Pedestrians and cyclists in Lake Macquarie's western suburb of Brightwaters have a new path to explore with the completion of the Bay Vista Rd shared pathway.
The new 1.1-kilometre-long and 3-metre-wide path connects Fishery Point Road and Bulgonia Road in Brightwaters and provides pedestrian linkages to Bonnells Bay and through to Morisset.
Lake Macquarie Mayor Cr Kay Fraser visited the site this week and was thrilled to see the community already making use of the shared pathway.
"It's wonderful to see locals already taking advantage of the shared pathway, especially in the school holidays by riding and walking along with kids. We have a very active community and I'm happy to see residents making the most of the new addition," Cr Fraser said.
"This new path adds to our more than 665km of footpaths and cycleways across the City. It looks absolutely fantastic – it's nice and wide for cyclists and pedestrians alike, and it's great how it works its way through bushland alongside the road."
The project was completed in four stages with a total project cost of $1.6 million. The delivery of the shared pathway was jointly funded through the NSW Government's Stronger Country Communities Fund and Council.
Parliamentary Secretary for the Hunter Taylor Martin said the shared pathway is another example of the NSW Government's commitment to boosting livelihoods in regional communities.
"The Bay Vista Road shared pathway is a fantastic addition to Lake Macquarie, encouraging the community to get active and spend more time outdoors and less time commuting in cars," Mr Martin said.
"This project is a great example of how the Stronger Country Communities Fund is delivering projects that reinvigorate regional communities and make them even better places to live, work and play."
In the coming 12 months, Council will also complete work on shared pathways at Greenway Track in Blackalls Park, as well as the final section of the shared pathway from Speers Point to Glendale.
"Making it easier to move around our City is very important. Not only is it great for recreation, but new footpath and shared pathway infrastructure will also help improve accessibility and provide essential pedestrian links to our economic centres," added Cr Fraser.
To view a map of all of Council's planed works and projects for 2021-2022, visit lakemac.com.au/Current-projects
