Photo / Greg Bowker
Could you please tell me if rollerblading on the road is prohibited by law, or simply by the laws of common sense? I saw a woman recently rollerblading along Ladies Mile in the early morning. As a cyclist she made me feel very safe and sensible. William Hicks, Remuera.
According to the AA website, the law does not actually state where rollerblades, skateboards and push scooters may be used. As they are not classed as motor vehicles or cycles, they may be used on footpaths, except where a bylaw forbids it, such as in a shopping centre.
If you are under 14 and using one of these contraptions you are considered to be a pedestrian and your use is restricted to the footpath. If you are over 14 you can use these vehicles on the road, but the Transport Agency strongly advises against it. They are a safety risk and too erratic to be able to share the road with larger vehicles. The AA would like to see some clarity around this issue.
I'm confused about the bus lanes along Remuera Rd from Remuera to Newmarket. Most mornings and evenings during the clearway hours there are cars parked in the lane. In the past five years I've never seen anyone ticketed nor seen any traffic wardens enforcing the bus lane. The signage on the southern side alongside Mt Hobson is confusing too, with some signs showing motorcycles allowed, others not, and many signs obscured. Does this bus lane legally exist? Matt Hancock, Remuera.
Yes it does. Maybe it's time some cameras were put up, and perhaps Auckland Transport could clean up the signs. It pays to obey the signs though, regarding whether or not motorcycles are permitted.
When do they intend opening the third lane through the Victoria Park Tunnel? My trip time from Penrose to Bayswater has worsened since the opening of the tunnel. One would think that they would give this highest priority. Ian Cunningham, Bayswater.
They (the New Zealand Transport Agency) are. The target date is March 12.
Are there any plans to change the name of the Birdcage Tavern back to its original name of the Rob Roy Hotel? Angus Robertson, St Mary's Bay.
It would seem so. Websites I scanned are calling this historic building the Rob Roy Hotel, formerly known as the Birdcage.
On a steep narrow road, where it is impossible to pass, should vehicles travelling uphill give way to opposing traffic or vice versa? I would have thought the driver going up should pull over but this does not always seem to be the case. Patsy Lambert, Howick.
Although there is no hard and fast rule, the Road Code suggests that it is easier for vehicles moving downhill to give way to vehicles moving uphill.