The City of Sydney has nearly finished the western section from Hyde Park to Taylor Square. Transport for NSW is now working on plans for the proposed 1.8 kilometre eastern section of the route from the Taylor Square to Centennial Park, which will include upgrades to public spaces on Oxford Street.
McCarthy, who will run her pet grooming business from Surry Hills, said retailers felt “like we’ve already lost the battle” against the dual cycleway, which would be built on the street’s south side.
“The sheer disruption of the construction is enough [to move out]. I’m not sure that they’re going to have people knocking down doors to open a store on a construction site. Let’s hope I’m wrong but even if it improves Oxford Street, it’s going to be very different.”
Mark Duff has owned four shops, including a café and auction house, since 2015 and said: “Oxford Street’s starting to come back, but the bike path will kill it in its tracks.”
“It will be a demolition zone.”
Duff argued the figures used to justify the cycleway were “heavily inflated”, and authorities should heed the concerns of residents and business owners, rather than “pander to special interest groups”.
“You’ve got to take care of the community who lives here, not the people who are passing through to get to Bondi Junction or wherever. Who cares if they get home 10 minutes later? I don’t.”
Steve Batchelor, who runs Paddington Therapy Works on Regent Street, said construction would inevitably drag on, and stripping Oxford Street of parking spots would put pressure on side streets.
“Without parking they won’t have people who stop and shop. Businesses are going to suffer. They’re definitely going to close. It’s just dismal.”
Not true, says Moore, who has attracted praise and criticism for expanding the city’s cycleways.
“This will be great for local businesses,” Moore said.
Transport for NSW’s impression of a proposed 1.8-kilometre separated cycleway on Sydney’s Oxford Street.
“Studies show people who walk and cycle visit their high street more frequently and spend more time and money there compared with people travelling in cars.”
Moore said the eastern extension of the route would complete a critical missing link between the CBD and the eastern suburbs and improve safety for cyclists by reducing the likelihood of collisions.
“The best thing the state government can do for local businesses and the community is to get to work building this critical connection and deliver it as quickly as possible,” Moore said.
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The council said the western section of the route would be ready to ride “in coming months”; Transport for NSW said the government had not made any decisions about the rest of the project.
A spokesman said the transport authority had been consulting the community on ways to revitalise Oxford Street through activation, public space improvements, and developing safe and accessible transport offerings, which included the Oxford Street East cycleway. He said the designs would aim to balance the needs of businesses, pedestrians, bus passengers, bike riders and motorists.
“Maintaining access for businesses and residents, and encouraging people to spend time in Paddington, are key project objectives,” the spokesman said.
Bicycle NSW chief executive Peter McLean empathised with businesses given the delays and disruption caused by projects such as the CBD light rail.
He said the cycleway project was a “whole-of-street revitalisation” that would benefit the community along Oxford Street – not just a route for cyclists.
“I would be hoping that this project is something that can be fast-tracked to lessen the impact on businesses during the construction process,” he said.
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