The 9km corridor that’s recorded 279 cyclist crashes but still doesn’t have a protected bike lane

The long-running dispute over use of Sydney Road has reignited, with traders and cyclists at loggerheads over a plan to remove car parking from the busy arterial in Melbourne’s inner north in favour of protected bike lanes.

Cycling groups and the Victorian Greens are renewing their long-running campaign for the city’s second-most dangerous road to remove parking for a six-month trial ahead of the closure of the Upfield bike path.

The removal of car parking for protected bike lanes has become a significant flash point in Melbourne’s inner north, and prompted neighbouring Yarra City Council to reverse a similar decision on Elizabeth Street, Richmond this year.

Groups of cyclists took over the congested arterial road in Brunswick last Friday night for a “critical mass” rally to draw attention to the lack of protected lanes on Sydney Road.

Adam Pulford, the Greens’ candidate for the state seat of Brunswick, said Australia’s fuel crisis and the closure of the Upfield bike path during level crossing removal works in two years meant the time was right to pull the trigger on a long-discussed trial of protected lanes along Sydney Road between Park Street in Brunswick and Bell Street in Coburg.

“With the cost of fuel rising, people are driving less and more people are looking for free or cheap transport alternatives,” said Pulford, who is also a councillor with the City of Merri-bek.

“Our community has been calling out for protected bike lanes on Sydney Road for years and despite two people dying while riding on Sydney Road and countless other incidents, Labor has ignored us time and again.”

The call reignites a decade-long debate over the competition between trams, cars and bikes along the shopping strip. The push for permanent protection for cyclists gained momentum in 2015 after the death of 25-year-old Italian chef Alberto Paulon, who was killed in a “dooring” incident.

In February, a 44-year-old Brunswick West woman died after falling from her bicycle on the busy road.

Sydney Road is managed by the Department of Transport and Planning, not Merri-bek Council. In 2019, VicRoads released five design options for bike paths along the road, including one that would entirely remove on-street parking to create fully protected lanes and wider footpaths. This is the model the Greens are backing.

In 2019, the council voted to request a trial. Merri-bek Council this week declined to comment on the Greens’ proposal.

While motoring group the RACV and advocacy body Bicycle Network have long supported removing parking for safety, trader associations in the area have consistently warned that losing spots would “put traders out of business”.

According to data from advocacy group VicBUG, 72 cyclists have been involved in crashes on the Sydney Road strip since 2021, a figure second only to Chapel Street. A more detailed analysis shows the full 9.05-kilometre corridor — which runs from Brunswick to Fawkner, far beyond the Greens four kilometre proposed trial stretch —recorded 279 cyclist crashes between 2012 and 2025.

The Upfield bike path, which runs alongside the Upfield train line, will be closed during level crossing removal works starting in 2028, and the start government has issued some suggested detours which involve cyclists navigating backstreets.

However, Bicycle Network chief executive Alison McCormack predicted riders would likely ignore official detours and use Sydney Road regardless, which would create a dangerous situation without protected bike lanes.

“Backstreets are fine for local commuting but not for that mainstream commuting to and from the CBD,” she said. “Weaving around backstreets isn’t a viable alternative – people need that link through.”

Sydney Road Brunswick Association manager Troy Stuchbree said the calls for separated lanes were taking place without considering the impact on surrounding parking and roads.

He called for a “proper precinct plan” involving all stakeholders to ensure the area remained economically viable for businesses.

However, McCormack challenged the long-held fears of merchant groups.

“There has been a lot of conversation from the traders about ‘people might take my business away’, but we strongly feel that might not be the case,” she said. “We feel this is a great time to test that theory.”

Neighbouring Yarra City Council reversed a decision to remove car parking in favour of wide protected bike lanes in Elizabeth Street, Richmond five years ago. It recently narrowed the lanes and re-introduced some street parking.

A Victorian government spokesperson did not directly address the call for a Sydney Road trial, but said the Upfield bike path would be closed in stages to avoid prolonged disruption. The spokesperson said the path would eventually be wider and better quality as a result and a confirmed detour route was not yet finalised.

Significant changes to the Sydney Road corridor required “careful consideration” to balance the needs of traders and residents, the spokesperson said.

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