Local Focus: Whanganui's 3D pedestrian crossing to rival Abbey Road

The Whanganui suburb of Castlecliff is giving London's Abbey Road a run for its money with a jazzed up pedestrian crossing.

It's part of a community initiative by Progress Castlecliff, using art to inject some life into the streets.

Progress Castlecliff member and Whanganui Deputy Mayor, Jenny Duncan said the crossing made the place even better to visit and take a quirky photograph.

"It'll show Whanganui is a vibrant place to be, but it will also bring people down to this part of town and have them using the crossing for themselves," Duncan said.

The crossing, which was being compared to the British crossing made famous on the Beatles album, Abbey Road, happened through pure coincidence.

Artist Dan Mills, Whanganui District Council senior roading engineer Rui Leitao, councillor Jenny Duncan and Progress Castlecliff's Jamie Waugh cross Rangiora St in Beatle style. Photo / Gail Imhoff

"You know once the crossing was down you just start to put the pieces together," Duncan said. "And you start to see a particular thing come out and Abbey Road just seemed a quirky addition to the crossing."

Duncan said the project was a key example of a wider community chipping in to make positive projects happen.

"They all build on top of each other to make a really strong community so I think that's what we've done here."

The artist behind the 3D masterpiece was Dan Mills. To appreciate the effect, he said people needed to be in the right spot.

"A lot of people just look at it and scratch their heads," Mills said. "But it's the light and the angle that's important, and a dry day helps."

But Mills was just as concerned about road safety.

"It's a pedestrian crossing designed for people to cross the road safely and hopefully people slow down. That's its function isn't it? And now it just looks a little bit more funkier, and hopefully it freaks people out a bit more, to actually slowing down."

None of the surviving Beatles were likely to use the crossing, but locals hoped it would attract others keen to recreate a Kiwi twist on the iconic album cover.

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