First impressions of capital a shocker for tourism

I disagree with most of the points in the article. Northbourne avenue looked shabby before the light rail was under construction. Most of the median was just unkempt grass, scraggly trees and dirt patches. I think having a landscaped median with a light rail line will be much nicer – it’ll hopefully be the first step towards transforming Northbourne Avenue into a proper urban boulevard. I also think Regatta point is a much better place for a tourist centre than an arbitrary site in Dickson that’s nowhere near any attractions. A plaza and boardwalk with eateries, tourist facilities and events space next to West Basin will also be much more attractive than the current narrow bike path and sprawling car parks (which if you ask me are the biggest blight on Canberra – wherever you go there’s barren deserts of asphalt).

The best way to increase tourism to Canberra is to make it more vibrant and exciting. Canberra needs more character and more attractions beyond a handful of decent cultural institutions (which are not enough on their own – there’s equally nice museums in Melbourne, Sydney, Hobart and many other places in Australia). The only way that’s gonna happen is with a bit of construction. It might not be pretty in the short-term but it’ll be worth it in the long-term.

Is anyone surprised?
I, for one, am not.
There have been contributors to RiotAct, saying for at least the last two years that this was what was going to happen.

Still the good people of Canberra voted for this government again & these outdated ideas – like an 1800’s tram; like take out several hundred trees from Northbourne Avenue & still call it the “bush capital”; like the intrusion of the concept of a CBD (Canberra was not designed with one of those – & for good reason); like Lake Burley Griffin being built on up to the water-line ; like every building using every cm of the block right up to the footpath; like no space for a decent size tree in the town centres, or the suburbs; like moving the living areas of the city onto the main transport corridors (where we have known about the increased health hazzards for well more than 50 years!); like the out of hand rejection of all new technologies that may have offered alternatives. even cheaper & better perhaps

It just goes on & on.
There hasn’t been a new or original thought here for soooo long. Only those of a certain age, remember that it was intended that the ACT be the place where new ideas were tested & tried, before being rolled out to the rest of the country (not where the ideas that had passed their use by date were resussitated!).

No.
I am not surprised.
Anyone who is, hasn’t been paying attention.

ChrisinTurner said :

Every time I go to Melbourne or Sydney I am impressed by the way they look after their streets, nature strips, road markings, street lights, street trees, sweeping their streets and footpaths, trimming around poles etc. Canberra always looks neglected.

I was visiting Sydney recently and saw LOTS of dumped trolleys. More than I have ever seen in one place in Canberra. Also lots of rubbish. So much so that I commented to someone (words to this effect), that people in Canberra who complain about Canberra looking like a dump, should get out more. Depends which part of Sydney one is referring to. Very spread out city.

Every time I go to Melbourne or Sydney I am impressed by the way they look after their streets, nature strips, road markings, street lights, street trees, sweeping their streets and footpaths, trimming around poles etc. Canberra always looks neglected.

HSewell said :

It is a strange tourist indeed who would be *discouraged* from visiting a Lake by the existence of easy ways to access the Lake.

It’d be a strange tourist who would want to go and see a stinky lake filled with blue-green algae and dead carp.

What a grim catalogue of complaints: compared to any other Australian city, Canberra is a joy to arrive in. So what does the article actually object to?

(1) The article objects to an advertisement at the airport featuring a fighter jet. Advertisements are quite common in airports in 2017, are they not? Even so, what about the vivid public art on display throughout the airport?
(2) The article objects to the (temporary) construction work underway on Northbourne Avenue. Is the author seriously suggesting that no construction work be done anywhere that a tourist might see it? Perhaps only by night?
(3) The article objects to the decision to move the visitors centre away from the construction work that the article previously objected to. Should it have stayed amidst the construction work?
(4) The article rehearses the tired parochial-NIMBY objections to the container village (which is temporary).
(5) The article objects to concrete walkways around the Lake. It is a strange tourist indeed who would be *discouraged* from visiting a Lake by the existence of easy ways to access the Lake.

What a NIMBY good-old-days article.

GCS14 said :

Have you never entered another city before? Sydney is downright boring. Melbourne has an interesting entrance (via the hume) but that doesn’t stop the surrounding area being completely swamped by cookie cutter McMansions with no vegetation. And then the McMansions give way to industrial land. Not exactly inspiring. And honestly, complaining about northbourne, which will be a short term issue while the LR is being built.

Agreed! Both throughout Australia and internationally, city enterances are nothing to write home about.

Doesn’t anyone else remember the 5 year saga of Sydney widening the Hume before it turns into the M5/M7? That was awful, but it passed and so will the light rail construction.

Have you never entered another city before? Sydney is downright boring. Melbourne has an interesting entrance (via the hume) but that doesn’t stop the surrounding area being completely swamped by cookie cutter McMansions with no vegetation. And then the McMansions give way to industrial land. Not exactly inspiring. And honestly, complaining about northbourne, which will be a short term issue while the LR is being built.

Once the CSIRO site is sold off to developers, the Barton Highway entrance to Canberra will be an eyesore for years to come. If future designs are anything along the lines of the slum-like spattering called Crace, people might think they’ve entered Mogadishu, not the capital of Australia.
Needless to say, the single lane crawl from Murrumbateman will have already given tourists a less than pleasant introduction to Canberra. BTW, I still haven’t got a pamphlet in the mail on how to navigate the new roundabout, which can easily lead interstate drivers to wonder what kind of clown is in charge here.
The last time I drove back on the Federal Highway, I didn’t even notice the welcome to Canberra sign. Looking at Streetview I can see a plain white sign establishing the transition from N.S.W to A.C.T, then a plain white recognition of the native land owners and something about Nara, Beijing and Dili [How many sisters does a city need?]. The final few kilometers into Canberra you are repeatedly warned about the voluntary contribution scheme [speed camera] before finally again being shown in plain white signage that you are in North Canberra. Those repeated warnings about speed cameras on the entryways to our city aren’t exactly inviting, more like a warning that “Big brother” is watching and you’d better behave yourself. I didn’t even notice the new rusty steel welcome signs recently erected, so they can’t be that attention grabbing.

Maryann Mussared said :

miz said :

Great points – you should also check out that other major entrance road into the ACT, the Monaro Highway – now even more industrial, plus the tip. Yay.

Am I the only person who has noticed the ACT Government is ‘retro-fitting’ direct access into IKEA off the Majura Parkway? Pathetic oversight.

And what about the woeful ommission of an on-ramp to the northbound Majura Parkway from east-bound Parkes Way.

Just who are we employing in this government to come up with workable strategies for the future that avoid the need for ‘duplication’ in just about every project planned? The only argument pro duplication is duplicating the Barton Highway…. Can someone please just put their mind to sorting out this particular mess?

Umm two points. There is history around the IKEA exit can I suggest you look it up. Revolves around the airport and funding of the exit.

As for an exit from Parkes way into Majura Parkway (north bound), well the two roads don’t intersect! But will give the benifit of the doubt and suggest you really meant Morshead Drive/Pialligo Drive (the road changes name at the Majura parkway intersection) in which case the reason there is no onramp is because the ACT government doesn’t own the land to provide on ramps it is federal and is part of RMC. RMC allowed Madura parkway to be built taking up extra space but the land the original road went over was handed back at end of construction as compensation for the lost land. Along with doing up one of the ovals if I recall.

Besides that the traffic flows from the city going that way would would be minor in volume and well handled by the existing road infrastructure.

The path from the city to the majura parkway is via Fairbarn Ave and anything coming from further along Parkes Way probably wouldn’t be going that way anyway or could handle the minor inconvenience of going one intersection further down and back around.

So would suggest those that are running the show might have a better idea of what is going on than the air chair critics give credit for