Te Ara Ōtākaro is a transitional city-to-sea riverside trail running along at least one bank from Barbadoes St bridge to Pages Road bridge beside the Ōtākaro Avon River.  It is designed to be suitable for recreation on foot or by bike with a high level of accessibility.

Work on the trail is now complete and was piggy-backed onto some major CCC stopbank upgrade works carried out in 2017/18 along the Avon. 

The trail project is led by Avon-Ōtākaro Network with the support of Christchurch City Council, Ministry of Social Development, Regenerate Christchurch and City Care Limited.

Objectives of the trail

1. To greatly increase active recreation in the east with provision for walking, jogging, running and cycling
2. To enhance opportunities to appreciate and reconnect with blue and green space amenity
3. To make the connections with recreation on the water, including flatwater sports
4. To re-engage the community with the current and potential amenity of the red zone lands
5. To re-connect the communities along the lower Avon River corridor
6. To improve overall community health and wellbeing in the east and beyond.