Innovating Streets Round 1

To make a quick submission in support, please go here: https://wellington.govt.nz/have-your-say/public-inputs/consultations/open/covid-19-response-projects—proposed-traffic-resolutions OR just email your thoughts to trfeedback@wcc.govt.nz, covering as many or as few projects as you are interested in (use the TR code to help officers line up your feedback, e.g. TR99-20 for Brooklyn Hill)

You have until 5pm on Thursday 28th May to submit

Background

How does this work? Why are we doing Traffic Resolutions?

Temporary projects – supposed to be fast, agile
Traffic Resolutions (TRs) are usually for small things or last steps in the consultation process
Auckland and others went ahead with changes without consultation. Wellington added in this layer of consultation rather than emergency change because it is important to gather public feedback
The projects are supposed to be flexible and changeable throughout their life
Innovating Streets projects are intended to be part of the consultation process – keep in touch with the Council as you use the new street layouts, saying what you like about them
Things that are not easy to reverse (heaps of tarseal/concrete) or are not easy to implement at this time of year (e.g. some types of paint need dry/warm weather) are not likely to be included. Expect things like Crawford Road/Rugby Street (near the Basin), safe hit posts similar to those used outside the library and on construction projects around the city

What next?

28th May – Feedback closes
11th June – Council Strategy and Policy Committee meeting – Council reviews feedback and votes on the proposals
11th September – Projects that were approved by Council should be implemented by this date (3 months from the meeting)

In detail, the resolutions here relate to these projects and below we’ll explain what’s being done and things to think about when writing a more detailed submission – (handy hint – copy and paste this table, then fill it in with your comments if you’re doing an email to trfeedback@wcc.govt.nz):

TR98-20 – Evans Bay Parade – Greta Point to Cobham Drive	1600m temporary lane on seaside parking lane
TR99-20 – Brooklyn Hill (uphill)	750m lane using plastic bollards (similar to Rugby St & Constable St)
TR100-20 – Onepu Road	260m lane both sides connecting Rongotai Road to the Leonie Gill pathway along Onepu Road
TR101-20 – Shelly Bay to Scorching Bay one-way and shared path	3km one-way system between Scorching Bay and Shelly Bay (in that direction). Seaward traffic lane converted to a shared walking and cycling path
TR102-20 – Pedestrian route from Wellington Station to Stout Street	Closure of angle parking on one side of Stout Street. Could consider switching to parallel parking

Hold up? What happened to Victoria and Featherston Streets I hear you shout. Well, Victoria Street and Featherston Street have been accepted by NZTA, but will be coming in a future round of Traffic Resolutions due to more complex design:

Very pleased that all 7 of the WCC Innovating Streets projects have been granted funding from the government;- 90% funding makes it affordable to trial some new ideas to give those walking, riding and scootering more safe space on our streets https://t.co/ehUe7mgzHC
— Sarah Free (@sarahfreenz) May 16, 2020

TR98-20 – Evans Bay Parade

This fills in the ‘gap’ between on-road cycle lanes at Greta Point and the new path at Cobham Drive. It’s a two-way lane and gives people on bikes space without encroaching on footpath space.

This is a good opportunity to trial this section, when the cycleway is completed from Oriental Parade all the way round to Greta Point, this could make for a complete, high-quality cycle route from the waterfront all the way to Miramar and Kilbirnie. There are some very narrow pavement areas around Greta Point and the flats, the proposal will help solve some of the potential conflict with walkers and runners.

TR99-20 – Brooklyn Road (uphill)

This is a great plan. There are some concerns around the intersections of Bidwill Street and Washington Avenue. They should be able to design these junctions not to formally have to give way by stopping protection a bit earlier (as they will be inside the kerbs). Out of those two, Washington is the bigger concern, lots of people swing around you to turn there so many riders tend to move out of the shoulder into the (left of) the lane there to make it clear that they are continuing. That helps most drivers hang back and turn behind you.

Other positives to consider when making your submission:

Ability to be a bit further away from the big trucks (for comfort and safety, but also studies show even a small distance makes a big difference to the pollutants you inhale)
Less of a worry about getting squeezed past in the narrow parts, or specifically at the crossing just downhill from Bidwill St
Feeling less vulnerable on the left-hand corners in the upper half of the hill (drivers often cut the corner into the shoulder space currently
Less risk of close passes on the corner opposite the junction with Ohiro road
Evidence collected in March 2019 shows that speeding is fairly prevalent on the way up Brooklyn Hill, making sharing the road with two-lane traffic quite unpleasant if you are unlucky enough to be overtaken by two vehicles at once!

A few things that may be cleared up in a more detailed design, but worth highlighting as potential omissions:

In quite a few places, some of the pavements are extended out into the road to help people crossing the road (buildouts), these need to be factored into the design – small inexpensive ramps could be added to each side to allow people on bikes to go up and over them
the corner opposite the Ohiro Road junction at the top – designs extend around the corner; will either mean taking you onto the footpath OR sacrificial safe hit posts on the corner that may get taken out by a big truck or bus every couple of days or more often.
the scope stops just short of the Helen St turning, which is also a pinch if someone is waiting to turn right

TR100-20 – Onepu Road

This is a busy location with traffic turning into and out of car parks and the bus depot. On Facebook we saw some responses from local riders who completely avoid this area because of the multiple driveways/entrances into and out of car parks and petrol station.

If you need to visit Pak’n’Save, Countdown or Warehouse Stationery then these changes will make visits safer on a bike. Currently, visibility is hampered by street-parked vehicles making driveway entrances/exits a potentially dangerous place for people riding bikes.

There are a few other interesting ideas coming out of this area – with filtered permeability (closing streets to through traffic) a possibility in some of the streets that cross the Leonie Gill Pathway, making for a more continuous ride from Onepu Road through to the retail park, while reducing traffic for residents of those streets.

TR101-20 – Massey Road – Shelly Bay to Scorching Bay

The inland lane will allow motor vehicles to travel from Shelly Bay to Scorching Bay, travelling clockwise around the peninsula. The seaward lane will be converted to a shared path for people on foot and on bikes.

This one divided opinion on Facebook:

Faster riders may still use the roadway in the clockwise direction
Less confident riders, families taking kids out for a ride, runners and walkers welcome the increased amenity and safety from not having to walk, run or cycle along a narrow verge
The Ciclovia series proved that this area is incredibly popular when closed to cars – there were even some calls to consider more regular/permanent closures
One other alternative is to restrict through traffic at Pt Halswell (the northernmost point)

TR102-20 – Stout Street

This one’s primarily an improvement for pedestrians, but sometimes that’s us too. We support the changes to Stout Street because it’s a high-footfall route. Hopefully it will also soon be at 30km/h making it much more pleasant to cycle along too.

Removing angle parks will help reduce risk for people riding bikes slightly, eliminating some blind-spots, as well as allowing people riding bikes leaving the front of the MBIE offices a clear way off the kerb without needing to walk between gaps in cars or to the end of the block.

Submit

If you got this far, well done! Just to re-iterate: