For the fourth time, Chris Brazendale needs his fence fixed after a car crashed into it.
By Ayla Yeoman of Local Democracy Reporting
Brazendale’s family has lived on the corner of a “very busy” roundabout at the intersection of Waihi, Otūmoetai and Cambridge Rds in Judea for 16 years.
He said crashes at the roundabout were “a regular thing”.
“It’s kind of a worry.”
The most recent incident on Tuesday last week involved two vehicles, one of which ended up on a transformer box, causing a power outage.
“My wife and I were home, and we heard the initial bang and then the second one a split second later of the car hitting the fence,” Brazendale said.
He said a vehicle hit the fence in about the same spot last year, causing minor damage.
Brazendale said in 2016, a young motorist took out the fence at the other end of the house by the garage, narrowly missing vehicles parked in the driveway.
In 2013, a motorist hit the fence and power box, causing a power outage.
And in 2012, a motorist crashed at roughly the same spot as last week’s incident – but went through the fence and into the back yard.
Brazendale said his insurance covered all repair costs, but the incidents made him feel unsafe.
His house was about 3m from the fence.
He said he worried a car might hit the house, or worse – one of his three boys or his wife, Koralee.
She had talked about moving because of the frequent accidents, he said.
Brazendale suspected drivers were entering the roundabout too quickly and not seeing other vehicles.
He said visibility was not great when approaching the roundabout, up the hill on Otūmoetai Rd.
He estimated there were accidents on the roundabout once a month, and told Local Democracy Reporting he wanted something done about it.
He said there was one incident at the house on the other side of the roundabout, where a motorist drove up the bank and through the fence.
“A few years ago, a chap got knocked off his bike and had to be taken to hospital. I was at work that time but my wife remembers it.”
In 2019, Brazendale asked the Tauranga City Council to help make the intersection safer.
He said the council changed the road layout to a one-lane approach, but he did not believe it made a difference.
Brazendale believed speed bumps or traffic lights would be the best solution.
Neighbour Dan Allen-Gordon said his family had attended many accidents in 25 years living near the roundabout.
He said his wife’s car was written off five years ago when a car crashed into it about 50 metres from the roundabout.
“We were out of pocket around $6000 as we had to replace the car that was written off.”
He said it happened early in the morning and a neighbour tried to get the vehicle’s occupants to stay, but they ran off, leaving behind bottles and a car smelling of alcohol.
“There have been many accidents at the roundabout, even after work was done to make it larger.”
He said a steel light pole at the entrance from Otūmoetai Rd had been taken down twice by cars.
In his opinion, the solution would be an intersection with lights.
Tauranga City Council transport strategy and assurance manager Karen Hay said the council recently undertook a high-level review of the intersection using recent crash data.
“The outcome was that further investigation was needed into potential minor improvements, such as line marking and signage.”
The investigation was expected to be completed by the end of August.
She said there had been 54 crashes at the roundabout in the six years since improvements were made in 2019, including 13 that resulted in injuries.
Police referred Local Democracy Reporting questions about crashes at the roundabout to be considered through an Official Information Act process.
Asked if police had spoken to the council about safety at the roundabout, Western Bay of Plenty road policing manager Senior Sergeant Wayne Hunter said police regularly worked with partner agencies to try to make sure roads were as safe as possible.
He said motorists approaching intersections should ensure they followed the road signs and checked it was clear before proceeding.
Local Democracy Reporting is local-body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air.
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