From the Fiordland Advocate 7 August 2014 Page 17
CYCLING OPTIONS IDENTIFIED
A study into Te Anau and Environs Cycling Opportunities has been released as the community strives to identify the most beneficial options for the area.
Last Year the Te Anau Community Board and Destination Fiordland identified the growing interest and demand in cycling opertunities for Te Anau and its environs, and a need to Identify associated opportunities and challenges.
Venture Southland commissioned Envisage New Zealand consultants from Dunedin to undertake the 'The Te Anau and Environs Cycling Oppertunities' study.
The study has considered existing cycling experiences and their development, and a raft of potential new ones that are undeveloped, and found that the area does not have a great selection of cycling experiences.
The riding availability in town is disjointed and much of the road infrastructure is not bike-freindly.
off-road cycling is limited too, the report says.
Critically, the vast Fiordland National Park is completely out of bounds and could be for 6-10 years,
the likely time frame for a change to the park's management plan.
There is plenty of potential for a meaningful and valuable cycling network to be created in the Te Anau area, particularly a Te Ana-Manapouri Cycleway, which the report identifies as the single best cycling opportunity in the study area and the only one considered "powerful' enough to put the area on the map as a cycling destination.
Additional riding experiences are suggested down the true left of the Upper Waiau River to the complement the Te Anau-Manapouri Cycleway.
Suitable connections from Mavora Lakes to the Te Anau Basin and, in the longer term to Te Ana Downs should also be investigated, the report says.
A presentation of the study's findings will (was) be held on Wednesday August 13th from 7pm at the Fiordland Health Centre Community Room.
Orgainiser: suzanne@venturesouthland.co.nz
