A 1.2-kilometre stretch of Shafston Avenue is being redesigned around one of the inner city’s toughest transport questions: how to make room for walking and cycling without losing sight of local access and traffic flow.
Read: Shafston Avenue Bikeway Update: What Happens Next
Brisbane has released the preliminary design for the Shafston Avenue Bikeway, which would run from Deakin Street in Kangaroo Point to Mowbray Park in East Brisbane. The project is currently listed as planned and forms part of Stage 3 of the CityLink Cycleway.
The design includes a two-way bikeway and separate footpath, with Brisbane saying the upgrade would improve connections between the eastern suburbs, the CBD and the Kangaroo Point Bridge.
What is changing along Shafston Avenue
The preliminary design proposes changes to intersections, crossings and local traffic movements along the route.
Space for Cycling Brisbane has highlighted a raised crossing near Deakin Street, changes at Cairns Street, adjustments at Castlebar Street and a new raised crossing near Thorn Street. It also points to changes around Wellington Road, Park Avenue and a bus stop near Salston Street.
The cycling advocacy group supports the design while also identifying several limitations arising from the corridor’s constraints. Sections around Cairns Street would remain shared paths, while the footpath and bikeway would cross each other in some locations.
The existing counter-flow bike lane between Castlebar Street and Thorn Street would be removed, while a seat and shelter near Connor Street would also go. Space for Cycling Brisbane also noted the removal of a significant number of trees, although it said designers had worked to minimise the impact and plant replacement trees where possible.
The preliminary design therefore includes changes affecting how pedestrians, cyclists and motorists move through parts of the corridor.
Traffic, Riverwalk, and the bigger connection
BCC’s August 2026 traffic and local-access information says that through movements on Shafston Avenue are predicted to receive travel-time savings of up to 40 seconds during the afternoon peak, while some local movements are expected to have longer wait times. The assessment says traffic modelling indicates the surrounding road network can continue to operate with broadly similar performance.
Brisbane CBD BUG has pointed to the modelling as evidence that concerns about worsening congestion do not tell the whole story, noting that through traffic could benefit while some local street movements could take longer.
CBD BUG also argued that separating people walking and riding would address concerns about interactions between different path users. Brisbane’s project description confirms the preliminary design provides a two-way bikeway alongside a separate footpath, although some shared sections remain.
The discussion also touches on the proposed Riverwalk connection between Dockside and Mowbray Park. CBD BUG has also raised the cost of that proposal, saying its estimated cost had risen from $22.3 million in 2020 to more than $90 million by 2024.
The group has described the Shafston Avenue bikeway as a step towards a dedicated active-transport connection through Brisbane’s inner east, linking with the Kangaroo Point Bridge and routes towards Mowbray Park.
Read: Preliminary Designs Released for New Kangaroo Point Bikeway Along Shafston Avenue
For the corridor itself, the preliminary design raises questions about traffic movements, trees, local access and existing pedestrian facilities.
With the project still at the preliminary-design stage, further decisions about the Shafston Avenue corridor are yet to be made.
Published 15-September-2026
