Wheelchairs and matchbox cars will soon be the only four-wheelers heading north on Australia’s oldest street after the raging success of pandemic-induced outdoor dining accelerated change.
Cars and trucks won’t recover the section of footpath on Sydney’s George Street handed to pedestrians and restaurants during the COVID-19 pandemic, after the government decided to make the changes permanent in The Rocks historical precinct.
Cities Minister Rob Stokes said it was a “re-pedestrianisation” of the street that been an ancient Indigenous pathway and then open to only foot traffic during the first century of colonisation.
“What behind me used to be a baking hot bit of tarmac is now a beautiful alfresco outdoor area,” he told reporters on Thursday.
Northbound traffic between the Russell Hotel and The Rocks police station was banned in 2020 to help revive businesses suffering from a lack of tourists and city workers.
While international tourism is still lagging, foot traffic has almost returned back to normal and restaurants have also enjoyed revenue rises above inflation.
It continues a push by the state government and the City of Sydney to turn Australia’s original high street over to pedestrians.
The street is currently closed to road traffic between Bathurst Street and Ultimo Road, a distance of about 700 metres, which road traffic has been heavily restricted since a light rail line was opened in 2019.
Mr Stokes said temporary and permanent measures introduced since 2020 had transformed the way people used NSW streets and public spaces, breathing new life into cities and town centres.
A report assessing the impact of the measures found more than 13,500 jobs had been supported as more than 530,000 people attended pop-up and street activations spread across 300 events in 112 local government areas, he said.
“It’s now over to local councils to determine with their local communities, whether they want to make those sorts of treatments permanent,” he said.
“Some of them have worked, some of them haven’t worked. But what we’ve learned through the pandemic is you certainly gain nothing by not trying different things.”
The changes in The Rocks won’t completely stop car traffic, however.
One southbound lane will be kept as it was critical for the overseas passenger terminal, Placemaking NSW chief executive Anita Mitchell said.
Source: AAP
