In the run up to the annual NSW Budget, advocacy organisations of all shapes and sizes submit proposals to the treasurer for a slice of the pie.
Transport for NSW knows that active transport is essential for enabling population growth, improving physical and mental health, maximising access to opportunities, and driving down emissions and road trauma.
Over the last few years, NSW Government has introduced a suite of great new policies and strategies to that set targets and help reshape our towns and cities to prioritise people outside cars: the first NSW Active Transport Strategy, Providing for Walking and Cycling and Road User Space Allocation policies, a visionary Future Transport Strategy and the Design of Roads and Streets manual.
Everyone understands the ‘why’
And it makes sense for the economy. Active transport infrastructure averages 4:1 to 5:1 return on investment due to the enormous value to community health, productivity, and environment.
The brand new NSW Active Transport Health Model has put a dollar value on the health benefits of walking and cycling. Every km walked is valued at $5.24 to the economy, while every km cycled contributes $2.97.
The best way to get to school! (Image: City of Sydney)
You would think that the NSW Treasurer would be extremely keen to invest money in active transport when the rewards are so significant!
The evidence is clear, and the NSW Government’s strategic commitments are commendable. However, low levels of spending on active transport tell us what is actually happening in NSW. Not nearly enough.
Every year, Bicycle NSW asks for more funding. In 2024, we made 6 suggestions for funding, including bike infrastructure, e-bike subsidies, and behaviour change programs for schools.
But our message is not getting through
And so, for 2025, Bicycle NSW has one clear request for the Treasurer: Quadruple Get NSW Active funding.
These grants have not been increased for some years. It is time for a substantial increase in both the size and the scope of the program.
Get NSW Active is achieving great results for the NSW Government
It enables councils to get on with the painstaking work of filling the gaps and reducing fragmentation in walking and cycling networks.
In the last budget, $60 million was again allocated to Get NSW Active. The program included $10 million ringfenced for supporting active travel to schools with new crossings, paths and behaviour change initiatives. We supported this targeted approach to enhance children’s mobility.
However, the program is highly oversubscribed and totally inadequate for delivering the step change in active mobility that NSW urgently needs - to address poor health, cost of living, climate change and road safety.
In 2024, three-quarters of eligible projects were not funded
The detailed list of winning projects reveals that 88 projects were awarded grants, but 258 high-quality projects languish unfunded on council shelves.
There is a significant risk of many shovel-ready projects never being funded for construction. This is a serious waste of previous grant funding. It is also likely that the detailed design of projects waiting many years to progress will become outdated, again wasting NSW Government investment.
The new $5 million limit that has now been imposed for each council has further impacted the timeframe of important projects, as has the decision to separate design and construction funding.
For example, the critical West Street cycleway in North Sydney will now take 3 funding rounds to design and construct, pushing completion out to 2029. And that is in the best-case scenario that each application is successful and other North Sydney priorities are sidelined.
The 1.1km West Street Stage 2 Cycleway has been endorsed by Council with overwhelming community support. It is a critical missing link in the safe cycling network in northern Sydney. But under current funding options, the earliest it can be built is 2029! (Image: North Sydney council)
In addition, councils are not encouraged to jointly apply for grants for connections that cross LGA boundaries. This makes the acquisition of sufficient funds to deliver more strategic infrastructure seem very out of reach.
“We know that three out of four qualifying projects were turned down for funding last year,” says Bicycle NSW CEO Peter McLean. “There is actually a strong under-representation of project demand. We know that many of our council partners have many more projects they want to progress but they didn’t make an application for Get NSW Active funding due to the overwhelming likeliness of failure.”
“This is a huge missed opportunity for NSW Government, as councils are well placed to get on and build infrastructure that they know their communities need.”
The letter from Bicycle NSW to the Hon. Daniel Mookhey, MLC is here.
Before you read on…
Bicycle NSW has been campaigning for a better environment for bike riding for almost 50 years. It is the only bicycle advocacy group based in NSW with full time staff advocating every day for all riders. But did you know that we are funded only by membership fees and donations?
Please join Bicycle NSW and support our advocacy for better infrastructure and safer streets. You will also ride easy, covered by our comprehensive insurance and enjoy many other Member-only benefits.
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Treasurer Daniel Mookhey delivering the 2024-25 NSW budget in June 2024 (Image: Dean Lewins/AAP)
