Wigram Road Hayton Road Intersection Improvements

Submission by Fiona Bennetts on behalf of Spokes
August 2023

Do you think this intersection upgrade will improve safety?

Yes

What do you think makes it safer?

• Traffic signals, cycle lanes, shared paths, trees
• Support the raised platform to slow speeds.
• Will there be other visual guides to slow traffic? Perhaps some trees planted along Wigram Road to visually narrow the space. Support the trees at the intersection.
• Is the “green surfacing” an impermeable surface? Could this be a rain garden or shrubs instead?
• Support the advanced stop boxes cyclists and the on-road cycle lanes/sharrows. Please ensure there are advanced stop boxes or green cycle lanes consistently applied at the front of all approaches to the intersection, whether turning or travelling straight through.
• Please confirm the width of the shared path on all corners of the intersection, as these should be at least 3 m wide so that pedestrians are still safe.
• Please confirm where Hayton Road stops being a shared path (south-western side) and how cyclists are supposed to transition from the shared path onto the on-road cycle lanes. Is there a clearly marked (i.e. green) cut-down like on the north-eastern side? Likewise for the transitions on Wigram road north-east of the intersection.
• Can a cut-down between the on-road cycle lane and the shared path please be added for those travelling south-west along Wigram Road? Please ensure these cutdowns are wide enough to be ridden on an angle (no-one will hit them perpendicular) with a cargo bike/trike.
• Please confirm the on-road cycle lanes meet the minimum width requirements as per the best practice guidelines.
• Are cyclists allowed to cross the intersection in the same way as pedestrians from the shared paths? Please make this very clear and ensure there is a beg button for cyclists. Will this be a barnes dance crossing (doesn’t appear so, based on the kerbing)? Would a Barnes dance crossing be the safest option for cyclists wanting to travel from the underpass west along the shared path?
• Are there turning arrows for vehicles (including cyclists) using the main roadway?

Shared path connection

• Support the shared path continuing down the north-western side of Wigram Road between Hayton Road and Hayton Stream Drainage Reserve. Please confirm this is adequately wide so cyclists don’t pass pedestrians too closely.
• Please improve the way-finding around all of these shared paths, as it is not easy for people new to the area or those with visual impairments.

Underpass upgrade

• Support the gravel access to Ngā Puna Wai being sealed to make it safer for cyclists and pedestrians (gravel is a hazard).
• Support the cycle crossing having right-of-way over motor vehicles and the raised platform.
• Please ensure there is adequate signage to inform drivers who has right-of-way, as this is not guaranteed to work (e.g. outside Christchurch Girls’ High School, where drivers ignore the give way signs for the uni-cycle MCR). Are CCC expecting most cyclists to be coming from/leaving Ngā Puna Wai area, rather than approaching from Curletts Road? Seems odd to have southwest-bound cyclists giving way to cyclists exiting Ngā Puna Wai, and that pause may cause drivers to assume that cyclists are giving way to them.
• Please consider how this ‘T’ intersection will function and how cyclists’ behaviour will influence driver behaviour and vice versa.
• Support the 20 km/h speed limit.

In relation to this intersection, I cycle along the Little River Link cycleway and visit neighbouring industrial, commercial, and residential areas, and Ngā Puna Wai