Green man visible so it's safe to cross

Green Fluoro Man - aka Sport Northland CEO Brent Eastwood - helps Kamo intermediate students cross the road safely. Photo / Michael Cunningham

He attracted some strange looks, honks and hoots, and plenty of high fives in Whangarei this week.

The man inside the figure-hugging fluorescent green Lycra onesie suit drew plenty of attention as he walked Whangarei streets on Monday to raise awareness about safety at pedestrian crossings.

The man in the suit finally revealed his identity as Brent Eastwood, the Sport Northland chief executive officer, who was volunteering his time as part of Volunteer Week.

Mr Eastwood said he realised the dedication of volunteers and the work they did for Sport Northland, so this was a chance to give back to the community.

Road safety advocate Morag van der Veer said pedestrians were putting themselves at risk by crossing "mid-block" or in between two crossings.

She said it was always better to cross on a marked or patrolled crossings, and to do so when the green man was visible - which Mr Eastwood certainly was.

As part of a nationwide Volunteer Week, Volunteering Northland will be holding stalls in Whangarei and Kaitaia to show people some of the opportunities they have to volunteer in the north.

Over the week, 12 CEOs and business people throughout the region will be giving up their time to volunteer at local services as part of the "I Dare You" challenge. Those taking part include Mr Eastwood, Refining NZ chief executive Sjoerd Post, Northern Advocate editor Craig Cooper, and Whangarei District Council chief executive Rob Forlong.

Northland has one of the highest percentages of people who volunteer, with an estimated 47,000 of the roughly 152,000 Northlanders regularly getting out in their communities.