Following Nick Reece's appointment as Lord Mayor for the City of Melbourne in July, Bicycle Network President James Garriock interviewed him over several days in September. He shares their conversations here:
Congratulations on becoming Lord Mayor Nick. As you know, Bicycle Network is the biggest bike riding organisation in the country, and we have 1300 members who live in the City of Melbourne, plus tens of thousands who travel there for work and leisure. It is great to have this chance to get to know you.
So first of all, CAN you ride a bike?
James, I am pleased to say I'm a lifelong bike rider. It started with me riding up and down the suburban streets of Ringwood as a kid and going on to become a bit of a BMX bandit in my teenage years. In my 20s I got into mountain biking and touring. For most of my adult life I have lived in inner city Melbourne so I have been able to be a regular rider to work. In recent years, I have also got back into the weekend rides, which is often the highlight of my week.
...and what's the longest ride you've done?
I have done the city out to the Yarra Valley via bike trails and Maroondah Highway, that was pretty cool.
I have also done some epic rides along the river and creek trails of Melbourne – my favourites are the Main Yarra, Merri Creek, Darebin Creek and the Moonee Ponds Creek trails.
The Capital City Trail is also a fantastic ride that showcases so much of the inner city, I feel like it’s a Melbourne secret.
You're meant to attend every breakfast, speech and dinner in town now that you're the Lord Mayor. Are you still managing to ride?
When I was working at the university I would ride almost every day. Sadly I don’t get to ride too often to work now, as you say, it’s because I am always at work functions and often not sure what time or where the day is going to begin and end. That’s why the weekend rides are more important than ever for me.
Tell me about your bike?
I've got a Cannondale Topstone. It is the best bike I've ever ridden. The set up is superb, so comfortable, fast and maneuverable. You can ride it anywhere – it is great for commuting or touring, it also eats up the trails.
Have you been on one of our magnificent events?
Yes. I've done the Great Vic. I can't remember exactly what year it was, but it was on the Great Ocean Road in the early 2000s. It was awesome. My memory is that I particularly enjoyed rehydrating after a long day in the saddle and then riding it off the next morning. It rained one night, but my memory is that the weather was pretty good. They closed Great Ocean Road and it was absolutely amazing, it was a very well organized event. I'd recommend it to anyone.
Tell me about your position on bikes in CoM generally
Let me begin by saying I am a strong supporter of bikes in CoM, as I am a bike rider myself. Since 2020, we’ve delivered more than 27km of new bike lanes, which has resulted in a 22 per cent increase in bike riding around the city – with 34% of rides by women and girls.
I also want to stress that am not ideological about these things, I am about optimisation. I want to design a transport system that allows the most number of people to get around as efficiently and safely as possible. I am not anti-car, or anti- bike, I am pro-people. And that means we need to have a strong multi-modal transport system that allows bike riders to get around safely.
Let's move on to scooters, where are we up to and why did you pull the contracts for the hire scooter providers?
On the hire scooters, we are resetting at City of Melbourne. The most important consideration was safety. People not following the rules, riding on footpaths, not wearing helmets and double dinking. The accidents and injury rate to scooter riders and pedestrians was unacceptably high. To be frank, I also got sick of picking up tipped over e-scooters on the streets and footpaths. They were cluttering up our footpaths, creating a trip hazard for the vision impaired and serious issues for those with mobility challenges.
We will continue to have a big share bike scheme, Lime has more than 500 bikes in circulation. After a couple of false starts we now have a bike share scheme that works. So hire scooters have gone but bikes have benefitted. I hope the bikes are more popular than ever. They are a very good and sustainable mode of ride sharing.
So that's where you stand on hire scooters and bikes, but what's your position on food delivery riders?
I think the delivery riders have a tough job, they are at the very end of the line of the gig worker economy. One of the things I have been most proud of at the City of Melbourne is that I led the establishment of a gig workers hub where food delivery riders could go and have a break.
I would like to see clarification of the state road laws around food delivery riders, I also think we can do better at a council in level terms of regulating how they park on the kerbside and footpath.
We've covered a few types of riders and riding. Let's move to places to ride. Firstly, in your own words, for the uninitiated, what's this Greenline and when is it going to be finished?
The Greenline is a 4km promenade which will link the tennis centre to Docklands through walkways and a chain of parks. It will do for the north bank of the river what Southbank promenade did three decades ago. It won't be an expressway for bikes, but nor will it have cars. There are currently three stages of the Greenline that are being delivered, but it is a 10-year project. It is an award-winning piece of urban design and it is going to transform that river corridor and cement our reputation as a river city.
Next is how to get across the city. You’ve got teenage kids, let’s imagine you’re on the steps of Parliament house and one of them wants to ride to Southern Cross station, which way would you tell her to go?
I'd suggest my daughters go down Little Collins Street, Flinders Lane, or Little Bourke Street. The speed limit is low. It is a shared street where drivers, walkers and riders have to be mindful of one another but can also provide a reasonable link for cyclists. I think our little streets provide a good east west link across the city which is often forgotten in debates around cycling routes.
The City made the decision to pause the roll out of a bike lane along Flinders Street. I know that was controversial. The decision was made due to the level of disruption due to major works along the street with the Metro Tunnel station and others.
Moving on to matters of governance and advocacy, what advice do you have for Bicycle Network as an organisation to achieve its aims to make bike riding easier for everyone?
I would start with the basic proposition that bike riders have good lives! BN should continue to celebrate the joy that riding brings to life. It is a great way to get around, stay fit, happy and connected. Our geography and road network means that Melbourne can be one of the great bike riding cities of the world and I want us to get there.
What about individual members? What can they do to further our cause?
I'd encourage your members to be active in debates. Stay informed, and participate in the democratic process.
Bicycle Network has its elections coming up. When you started in the political sphere there were far fewer women than now. What advice do you have for women who might be thinking of standing for the BN board?
I worked for Australia's first female Prime Minister and Melbourne’s first popularly elected female Lord Mayor. I know the importance of having women put themselves forward for leadership roles in all forms.
In the riding conversation, it is really important for women to see other women standing up and taking a leadership role. So to all the women are interested, I'd strongly encourage you to have a go.
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