SOUTH FREO’S movers and shakers are keen to transform the “unsafe” South Beach roundabout to better accommodate pedestrians and cyclists.
All Roads Lead To The Roundabout was started by local student Bella Smith and Plastic Free Foundation founder Rebecca Prince-Ruiz and is “aimed at improving the safety” of the roundabout on the intersection of Duoro Road and South Terrace.
Ms Smith, who is a South Freo resident and regularly cycles into Notre Dame, spent the past two years studying in Europe and says she was “shocked” by how “unsafe and difficult” it was to use the intersection when she returned.
“When I came back to South Freo I was really shocked at the amount of traffic, at how big the cars have become and how impatient drivers are… I feel unsafe using the roads.
“From our observations, it’s becoming a very dangerous and impractical intersection, it lies on a key route into Fremantle and is used by many people, [including] drivers, cyclists, and pedestrians, to access the beach, park, and nearby shops.
• Local student Bella Smith says the Duoro Road and South Terrace roundabout is unsafe and is calling for action. Photo by Katherine Kraayvanger
“With all of the development happening to the east and south of here, it’s only going to get busier… we need to start thinking bigger and coming up with solutions to traffic problems that don’t just involve more facilities for cars.”
Ms Smith successfully applied for a Streets Alive grant from Town Teams and Main Roads which she says will go towards collecting users’ experiences and to “gather ideas” from the community to “re-envision” the intersection.
Ms Prince-Ruiz, who has been a South Freo resident for almost three decades, says she and Ms Smith have been talking to the City of Fremantle who have “started to plan the next phase of their work” on South Terrace, which is why it’s “more important than ever” for the community to have input into the intersection’s future.
“When they resurface a road, apparently it [happens] every 30 years, so if they’re going to be resurfacing, now is the time to make it safer and consider pedestrian and people riding their bikes so everyone feels safe to cross,” Ms Prince-Ruiz said.
All Roads Lead To The Roundabout’s first meeting was due to meet this week to collect qualitative data about the site from the local community to “understand what people need”, and will be an opportunity for users to share their ideas about fixing the roundabout, according to Ms Prince-Ruiz.
“We want to bring all of these people together, local residents as well as visitors, and really understand what we need… when you’re talking about resurfacing and infrastructure, you do get one shot at it for dozens of years,” she said.
“We [didn’t] just want to bring everyone on this journey, but also tap into their expertise as well, experts in traffic engineering and sustainable urban transport, so it’s not just engineers ticking boxes and not thinking outside of the square.
“It’s a co-design project…the idea that what would come out of it is the community’s views and the gathering of their stories and ideas, and then working with experts to come up with this playbook of ideas that can then inform the [City’s] consultation for this intersection.
by KATHERINE KRAAYVANGER