Foxton Beach residents are sick of motorised vehicles speeding along public walkways in their beachside township, and they’re concerned someone will get hurt if things don’t change.
By Rebecca Hogan of Local Democracy Reporting
The Te Awahou Foxton Community Board were presented with a petition on Monday night signed by 22 residents who lived near the popular walkway, which called for additional safety signs to be installed to prevent dangerous driving and speeds along the path.
The petition cited the death of a toddler along a Palmerston North walkway in 2019.
The tragic death was caused by a teenage motorcyclist riding illegally before crashing into an unsuspecting family and killing their child.
Even after the toddler’s death, shared pathways in the Horizons region remained scenes for reckless riding.
The resident leading the Foxton petition, Sharon Wilton, was seriously concerned Sunset Walkway would be the scene of such a tragedy if council didn’t intervene.
The council-controlled community board supported the residents' pleas, with the group voting to install more regulatory signage at entrances clearly advising people motorised vehicles were prohibited on the path.
The board would replace deteriorated rope barriers along the path and would start an education campaign on social media to raise awareness across the Horowhenua district.
Wilton's petition outlined problem vehicles along Sunset Walkway as two and four-wheeler vehicles including motorbikes, quad bikes, electric bikes and electric scooters.
One resident provided the board with a video of a fast, powered, non-pedal electric bike racing along the pathway, with the silent vehicle even going airborne at one point.
In the petition, Wilton said such behaviour happened regularly and some offenders used the walkway as a circuit.
Earlier this year Foxton police impounded three motorbikes as part of a crackdown on illegal behaviour in public spaces.
Horowhenua District Council began cracking down on vehicles, both cars and bikes, which were driving carelessly along local beaches and wreaking havoc on sand dunes after frustrated residents cried enough in 2019.
Some Foxton Beach residents who signed were concerned electric bikes would be prohibited from Sunset Walkway, and one property owner didn't sign as they were concerned with the use of "preventative access" in the petition as it implied residents may lose their own driveway access.
Wilton said she agreed the phrasing wasn't right, and she'd spoken to residents and concluded that there was a difference between electric bikes and electric motorbikes.
A council spokesperson said it wasn’t yet confirmed electric bike users would also be prohibited, or if they would be able to use the path but at slow speeds than some were currently riding at.
Adding clear speed limits and infringements for those who broke rules was also discussed on Monday night, but for now, the group would approach enforcement through community-led campaigns on the rules and why they were in place.
Reckless behaviour on and around beaches was a repetitive problem across Aotearoa which created public safety issues and had an ecological impact on the natural environment.
– LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air.
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