The new layout of a Richmond road is not the safest design, a council safety audit shows.
Hill St lost most of its car parking in April to make way for cycle lanes as Tasman District Council sought to make cycling a more attractive option for residents.
A council-commissioned safe system assessment compared the earlier, unmodified layout of Hill St with several possible designs, including adding cycle lanes but retaining the 50km/h zone and lowering speeds to 30km/h with added traffic calming measures.
Introducing cycleways while keeping 50km/h speeds saw a score of 136, whereas lowering speeds to 30km/h and adding traffic calming scored 43. Lower scores reflect safer road designs.
The scoring system was not linear, which meant the score of 136 was not necessarily about three times as safe as the score of 43.
But some Hill St residents believe the audit didn’t provide council the justification to remove car parking for the cycleways when a low-speed 30km/h zone was noted as markedly safer.
Carolyn Woolf obtained the audit after requesting it from the council and said she wants the parking reinstated within a 30km/h zone for both cyclist safety and resident convenience.
"Residents of Hill St… have been seriously impacted by the removal of on-street parking, meaning they can't have gatherings of family and friends, garage sales, meetings, or open homes."
Neighbour Mark Rumsey is of a similar mind.
"I don't think that impeding the traffic flow would have created much of a big deal at 30km/h," he said.
"The lack of parking seems to be a far greater issue and, I think, raises a safety hazard, I really do. People are backing out… onto the main road in a 50km area."
'Safety is one of many aspects' — council spokesperson
The council's transportation manager, Jamie McPherson, said councillors weighed up many factors when making decisions.
"Safety is one of many aspects on a road network that needs to be balanced when considering improvements, changes, or any decision on our road network," he said.
"Retaining 50km/h speed limits on most of the busy urban streets, with safe raised crossings where needed, is an important part of balancing between safety and travel time."
And not all of Hill St lost its parking – the section between William St and Queen St is being trialled as a 30km/h zone and retained its parking. The 30km/h sections will be monitored to see if they reduce traffic speeds and increase cyclists' perceptions of safety.
Council data indicates that 45% of people who currently drive to work or school would rather bike and that safer cycling would encourage them to make the shift.
"Removing on-street parking has a significant safety benefit for cyclists," McPherson said.
"Constructing safe separated cycle lanes will contribute to more people, who might still be nervous about riding on the road, choosing cycling as a means of transport."
He added that cycle projects have a strong benefit-cost ratio, especially for resident health.
"Changes to road layouts take some getting used to, but the reasons for doing it are still strong."
Local Democracy Reporting is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air
SHARE ME