It's a sore topic for many Braddon residents - the constant chaos of cars, bikes, and pedestrians on Lonsdale Street.
The new raised pedestrian crossings in the street have been met with a mixed reaction.
Community opinion is divided on the latest attempt to make the street slower and safer, with some pleased, some unimpressed, and many wanting more done.
Canberra by Bike's Paris Lord was distinctly unimpressed with the upgrades.
He said more pinch points were needed to slow down traffic.
"It shows a distinct lack of ambition and courage because lots of other cities around the world are moving to get the cars out," he said.
"At the moment it's still super dangerous for people on bikes to try to get through here.
"So I'm giving it a four out of 10 or maybe a five, because it took the Braddon collective many years to get the pedestrian crossings."
![](https://www.canberratimes.com.au/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/232169416/fd834e7e-4dce-46cb-a463-b9bb134983f9.jpg/r99_574_5616_3744_w1200_h677_fmax.jpg)
The recent changes to the street landscape have led to a barrage of angry comments on Reddit and Facebook, drivers and cyclists complaining about increased traffic jams on the street.
Amy Jelacic from the Braddon Collective, a community group that advocates for improvements to the suburb, had little sympathy for them.
"Drivers shouldn't really be able to expect to have free-flowing (movement) through somewhere like Lonsdale Street," she said.
"You have a six-lane arterial road running through the middle of Canberra, Braddon is bounded by roads that are designed to be free-flowing and high-thoroughfare public roads. Please don't come onto side streets, residential streets, commercial streets and expect to have free-flowing traffic."
Ms Jelacic said the Collective was "very happy" with the upgrades.
They spent months calling on the ACT government to build the crossings.
"Now it's raised up, it's at drivers' eyesight level, they can see people more clearly," she said.
"It's a lot more comfortable for people who have different needs when crossing the street.
"Whether that's families, whether it's people with mobility issues, whether it's people with disabilities, or anyone who just doesn't want to have to dodge a bunch of cars to get across the road."
It's been a more complicated situation for Sam Burns, owner of coffee shop Barrio, on Lonsdale St. Their trade was affected by the construction of the crossings, and they're not keen to see the street further pedestrianised.
"It was a bit of a struggle up our end of the street. It just really wiped our trade for January and February with all the roadworks and everything," he said.
"I think the pedestrian crossings themselves are a good thing just for slowing the flow of traffic and opening up the street a little bit more. But I still like the fact that cars can drive down it. It's still quite good for our customers, so I'm still more for Lonsdale Street having traffic go down it."
The City Renewal Authority, who are managing the upgrades, said the crossings were installed based on community feedback.
They said the upgrades, which include works on the Elouera and Mort Street intersection, were designed to celebrate Braddon's character.
They also acknowledged the closure of the intersection had worsened traffic congestion on surrounding streets, including Lonsdale.
"The new pedestrian crossings have calmed traffic and prioritised pedestrians, making it easier and safer for pedestrians to cross the road which is already providing benefits to local traders," they said
Mr Lord was disappointed the upgrades still treated cars as king.
"The priorities are wrong," he said.
"It's yet again an example of them prioritising cars over people.