Joll Rd layout distressing residents

The new islands that have been put on Joll Rd as part of the council's safety improvements. Photo / Mark Story

The council's effort to increase the safety of Joll Rd has backfired.

Local residents described the islands that the council had put in as "concrete coffins".

Resident Jessica Maxwell said if the third island was not removed with urgency someone could well end up in a real coffin.

A Hastings District Council spokesman said residents had approached the council to consider ways to slow traffic in the area, and staff investigations "showed it was warranted".

They decided to put four islands on the road from the Tanner St intersection through to the Campbell St intersection to achieve a consistent 50km/h speed limit.

Resident Peter Egerton agreed with the council that traffic went too fast through the area but said speed bumps could have been better.

"People would go too fast and I worked out that based on the council's report, only 50 per cent of the 2000 cars that go through everyday stick to the speed limit."

He said he did not see the islands as an obstruction but they were not quite what he expected.

Ms Maxwell met with Hastings District Council transportation safety engineer Tony Mills, councillor Simon Nixon, council candidate David Mackintosh and his wife Kerry, and two local residents.

They all voiced their opinion to Mr Mills but Ms Maxwell said he was as immovable as the concrete monuments themselves.

When the group asked about the speed bump option, Mr Mills said they were unpopular with residents who lived by them as the car engines would slow down then speed up.

Councillor Simon Nixon said the way they were constructed was just a "recipe for disaster".

"There is a vertical edge and if a car hit that it could cause a fatal crash."

Engineer and resident Derek Brown also said the chances of crashes and incidents had sky rocketed. He said the work was dangerous.

"They could not even get them symmetrical or in the centre of the road, it was like they had a deprived childhood and wanted to recreate snakes and ladders.

"As you drive you have to dodge these concrete 'slugs' from left to right - one wrong move and your front will get taken out."

His wife drives a BMW X5 and refused to drive there in case the tyres were damaged by hitting the curb, as the road was too narrow.

Ms Maxwell said trucks were now at high risk of hitting the curb and having an accident.

The road had been narrowed and the footpath widened to protect walkers and cyclists who used that route, a council spokeswoman said.

"Joll Rd will also form part of the new Te Mata Peak mountain bike trial so it is important that a shared walking and cycleway is provided that vehicles travel at an appropriate speed," she said.

"The work was not yet completed and road markings would eventually add to the operation of islands in 'calming' vehicle speeds."