Weekly column by Kāpiti mayor K Gurunathan.
Councillors recently received an open letter from a local group called Kapiti Urban Repair Crew seeking a safe crossing at Poplar Ave. The group has made presentations to council, which has responded with some minor improvements. Not satisfied, the group launched a 720-strong petition to council urging greater safety measures.
Council commissioned Tonkin & Taylor for a report, which noted the crossing was dangerous. The group said they had used advice from this report, including advice from their own "independent" traffic engineers, to install short-term safety hit sticks and a "safety display" during Road Safety Week. They were incensed council had removed the display and installations of safety cones, high-visibility sticks and flags four times.
The letter noted: "Council staff may not like our messaging, but they should respect our right to stand up for those messages. They should also appreciate we are speaking on behalf of many local people. At the heart of our concern is safety for everyone and, in the longer term, a better future for everyone." A central thrust of the letter is the justification of these guerrilla actions for the safety priority for walkers and cyclists because of their contribution to reducing carbon emissions. There is no denying the sincerity and commitment of this group for the common good as they noted: "We need to take these actions to protect our children and grandchildren."
The group said they accept there are differences of opinion between them and the council's roading team about the safety installations but the safety display should not have been removed during the Road Safety Week. This is a useful place to pose a counterargument to the group. For the council's transport team, it is not a question of "differences of opinion". The council, as the Road Controlling Authority, cannot by law allow the placement of homemade items in the road corridor. Items which are not approved devices as defined under the Land Transport Rule.