An Auckland driver has been captured on video mounting a kerb and driving on a footpath, narrowly missing children, in a bid to beat a red light.
Su Yin Khoo, who was cycling along the footpath on Union Street in Auckland's CBD, captured the footage.
She was on a trike with her 3-year-old daughter being carried in the front.
While she was cycling along, the driver of a silver Nissan suddenly mounts the kerb, driving on the footpath to beat traffic at a red light.
The car slowly travels along the footpath, weaving between pedestrians, including a small group waiting to cross the road.
A mother with two young children can also be seen running away as the car slowly drives along.
Su Yin Khoo's husband, Lance Wiggs, was shocked by the video and says that while it's the first time he's seen something like this, cars invading pedestrian spaces are widespread across the city.
"We see this a lot around the area," he told 1News.
"While it's the first instance of this happening, we've seen a number of cars parked on the footpath or even using cycle lanes."
He's concerned for pedestrian safety and worried that someone could die if something isn't done about it soon.
"We've been seeing this for years and complaining about it constantly.
"If something isn't done about vehicles coming into pedestrian spaces, someone could die; I hope it's not my daughter."
He wants to see changes to the city's road safety infrastructure and harsher consequences for offenders.
"We need infrastructure to change; when something like this happens, bollards should be put up.
"It doesn't matter how it looks; just make sure the footpath is safe," he said.
The driver's actions have been condemned by police, who said it was "unacceptable" to put pedestrians in harm to beat traffic.
"Police strongly condemns this driver's behaviour – it is unacceptable and places pedestrians at risk of harm," a spokesperson told 1News.
"Police encourage road users to be patient during peak hour traffic and stick to the road rules at all times – they're there for everyone's safety."
Auckland Transport also condemned the driver, saying safety for pedestrians remains a top priority.
"While AT condemns this action, this kind of behaviour is a police matter."
"Safety of all road users remains our priority and we encourage everyone who uses the roads and footpaths to be considerate and abide by the rules."
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