Links Ave. Photo / George Novak
The partial reopening of Mount Maunganui’s Links Ave remains contentious as residents want more access to their street.
The eastern end of Links Ave will be closed from 7am-10am and 2pm-6pm seven days a week, with unrestricted access at all other times from December 19.
The closure, formed by two bus lanes between Solway Place and Concord Ave has been in place since March. Access is only open to buses, motorbikes and emergency vehicles. Anyone else who drives through is fined $150.
Tauranga City Council originally touted the cul-de-sac as a four-month trial in response to safety concerns around the high traffic volumes while children were travelling to school. The partial reopening is the work of the Links Avenue Community Panel, who have been working on a fix since July. The council set up the panel to find a “community-based solution” after residents said they felt isolated and their travel time had increased.
Judy, who only wanted to be known by her first name, lives off Solway Place and needs to travel during peak times for work.
She conceded the partial reopening was “a lot better” but the closure was “still a nuisance” because she drives an extra 4km to avoid a 50m stretch of road.
”It takes me ages to get home because I get stuck in all that traffic along Oceanbeach Rd to get to Golf Rd and then come back.
”It’s a massive hassle for me and my time and the petrol [use], it’s just crazy. It just makes no sense at all.”
Judy has called for the council to provide an exemption for residents from Solway Place and the adjoining Compton Place.
”I understand to a certain extent that they want to alleviate the traffic on that road for other people, but us residents should be allowed to use it.”
Council director of transport Brendan Bisley said the council won’t be doing resident exemptions.
“We trialled that in the first trial at the end of 2021 and found it increased the number of other drivers using the bus lanes as they followed other vehicles.”
He said the council provided exemptions for critical care workers with clients in the area near the closure, which were assessed on a case-by-case basis and for specific times and days of the week.
Judy and her family have also paid $900 in fines because they forgot about the closure.
“We shouldn’t be having to pay $900 worth of fines for that little road, where we’ve got to go all the way around. We just create more congestion on the other routes.
”Everyone in our little cul-de-sac is in the same boat, they’ve all sort of used it by mistake.
”It’s just been a huge cash cow for them [the council].”
Bisley said the council had issued 27,844 infringements so far, with 6699 of these waived.
This equates to more than $4.1 million in fines handed out with $3.1 million enforced.
The fines for illegal use of the bus lane are not a “cash cow”, said Bisley.
”They’re to encourage people to follow the rules and contribute to a safer and more pleasant neighbourhood environment.
”We would vastly prefer not to be collecting any fines at all.”
Links Ave resident Teri Logie has opposed the closure since the first trial last year.
She works from home so isn’t affected by the peak hour closure but wants the street fully open.
”It’s the fact that they’re [the council] going to keep it closed on weekends and the school holidays. This was supposed to be all about the safety of children.
”If they’re not lying, then why can’t they open it on weekends and school holidays?”
Logie said the Links Avenue Community Panel had “done a good job getting to this stage”.
”I just hope it can keep moving and they don’t just think that they can just now leave us.”
Pāpāmoa Residents and Ratepayers Association chairman Philip Brown also congratulated the panel for its solution.
”But, I don’t think it’s a solution which works for the people on the Pāpāmoa and Mount Manganui side of Tauranga because they’re closing the road for far too long in the day.”
Brown said the closing times were “over the top” and also questioned why the street couldn’t be open on weekends and during school holidays.
Mount Maunganui Ratepayers, Residents and Retailers president Michael O’Neill said the new opening times were “very confusing”.
”The whole thing has been a total confusion and continues to be.
”It’s failed all round, the trial hasn’t met the needs of the locals from Pāpāmoa through to the Mount and they [the council] got this one terribly wrong.
”The panel said it was seeking the restricted access to be only five days a week, but the commissioners preferred to try seven days as a starting point to see the impact on traffic volumes.
Panel spokeswoman Sophie Merwe said: “The Links Avenue community is frustrated at the total road closure so we are pleased council is expediting making these changes safely before Christmas.”
Bisley said: “Having the time restrictions for seven days is a starting point to see what impact there is on traffic volumes”.
He said when the changes are in place, there will be a period of monitoring over the next few months, which will help inform the next phases of the panel’s three-phase proposal.
”Links Ave had a peak hour traffic volume issue - up to 7000 vehicles per day - that prevented all street users being able to navigate the street safely, in particular our most vulnerable users like school children, mobility users and the elderly.
:The point of the time restrictions is to keep the volume of traffic to a safer level - around 2500-3000 is ideal for a residential neighbourhood - and stop Links Ave being used as a commuter run.”
Merwe said: “We are looking forward to seeing data gathered and hearing from [the] community to assess if the changes are working and whether our other proposed changes can be phased in, especially if time restrictions can safely be reduced to weekdays only.”
The partial reopening is stage one of the panel’s three-phased approach that will be implemented over the next two years.
As part of phase one, extra speed tables will be installed on Links Ave, the 30km/h speed limit will remain and extra road markings and signs indicating the speed limit will be added to the street. The restricted access times for the cul-de-sac will be displayed on four time-based flashing signs at either end of the closure.
Work on the speed tables, signs and road markings began on December 4 and would take around two weeks to complete.
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