Rutland Avenue - One-Way Trial

As part of the Rutland Avenue Shared Path project, the Town of Victoria Park is considering converting part of Rutland Avenue into a one-way southbound corridor.

To test how this proposal might impact the local area, the Town converted Rutland Avenue to one-way for a trial period of two weeks in early May, where the southbound lane was open to vehicles and the northbound lane was used as a cycling path.

Now that the trial is complete, we would like to share our findings and the full traffic data with the community and ask for your final thoughts before referring the proposal to Council for a decision.

What is the Rutland Avenue Shared Path?

In partnership with the Department of Transport, the Town is constructing an off-road walking and cycling path that will connect Welshpool Road to Great Eastern Highway, completing the Principal Shared Path route along the Armadale Railway.

The Rutland Avenue Shared Path is highlighted in the Town’s new Integrated Transport Strategy as a key initiative to improve the Town’s cycling network. The new shared path will enhance walking and cycling amenity for the whole community and connect the Town to the greater Armadale area and the CBD.

The first two stages of the project were completed in 2019 and 2020, which saw construction of the Rutland Avenue Shared Path from Welshpool Road to Miller Street.

The final section will be constructed in two stages – firstly from Miller Street to Bishopsgate Street, then from Bishopsgate to Great Eastern Highway. Detailed design of the final section is nearing completion and the Town expects construction to commence in the coming months.

Why one-way?

The Town believes converting the section of Rutland Avenue between Midgley Street and Gallipoli Street to one-way will bring a number of benefits to the Lathlain community and enhance outcomes for the new Shared Path.

By converting Rutland to one-way, we can avoid the need to widen the road to accommodate the new Shared Path. This will allow us to save mature trees on residential verges and eliminate the need to move major underground services.

Converting Rutland (from Midgley Street to Gallipoli Street) to one-way will lead to:

• Expedited delivery of the Shared Path
• Improved opportunities for greening
• Reduced construction requirements, and
• Less disruptions for residents of Lathlain and Rutland Avenue.

While there are benefits of converting Rutland to one-way, the Town is aware that one-way streets can push traffic to surrounding streets. To see how a one-way arrangement on Rutland Avenue would affect traffic in the area, the Town held a one-way trial from 1-14 May 2023.

Trial findings

Since the conclusion of the trial, the Town has been diligently reviewing data on average vehicle volumes, average vehicle speeds, peak AM/PM volumes, weekday and weekend trends.

From our traffic counts prior to the one-way trial and during the trial, we found that:

• Rutland Avenue (from Midgley Street to Gallipoli Street) has an average traffic volume between 1,549 (southern end) and 1,862 (northern end) vehicles per day. During the one-way trial, this reduced by 484-506 vehicles per day.
• Gallipoli Street has an average traffic volume between 803 (southern end) and 1,849 (northern end) per day. During the one-way trial, this increased by 478-609 vehicles per day.
• During the trial, traffic speeds reduced by an average of 5km/h along Rutland Avenue and reduced by 2km/h along Gallipoli Street.
• During the trial, Rutland Avenue experienced a daily average of over 200 cyclists on weekdays.

Two maps are available to view:

• The first map compares the average weekly traffic volumes before the trial and during the trial.
• The second map shows the full traffic counts throughout the trial area.

Share your thoughts

We're now seeking feedback from the community on whether the Town should convert Rutland Avenue to a one-way street heading southbound. We would like to highlight that this would not cause delays in the delivery of the shared path and considering that the Shared Path project is 100% funded by the Department of Transport, converting to one-way will not have significant financial implications for the Town.

If the one-way proposal does not proceed, the Town will continue with the original two-way approach, which involves road widening and relocation of underground services. The design of the original approach is available to view here. Please be aware that under this design, project delivery timeframes will be heavily governed by service providers removing assets from the road widening area. Please also note that final road widths would be reduced to 5.5m (kerb to kerb) to provide adequate space along the eastern side of Rutland Avenue for the footpath and new underground services.

Before any decisions are made, we'd like to ask for your final thoughts on the proposed one-way conversion of Rutland Avenue - balancing the expected traffic distribution with the benefits that a one-way street would bring to the area. Community feedback is essential in ensuring that the final decision accurately reflects the interests and concerns of our community.

Feedback can be submitted in a number of ways:

• Online, using our quick survey below
• By email, to admin@vicpark.wa.gov.au
• By phone, to 9311 8111

For more information, check out our frequently asked questions or contact us on admin@vicpark.wa.gov.au or 9311 8111 if you have any questions.

Feedback is invited until: Wednesday 30 August 2023.