Brisbane’s first riverside bikeway café with a wealth of bespoke facilities for cyclists is taking shape along the Bicentennial Bikeway within the Queen’s Wharf Brisbane precinct.
The aptly named Velo Café will be a waterfront destination to cater for the thousands of cycling enthusiasts that pass through the area each day.
The purpose-built two-storey venue, located on the foreshore and adjacent to the Bicentennial Bikeway and North Quay City Cat terminal, will consist of an elevated cafe and bar with views of the river, end of trip bike facilities and workshop, as well as a pop-up mini-café to service those enjoying the revitalised riverfront area.
Destination Brisbane Consortium Project Director Simon Crooks says the Velo Café will be a first for Brisbane offering a unique riverside destination with purpose-built facilities for leisure cyclists to stop and enjoy.
“The Velo Café and the transformational landscaping works along the foreshore will greatly improve the atmosphere of the area and activate an underutilised riverside location,” Mr Crooks said.
“The Velo Café will change the way people interact with this riverside area that has remained unchanged since the 1970s.
“We are creating a welcoming environment in an area that traditionally only commuters would travel through.
“The café, refurbished Finger Wharves, and new green landscaping features will attract families, tourists, and day-trippers to stop and enjoy the newly created public space.
“The Velo Café will include lockers, change facilities and showers, while offering drinks, café food and refreshments to those enjoying Queen’s Wharf’s new green spaces.
“The café’s two-level structure will connect to Queens Wharf Road via a lift and stairs creating further connections between the riverfront and the CBD.”
Bicycle Queensland CEO Rebecca Randazzo says that the cycling community welcomes the café facilitates.
“The establishment of the new Velo Café on one of Queensland’s busiest bike ways is warmly welcomed by bike riders.
“The inclusion of toilet amenities, lockers, change facilities and showers will encourage more people to visit the city by bicycle and feel more connected to great destinations like Queens Wharf.
“We can’t overlook the obvious synergy of the café facilities. For many Brisbane bike riders, coffee and riding go together like Disney and happily ever after.”
To upgrade the area under the Riverside Expressway and connect the over-river Landing areas to the foreshore, the Bicentennial Bikeway adjacent the integrated resort will need to be diverted from Tuesday 24 May for around 12 months.
“As well as creating the Velo Café and its amenities, there are extensive landscaping and resurfacing works required to upgrade the existing bikeway and foreshore area under and extending out beyond the Riverside Expressway,” Mr Crooks said.
“Bikeway users will be the first people to use the new Landing areas, which have created around 6,000m2 of new public space and push out over the river by up to 40m beyond the Riverside Expressway.
“The bikeway diversion, which will take bikeway users out along the edge of the Landing, is quite straightforward compared to the diversion we implemented in 2018 behind QUT when the Consortium built the Mangrove Walk and upgraded the first 500-metres of Bicentennial Bikeway.
“We’ve been working with Bicycle Queensland and other stakeholders to ensure a safe diversion is in place with clear lines of sight and no blind corners.
“Plenty of signage is in place to ensure the safety of all bikeway users and make sure there are no surprises for those that travel along this popular riverside route.”
The Velo Café and transformed public space is set to open in 2023 with the main integrated report. For more information on the bikeway diversion visit – https://queenswharfbrisbane.com.au/updates/bicentennial-bikeway-diversion-adjacent-to-queens-wharf-site/
