Why is some of our worst intersections not up for fixing
Auckland Transport has been doing the rounds to the Local Boards outlining their Road Safety campaign (I heard it at the Planning Committee last week and the presentation was left extremely wanting in delivery). I have gone through the Otara-Papatoetoe version of the presentation given Our Manukau or Transform Manukau sits in the area and is known for large roads and 60km/h speed limits.
You can read the material under: 15 Auckland Transport’s Road Safety and Speed Management programme for ÅŒtara-Papatoetoe Local Board 2018-21 , it makes for some sobering reading.
As noted above the road carnage statistics for Otara-Papatoetoe do not make happy reading. Serious injury and death rates from accidents have increased 86% from 2013-2017:
21. Ōtara-Papatoetoe Local Board road deaths and serious injuries (DSi) have increased 86% from 2013 to 2017 and made up 7% of Auckland’s total DSi in 2017. Ōtara-Papatoetoe Local Board had the 5thhighest level of DSi among all local boards in 2017 and the 8th highest rate of serious road injuries per capita, out of all local boards in 2016.
2017 was a particularly bad year with key intersections like Great South Road/Cavendish Drive/Te Irirangi Drive, Hunters Corner, and Manukau Station Road/Lambie Drive being some of the worst.
Auckland Transport also put together some risk analysis of the worst intersections and stretches of road in terms of safety:
| High risk routes in the Ōtara-Papatoetoe Local Board areaRanked in the top 100 high risk routes in the Auckland Region (2012-2016 data) | |||||
| Regional Ranking | Route Name | Speed Zone | Collective Crash Risk | Active Road User Collective Crash Risk | Motorcycle Collective Crash Risk |
| 22 | Cavendish Drive (Noel Burnside Rd to 82m north of Jerry Green St) | 60 | High | Low | High |
| 52 | Cavendish Drive (Noel Burnside Rd to Great South Rd) | 60 | Medium High | Medium | Medium High |
| 53 | Station Road | 50 | Medium High | Medium | Medium |
| 54 | East Tamaki Drive (Great South Rd to 168m east of Huia Rd) | 50 | Medium High | Medium | High |
| 58 | East Tamaki Drive (40m west of Preston Rd to Springs Rd) | 60 | Medium High | Medium | High |
| 62 | Great South Road (East Tamak Rd to St George St/Tui Rd | 50* | Medium High | Medium High | Medium High |
| 74 | Great South Road (Allenby Rd to 145m south of Ryan Pl) | Part 50 Part 60 | Medium High | Medium High | Medium High |
| 77 | East Tamaki Drive (168m east of Huia Rd to 40m west of Preston Rd) | 60 | Medium High | Medium High | Low |
| 82 | Bairds Road | 50** | Medium High | Medium High | Low Medium |
| 86 | Great South Road (St George St/Tui Rd to Allenby Rd) | 50 | Medium High | Medium | Low |
*includes shopping area at Hunters Corner (future town centre speed zone)
**includes Ōtara Town Centre (future town centre speed zone)
| High risk Iintersections in the Ōtara-Papatoetoe Local Board areaRanked in the top 100 high risk intersections in the Auckland Region (2012-2016 data) | |||||
| Regional Ranking | Location | Speed zone | [1]Collective Crash Risk | [2]Active Road User Collective Crash Risk | Motorcycle Collective Crash Risk |
| 12 | Manukau Station Road / Lambie Drive | 60 | High | Low | Low |
| 14 | Cavendish Drive / Great South Road | 60 | High | Low Medium | Low Medium |
| 50 | East Tamaki Road / Holroyd Place | 50 | High | Low | Medium |
| 77 | Puhinui Road / Great South Road | 50 | Medium High | Low Medium | Low Medium |
However, it seems Auckland Transport is very silent on what to do with Cavendish Drive, Lambie Drive, the Great South Road and Manukau Station Road. All are 60km/h which is far too fast for an area that is zoned Metropolitan Centre, Mixed Use and General Business (i.e have high people movements as well as traffic movements).
Amenity issues aside from high speed limits inside a Metropolitan Centre (and Auckland’s largest Metro Centre at that) safety is a key concern when people anchors such as transit stations, the mall, Rainbows End, the Court, AUT, MIT and the increasing number of hotels are dispersed right across the said Centre.
This means conflicting movements between different people and road traffic. Combine this with thoroughfare traffic down Cavendish Drive, Lambie Drive and the Great South Road and this is a recipe for accidents and death.
I have noted Auckland Transport is not taking any initiative to lower the speed limits to 50km/h inside Manukau for all areas that are 60 while all 50 areas should be lowered to 40? Is there any particular reason for the delay Auckland Transport with our biggest Metropolitan Centre?
Hopefully the Local Board will ask AT some tough questions!
I do note that AT are taking other initiatives in the wider Local Board area seriously – well done.
Talking Southern Auckland 