mobility.

BQ Interim CEO Liana Heath stated that the bill is an important step towards improving safety for riders and restoring public and user confidence in the rapidly growing e-mobility sector.

“Bicycle Queensland has long advocated for clear, enforceable standards for e-bikes,” she said. “Our members want to know that the bike they purchase is safe, compliant, and fit for use on Australian roads and paths. We support Dr Scamps’ national efforts to address the growing issue of high-powered, unsafe imports that pose a risk to riders and the community.”

BQ’s Director of Advocacy Andrew Demack said the bill reflects the concerns raised by Bicycle Queensland in its letter to Queensland Transport Minister Brent Mickelberg earlier this year, as well as its submission to the Parliamentary Inquiry into e-mobility.

“The absence of a clear national standard has left consumers and retailers exposed to dangerous and illegal products,” Andrew Demack said.“Reinstating EN15194 will provide certainty and support legitimate suppliers all via an existing, recognised global standard. EN15194 places limits on continuous power, speed limits and battery safety. It addresses many of the current device concerns around e-mobility.’

Bicycle Queensland’s position paper on high-powered e-bikes highlighted the urgent need for harmonised rules across jurisdictions and for better education around the legal definition of an e-bike.

Although Private Members’ Bills often struggle to receive the backing of the Government of the day, they play an important role in highlighting issues and pressuring all parties to work towards solutions. Bicycle Queensland encourages members and the wider cycling community to stay informed and support efforts to improve e-bike safety nationwide.

Categories
Advocacy

BQ attends inaugural LGAQ Active Transport Forum

Bicycle Queensland interim CEO Liana Heath and Director of Advocacy Andrew Demack attended the Local Government Association of Queensland (LGAQ) first-ever Active Transport Forum on Friday 15 August.

This is a great initiative by LGAQ because it gives an opportunity for larger Councils with more resources and more staff to share their innovations and resources with smaller Councils. This inaugural forum had presentations from TMR experts on safe bicycle infrastructure design, and from Councils on projects including safe street environments around schools and connecting sections of bikeway. Bicycle Queensland’s presentation looked at the feedback we received from holding forums for bike riders across every major centre in the state.

Categories
Advocacy

BQ Advocacy Update July 18, 2025

The past few months have been a hive of activity in the BQ office. The big news earlier this year was that the Queensland Government were holding a Parliamentary Inquiry into e-mobility. BQ has made their submission, and will be presenting to the inquiry on July 21.

We’ve also wrapped up our Y2W (Yarraman to Wulkuraka) 3-day rail trail event. This was held on the popular Brisbane Valley Rail Trail, and it presented a great opportunity to speak to members and riders about important advocacy work in their areas. That included speaking to riers who have been volunteering their time for the Story Bridge Bike Bus, as we await further information from Brisbane City Council as to when and how the bridge will serve as an essential transport link for all users.

All that and more, via this update from Andrew.

If you want to know more about what BQ is up to and where, please contact us on BQinfo@BQ.org.au – or call the office on 07 3844 1144 between 8:30am and 4pm, Monday to Friday.

Categories
Advocacy Press releases

Bicycle Queensland calls for bold, co-ordinated action on e-mobility

Bicycle Queensland active transport network

Bicycle Queensland (BQ) has made a strong case to the Queensland Parliamentary Inquiry into e-mobility, urging the State Government to embrace the opportunities of e-mobility while putting in place the essential infrastructure, regulation and education to ensure safety and equity for all road users.

Describing the e-mobility revolution as a positive and permanent shift, BQ emphasised the potential for e-bikes and e-scooters to deliver cleaner, healthier, and more accessible transport options — if managed with clear policy, proper planning and strong enforcement.

BQ’s submission calls on the Government to take decisive action in three priority areas:

  1. Build long-promised infrastructure such as separated bike lanes and safe paths to keep riders away from vehicles and pedestrians.
  2. Enforce existing laws which are allowing throttle e-bikes to be sold, despite them being illegal to use in Queensland.
  3. Coordinate nationally to avoid a fragmented patchwork of rules across state borders.

“We encourage the Government to facilitate the growing interest in e-mobility through a properly funded active transport network” said BQ Interim CEO Liana Heath. “To improve safety concerns for riders and the public, we need to ensure current laws and rules are enforced, rather than introducing further complexity and obstacles to safe riding,” said Heath.

The BQ submission sets out four recommendations exactly how that can be done.  BQ welcomes the inquiry and looks forward to contributing to more safe, active transport for everyone.

1. Fund and prioritise active transport

  • Reinstate mode share targets in transport planning
  • Lift active transport funding from under 1% to 10% annually by 2032
  • Reduce local road speed limits from 50km/h to 40km/h
  • Complete the Principal Cycle Network Plan by 2032
  • Develop Ride Safely to School strategies including bike lanes and bike tracks to new schools
  • Enforce a zero-tolerance approach to aggressive behaviour towards riders and e-scooter users

2. Ensure only safe, compliant devices are imported and sold

  • Enforce Australian safety standards
  • Restrict import and sale of non-compliant e-bikes and scooters
  • Govern or remove speed/throttle functions on illegal devices already sold

3. Launch a statewide public education campaign

  • Educate the public on what devices are legal and where they can be used
  • Promote rider training and safety awareness

4. Collaborate nationally on battery and safety standards

  • Implement national battery safety and charging standards
  • Coordinate legislation across states for clarity and consistency nationally

BQ welcomes the Parliamentary Inquiry and looks forward to working with the State to ensure safe and active transport for all Queenslanders.

You can read Bicycle Queensland’s complete submission here.

For more information or media enquiries:
Liana Heath

l.heath@bq.org.au

www.bq.org.au

Categories
Advocacy

BQ Advocacy Update 23 May

From 19 May, 2025, Bicycle Queensland’s CEO Alton Twine and Director of Advocacy Anderw Demack toured through Far North Queensland. They visited BQ members and local councils in Cairns, Atherton, Innisfail and Townsville.

These visits offer a chance to discuss local issues with members and other riders, and to work with local councils to achieve positive outcomes. More details are in the video.

Categories
Advocacy

Construction starts on more of the Moreton Bay Cycleway

In a reminder that bicycle advocacy is about persistence over time, Bicycle Queensland congratulates Brisbane City Council on the announcement that construction on the 600m shared path from Schneider Road to Viola Place starts this month. It is a tiny but vital link that completes a safe cycling route to (most of) the Brisbane Airport precinct.

On hearing the good news we checked in with our friends at Airport BUG, who BQ have worked with on this issue for close to a decade.

“Airport BUG are very pleased that construction on the Viola Place to Schneider Rd bikeway starting this month. The bikeway will connect the long awaited section of the Moreton Bay Cycleway from the Gateway Bridge bikeway to the Kedron Brook Bikeway” Mitch Bright from Airport BUG said. 

“Airport workers will be able for the first time to connect to Lamington Avenue and through to Lores Bonney Riverwalk via Nudgee Rd. 

“The next steps are to complete the active transport infrastructure on Lamington Avenue and to make Nudgee Rd safer for cycling by removing car parking from the bike lanes there.”

“This is a great link from the Gateway Bridge to Kedron Brook, completing a missing link,” said BQ’s Director of Advocacy, Andrew Demack. “However, more sections need to be completed in the future to make the best use of the current investment infrastructure.”

The focus now shifts to Brisbane Airport Corporation (BAC) to complete a safe cycling route to the Domestic Terminal. BQ and Airport BUG have been part of the consultation process, but we will be contacting BAC to encourage them to complete this long-awaited project.

Completing missing links is the best value for money action that BCC can take to improve safe bike riding right across Brisbane. In 2023 we collaborated with the metro area BUGs on a document for BCC prioritising which links would have the greatest impact and should therefore be top priority. That document is still highly relevant.

BQ looks forward to more priorities from this list being announced in the future.

Categories
Advocacy

Responses to Bicycle Queensland’s Federal Election campaign

Bicycle Queensland and our national advocacy partners will continue to press the incoming Federal Government to invest in active transport infrastructure.

In the lead-up to the Saturday’s Federal Election, Bicycle Queensland wrote to all candidates asking for their commitment to support active transport — walking and cycling — at a national level. Our requests included allocating $250 million per year to active transport infrastructure, restricting the importation of non-compliant high-powered e-bikes, removing the 5% tariff on compliant electric bikes, and working with State and local governments to deliver safe school cycling infrastructure.


Neither Labor or the LNP, the parties most likely to form a majority government, have policies that commit to implementing our plans for active transport infrastructure. We did not receive a negative response, more a commitment to investigate further once a Government is formed.

Andrew Demack, BQ’s Director of Advocacy said “ this at least is promising. The federal government has left funding for active transport to the states for far too long . Now is the time for them to act.”

Independents and minor parties across the political spectrum did offer support. The Australian Greens noted that funding cycling infrastructure would be part of their pledge of a $40 billion Sustainable Cities Fund. Personal responses received from candidates for various minor parties including Trumpet of Patriots and Pauline Hanson’s One Nation expressed support for better cycling infrastructure. 

Bicycle Queensland CEO Alton Twine said “It seems that almost all parties see the need for better active transport, but actually making the required funding  available for cycling is where the rubber hits the road (or better still, separated cycleway)”.

Regardless of the election outcome, Bicycle Queensland is committed to working with elected representatives to ensure that cycling, micromobility and walking are safe, accessible, and a vital part of Australia’s transport future.

Bicycle Queensland membership supports our advocacy to create a safer, more connected Queensland for everyone. Membership starts at just $54 per year.