Description:

Cyclists in Bluff and Invercargill now have some vibrant places to store their bikes, responding to an unmet need for bright, local-centric Southland bike stands that would help encourage people to get out on their bikes, and help recognize the region as a destination.

Community champion Tammi Topi said the stands are a gesture to show Southland is welcoming and encouraging cycle transport by providing secure bike parking options. “They add to the character of the streets, and are multipurpose photographic features of their own right that the tamariki can also climb on”.

The bike stands were designed to be playful, quirky abstractions of Southland icons that would invite people to guess at their origins. The simple yet robust construction ensures the stands will resist any willful destruction, yet be economical to easily replicate more stands around the town.

The Birds of Southland bike rack designs celebrate and recognize the conservation work being carried out on Bluff Hill/Motupōhue. Three native bird designs unique to New Zealand were depicted in the designs - the Southern Brown Kiwi/Tokoeka, the Fiordland Penguin/Tawaki and the Morepork/Ruru - which are all found in and around Southland. The bike racks were positioned at the end of the Invercargill to Bluff Cycle Trail, providing somewhere for trail users and locals to secure their bikes at Stirling Point, Morrison’s Beach and the public library.

The Whale Tail bike stand was inspired by David Trubridge's "Tale of Southland – Murihiku" sculpture in Invercargill's South City which pays homage to nearby Foveaux Strait, also known as Te Ara A Kiwa (the pathway created by the great whale Kewa) and Murihiku, the Māori name for the southern part of New Zealand, meaning ‘the tail end of the land’. Two of the Whale Tail bike stands were installed outside of the famed Batch Cafe, a local hotspot in Invercargill CBD where people can park their bikes safely while indulging in a coffee and a cheese roll (if you know you know).

The Tuatara bike stand represents one of Invercargill’s oldest celebrities - Henry the Tuatara, the world’s oldest Tuatara at 111 years old and a resident in the Southland Museum. The Tuatara is well known within the Invercargill community and recognized in the namesakes of establishments around the city. This large bike stand was selected to provide increased capacity for the Invercargill Public Library with seventeen bike spaces between the 'ribs' of the Tuatara. The design was commissioned with the support of Ngati Koata, who are kaitiaki of the taonga species.

Community member Cherie Chapman, who was a key part of getting the initiative sorted said it was fantastic to see the finished products in place and it would be great to see additional stands installed in the future. “It’s so important to recognize Southland as a destination, and these bike stands help do that”.