Ask Phoebe: Historic church moved to make way for roundabout

The old church has been relocated to this spot on Clarks Lane. Photo / Dean Purcell

There is to be a new roundabout at the Brigham Creek Rd end of the Northwestern Motorway. There used to be a beautiful small wooden church there - where has it gone? Tony Goodwin, Avondale.

The Sinton Rd church has been shifted to a site on nearby Clarks Lane, where it has been placed alongside other historic buildings that also needed to be moved from the area.

I have noticed black cables laid across Kepa Rd at various locations, and also in nearby streets. What are they for, and why are they in this particular location? Young Kim, Auckland.

And also - why are there two cables? Surely it would only take one to count vehicles. David White, Auckland.

And again - Some members of our family reckon the cables are for measuring traffic volumes, while the contrary view is that they are measuring speed. Is it one or the other or both? Douglas Ormrod, Auckland.

It's both. The tubes measure the number of vehicles, the type of vehicle and the speed, so that the council can monitor road usage.

The tubes are pneumatic, connected to a control box at the side of the road. When pressure is applied to the tubes, by a vehicle running over them, air is forced through the tubes to the control box and registered as a vehicle axle. This counts the number of vehicles, and, because there are two tubes, measures the time taken to pass over one and then the other, and calculates the speed, assuming standard lengths between axles.

Recently a red light has been installed at the intersection of Hill Rd, Station Rd and Great South Rd in Manurewa. There is a no right turn arrow from Great South Rd to Station Rd, which is a trap for the unwary and causes vehicles to stop in the middle of the intersection. Is the council traffic department aware of this? Julie Reeve, Manurewa.

Yes, the traffic engineers are definitely aware of this, because the no right turn signs have been there for 20 years or so. Last year they tried changing the light phasing to see if the right turn ban could be removed, but this caused more problems than it fixed, so it was returned to its original setup. There is no easy solution to this problem because of the configuration of the site, and most options cause traffic conflicts.

Southern Motorway users have been putting up with the construction work for ages. A sign states that the project is due to be completed mid-2010, which seems unlikely given the continuing activity at the site and unfinished areas. When can we expect restoration of the motorway and removal of speed restrictions? Keith Hamilton, Milford.

The Manukau Extension project is scheduled to be completed in August, and I have no information to indicate otherwise. It's amazing how quickly the last bits get done, as they must, as generally the contractors have other projects to move on to.

The speed restrictions may not be removed immediately. As a rule, they stay in place for a while to allow motorists to get used to the new layouts.