Mairangi Bay Town Centre safety improvements Mairangi Bay Town Centre safety improvements
Auckland Transport (AT) is working alongside the Hibiscus and Bays Local Board to make changes to roads in Mairangi Bay town centre in order to improve safety and accessibility for all road users.
Project status: Construction – completed. New speed limits came into effect on 30 November 2020.
Project zone: North.
Project overview
Mairangi Bay Town Centre’s final piece to its safety puzzle will be complete soon, in order to improve safety and accessibility for all road users, especially children and people walking and cycling.
80% of all road deaths and serious injuries occur on 50km/h local urban roads. Nearly half of those deaths and injuries involve vulnerable road users – children, the elderly, people walking and people on bikes or motorcycles. AT is committed to making the roads safer for all road users and these changes will help improve safety for people walking and cycling including school children.
Project details
Reason for safer speed limits
We believe town centres are places for people and should be viewed as destinations rather than thoroughfares. Mairangi Bay Town Centre is no different and people should feel comfortable moving around the town centre, visiting local shops and businesses.
Roads aren’t just for cars. Other road users should feel comfortable to share the road with vehicles. Safer speeds encourage people to share the road.
Research has shown that the maximum speed the human body can withstand during impact is 30km/h. Any faster than this and the chance of surviving or being able to walk away from a crash without a serious injury, is significantly reduced. We want all people to be able to return home to their friends or family at the end of the day.
Town centres generally have higher pedestrian numbers than other urban areas. The recent safety upgrades which were made to Mairangi Bay in partnership with the Hibiscus and Bays Local Board, compliment safe speeds well. They have assisted in creating the slower speed environment which supports the safety of everyone.
What happens next
From 30 November 2020, safer speed limits will come into effect on some roads in and around the town centre. These speed limits are part of the changes which were consulted on as part of the Speed Limits Bylaw 2019.
The roads selected for speed management are aimed at making Mairangi Bay Town Centre as safe place for all road users, especially vulnerable road users. This includes children, elderly people, people with disabilities and those who are walking or cycling.
Prior to the date the speed limits come into effect, you may see new speed limit signs being installed at the entrances to the town centre that will be unveiled on the day. There will also be new ‘30’ road markings painted on the road at the gateways which have already been installed, to signal the point where the speed limit changes.
We will be in touch with local residents and businesses prior to the speed limits changing to make sure people are aware.
For a full list of the roads in Mairangi Bay changing from 50km/h to 30km/h from 30 November 2020, please check the table below.
| STREET | DESCRIPTION |
| Beach Road | Between 20m south of Penzance Road and 75m south of Ramsgate Terrace. |
| Hastings Road | Between Beach Road and 86m west of Beach Road. |
| Montrose Terrace | Full length. |
| Ramsgate Terrace | Between Beach Road and 119m west of Beach Road. |
| Sidmouth Street | Full length. |
Improvements
- Three new raised pedestrian crossings within Mairangi Bay town centre – two on Beach Road and one on Hastings Road near the Beach Road intersection.
- Building out the kerbs in four locations to help encourage slower vehicle speeds when vehicles enter the town centre. The locations are: two on Beach Road, one on Ramsgate Terrace and one on Hastings Road.
Learn more about speed calming measures and their benefits.
The speed calming measures will also enable the speed limit in the project area to be reduced to 30km/h in the future - as a part of the upcoming speed limit bylaw change. Consultation on this proposed bylaw will take place in early 2019.
The aim of the project is to improve safety for all road users. Hibiscus and Bays Local Board see these changes as important and are funding the proposed improvements.
Timeframe
The safer speed limits will be implemented on 30 November 2020.
Before this date, you may see crews installing poles and signs at the entrances to the town centre to signal the new speed limits. These will then be uncovered on the day.
These improvements are part of AT's commitment to reducing the number of deaths and serious injuries on our roads by 60% over the next 10 years.
Find out more about why these changes are needed and how we're reducing speed limits.
Public consultation
Before we make these changes, we wanted to understand if there are any issues or concerns that need to be taken into consideration, what you think about the proposal and any changes you would like to make. Your local knowledge gave us a better understanding of the area and help us make improvements.
Feedback closed Friday 14 December 2018.
Public feedback report
We received 132 submissions on this consultation. Feedback for the project was mixed with many supporting the safety improvements and others concerned additional congestion could arise from the changes.
- Nearly 45% people provided feedback to us to help us improve the safety and outcomes of the proposal design, and/or to lessen the impacts they are concerned might occur. These covered a wide range of topics.
- A third of the submissions raised concerns about the new pedestrian crossings worsening congestion in the village. Travel through the village, especially during weekday commuting hours was a key theme underpinning this concern. Many people raised existing congestion issues on Beach Road.
- About a quarter of submitters (24%) felt that the proposal is unnecessary, that the village is safe for pedestrians and that the existing facilities are enough for the size of the village.
- 20% of people who made submissions thought that cyclists have not been sufficiently catered for in the design, and that the design needs to go further. Some felt that the design makes cycling less safe.
- 10% of people have voiced support for a future 30KM/hr zone.
- 10% raised concerns about the crossing at the Beach Road - Montrose Terrace roundabout. Safety was a key factor underpinning many of these comments.
- 10% of submitters gave feedback on the gateway treatments – most thought they need to be improved/ were inadequate and would not achieve the desired outcome.
- 7% of people’s submissions asked for pedestrian crossings at other locations in addition to the proposed locations.
Consultation outcome
Auckland Transport (AT) in partnership with Hibiscus and Bays Local Board has read and reviewed all feedback received during the consultation.
We will proceed with the proposal to improve safety through Mairangi Bay village with one small change to the pedestrian crossings. The profile of the raised pedestrian crossings will now be more gentle on exit which means drivers will only need to slow on the approach.