Chapter Five |
|
Track Facilities |
Infrastructure
Car parking areas, toilets, picnic tables, BBQ areas and benches are important components to consider in the planning of a regional recreational access network. They also have significant land use implications. |
The Way has been routed to take advantage of existing facilities in parks, foreshore reserves and suburban centres and there is a presumption against the construction of new facilities.
As the Way becomes established and use patterns emerge, the need for additional facilities can be more accurately evaluated and new or expanded facilities properly located and designed.
Where new toilet facilities are needed, it is suggested that "Enviro-loo" (as seen at bush camping locations in the Royal and Heathcote national parks) or similar products, which do not require mains plumbing or water supply, are considered if demand can be demonstrated. |
 |
|
| Their future location should be at the discretion of track management agencies with input from all relevant stakeholders.
Drinking Water
Often a neglected issue in planning for recreation is the issue of access to clean drinking water.
The more remote sections of the Way to the South and West of the catchment offer a different user experience to the more urbanised sections of the Way: a taste of wilderness, an opportunity to seek solitude and to appreciate sensitive habitats and the native flora and fauna they support. Information materials and signage at access points should be produced to encourage users to be self reliant. Freshwater creeks may provide clean water, but generally caution should be observed. The Kai'mia code recommends that users carry enough drinking water to last the duration of the intended journey.
Recommendation:
- That trackside benches and drinking fountains, such as bubblers, be provided where mains water supply is available at strategic access points along the Way, generally at roadside stops.
Encouraging Legitimate Access
Management of the Great Kai'mia Way should actively encourage legitimate non-motorised access to public lands, and have programs to patrol, remove dumped materials from and improve the appearance of roadside access points. Access points should also have limited, formal, well-defined parking spaces, and provide robust bicycle racks made of tubular steel pipe.
The access point should have a locked pipe gate and associated barriers to control aggressive access. A device which allows through pedestrian access but acts as a barrier to trail bikes should be considered - known as a kissing gate made from galvanised steel or solid hardwood with self closing gate (see below for more details). Kissing gates can be designed to allow stroller access for families and wheelchair access.
In addition, at hotspots of aggressive access such as new Illawarra Road and surrounding areas at West Menai, signs should carry penalty notices for misuse of the track. The dollar amount of the fine should be visible on signs .
Recommendation
- Access to the Great Kai'mia Way should encourage legitimate non-motorised transport through appropriate and tidy access control and the provision of bike racks and parking.
Encouraging Access by Less Mobile People |
|
Opportunities to mark level or gently sloping sections of the Way (less than 1 in 20 gradient) as multi-user routes for wheelchair, families with strollers and other less mobile users should be actively pursued in consultation with Disabled Access Agencies at local and state level; Councils; Special Schools and Family Support Groups; Probus, Church, Elders, and Seniors Groups .
Trail users with mobility limitations should also be able to gauge the difficulty of route sections before they embark on the Way. The grading, surfacing differences and approximate times should be reproduced in promotional brochures and visible on display panels . |
|
Recommendation
- Level or gently sloping sectors of the Way with good access should be developed and promoted to provide opportunities for less mobile people to use the Great Kai'mia Way.
Preventing Illegal Access by Four Wheeled Drive Vehicles and Trail Bikes
Illegal access by four wheeled drive (4WD) vehicles and trail bikes in areas such as Gandangara and Dharawal Land Council lands, West Menai, Garrawarra and Sydney Catchment Authority lands where parts of the Great Kai'mia Way may traverse, are currently damaging tracks and fragmenting bush including endangered ecological communities at an alarming rate.
Apart from the damage they cause to the natural and cultural attributes of these lands, the vehicles compromise the safety of walkers and cyclists on management trails.
A variety of programs are currently in place and being discussed by land managers and owners to better manage their control and access including cooperative action with police and Memorandums of Understanding (MOUs) with 4WD clubs. SSEC, NPA (National Parks Association) and TEC (Total Environment Centre) have commissioned the EDO (Environmental Defenders Office) to report on the legal status of 4WD vehicles in NSW and other jurisdictions to provide all concerned parties with better background information for strategic management of these vehicles. This report is reproduced in Appendix 13. |
 |
Recommendation:
- Bans on the use of 4WDs and Trail Bikes on the Great Kai'mia Way should be reinforced with:
- A whole of Government approach to the management of 4WD and trail bike access to sensitive areas;
- Provision of alternative places to go which are affordable;
- Police and rangers should have powers to confiscate bikes;
- System of fines and heavy penalties for transgressing law;
- Amendment of laws to ban their use on the Great Kai'mia Way;
- More frequent patrols by rangers backed up by police enforcement teams; and Signage
|
|
Arson and Bushfires
Arson is an issue in much of the river catchments. Walkers can be trapped by fires deliberately lit. The presence of increasing numbers of legitimate eco-friendly users will help to deter those who are intent on destructive activities.
Council and other track managers should have powers to close routes by posting signs in severe fire danger periods.
Track markers together with brochure maps will improve user orientation and navigation to roads and safe areas in the event of fire. |
 |
|
Recommendation
- That land managers adopt a protocol for closing routes during severe fire danger periods, and maps show routes to enable quick exit in case of emergencies.
Sustainable Transport and Equity of Access |
 |
The Way network, described in Chapters 3 and 4, is designed to integrate with local amenities and public transport facilities. The integration is especially advanced in the more detailed system of the Woronora Catchment with the identification of loops and link tracks to public transport nodes and on and off road bicycle routes.
Promotional material, maps and Way notes should highlight the links to sustainable transport.
Opportunities should also be explored to provide information about the Way at train stations.
|
|
One method may be through single sided display boards as illustrated in "Family of Signs" section later in this chapter.
Creating convenient and attractive alternatives to motorised transport for reaching foreshore reserves and main spine routes will reduce the burden on existing facilities such as car parks and will suppress the need to build costly new ones. Another long-term benefit may be a culture shift as people are introduced to public transport services in general, furthering regional efforts to encourage more sustainable modes of travel to the private car.
Recommendation
- That the Great Kai'mia Way maximises the potential for people to use public transport and local amenities.
Cars and Pedestrians |
The possibility of conflict between motor vehicles and Way users is a serious safety concern. Routes have been selected, where possible, away from main roads. Inevitably some roads do bisect the Way, from quiet residential streets to busy arterial roads. For example, Heathcote Road is a major constraint to safe continuation along the pipeline road into Heathcote National Park .
The project team has made every effort to ensure that the Way route utilises marked pedestrian crossing facilities, other traffic-calmed areas, or light controlled intersections, when intersecting with roads.
|
 |
|
| A few crossing, however, will require action to increase safety: Along the Woronora Way at Washington Drive between sections W1-A2 and A3; at a short connection from W1-A4 to RTA shared use route across the new bridge; and at Bundanoon Road where the crossing must be negotiated to continue access along the Sydney Water Pipeline Road. |
 |
On-road cycle routes, highlighted on maps in chapters 3 and 4, are suggested as important connectors to the access sections of the Way, particularly the shared use section of Woronora Way. The majority are designated local Council mapped routes - either existing or proposed. They are not an integral part of the Way, with one exception; W4-C4 which utilises Woronora Dam Road from Sarahs Knob track junction to Princes Highway, 5.2 km.
Cyclists have no alternative but to use the road, for reasons discussed in Chapter 4. It is a twisting and relatively narrow two-way road at just six metres wide, with a speed limit of 60 kph and used extensively by heavy vehicles. |
|
It poses potential risks to inexperienced cyclists. Traffic calming in the form of on road speed humps and reduction of the speed limit to 50 kph are two measures suggested to improve safety and reduce risk.
Recommendation
- That traffic calming measures and associated signage be installed at intersections of roads and the Great Kai'mia Way.
Dogs and Companion Animals
Uncontrolled animals on routes pose a threat to native flora and fauna, through noise, scent and disturbance. They may cause stress and potentially death to vulnerable species.
For this reason, the project team recommends restrictions on domestic pets on routes where their presence would create an environmental or safety conflict, such as in Bushland Reserves specifically set aside for wildlife protection.
The imposition of any restriction would be the responsibility of each managing agency . No companion animals are allowed in National Parks, State Conservation Areas or Nature Reserves, except for assistance animals accompanying a person(s) with a disability . |
|
• Exec Summary 
Sutherland Shire Environment Centre | Suite 4 (1st Floor), 2-4 Merton Street, Sutherland NSW 2232