re: cyclists and the troubles.
Is it too much of a stretch to look at the reasons why cyclists use that route through the gardens? Your response smacks of us and them. Bike riders assess routes and choose the safest, most convenient and most pleasant. If they use the route through the gardens, it must fit these boxes. Instead of blaming people on bikes for problems and applying the 'bicycle riders are different to us and therefore bad, lets ban them' attitude that WCC seems to do quite regularly, why can't you tackle the underlying reasons for them being there? If you aren't going to provide a safe route on the roads, and don't want bikes in the gardens, you really aren't solving anything. The opportunity to at least talk is a start. And the plus side of people complaining about bikes is that it proves bikes are being used. There is a demand for facilities. These bike riders are Wellingtonians who must be considered in plans just like all other residents - hell, they are just residents (who sometimes ride bicycles). Any other group (motorists, pedestrians etc) would expaect WCC to respond to the demand for fecilities. Seems bikes are the exception more often than not.