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Bonnie Brae Road, Meadowbank - Pedestrian refuge Bonnie Brae Road, Meadowbank - Pedestrian refuge

Proposal status: closed 22 October 2018

Reference number: MIP1819-013

We're proposing changes in your area

We are proposing to install a pedestrian refuge island on Bonnie Brae Road, Meadowbank, near the intersection with Meadowbank Road. This will also include new pram crossings, footpath extension and new road markings around existing bus stops.

Download the proposal drawing for Bonnie Brae Road (PDF 372KB).

Why the changes are needed

These changes are needed to the southern end of Bonnie Brae Road which is very wide and currently has a low level of service for pedestrians. The proposed changes will reduce the crossing distance, provide improved pedestrian facilities and support reduced speeds on entry into Bonnie Brae Road.

Proposal outcome

This project will proceed with minor changes to the next stage of detailed planning.

Download the updated proposal drawing for Bonnie Brae Road (PDF 1.7MB)

Thank you to everyone who submitted feedback. A summary of this feedback and answers to community questions and concerns is below.

Feedback received

  • This proposal received positive responses from community members and stakeholders who supported the pedestrian refuge.
  • Respondent suggests that there's room in the island to stop a child's bike; there's a number of people who cycle to school this way.
    There is sufficient space at the traffic island for a cyclist to wait before proceeding when there is an appropriate gap in the traffic stream.
  • The southern half of the crossing is still wide at approximately 10 metres the mouth of this one lane is almost as wide as some suburban roads. The time to cross it could still be double the time it would take for a car to go from not visible to reaching the intersection. They believe it would be appropriate to consider widening the pavement at the southern end or possibly widening the waiting island while understanding the need to accommodate the turning of buses in and out of Bonnie Brae Road.
    The southern half of the crossing has a crossing distance of 8m, which at a walking speed of 1.2 m/s, will take approximately 7 seconds to cross. With respect to the proposed pedestrian refuge, we have widened the traffic islands as much as it is practicable while still allowing a bus to track safely into and out of Bonnie Brae Road. Therefore the existing design is the optimal width for allowing the safe travel of buses into Bonnie Brae Road and narrowing the entrance/exit lanes for Bonnie Brae Road.
    We did consider widening the pavement at the southern end of Bonnie Brae Road however widening the footpath on the southern side then means that the pedestrian refuge must be narrowed to allow for the safe turning of buses. This effectively provides the same outcome as the existing design but at a higher cost. Since there is no additional benefit to widening the southern footpath and narrowing of the proposed pedestrian refuge, we are proposing to proceed to the next stage in delivery with the current design.
  • Respondent suggests building out the pavement at either the northern or southern end of the intersection to slightly narrow Meadowbank Road itself, to better mitigate the speed of traffic travelling past the Bonnie Brae intersection, in either direction.
    With respect to the speeding concerns raised, we have a separate tranche of work called the Residential Speed Management (RSM) programme. This programme addresses the highest risk residential areas and were prioritised based on a number of factors such as crash risk, operational speed, land use, public requests etc. The RSM high risk residential areas have been prioritised for implementation within the next 3 years. Meadowbank Road and Bonnie Brae Road are not in a high risk residential area that is being treated within the RSM programme.
  • Suggestion of increasing the visibility of the waiting island to cars travelling north, perhaps through a vertical element; this could be a sign or perhaps something incorporated into the design of the island itself.
    Signs will be installed on the traffic island indicating that drivers should keep left  when turning into Bonnie Brae Road. In addition, the traffic island nose is painted white to highlight where it is positioned.
  • Suggestion for building out the pavement at either the northern or southern end of the intersection to slightly narrow Meadowbank Road itself, to better mitigate the speed of traffic travelling past the Bonnie Brae intersection, in either direction.
    Similar to the comments above, we had considered widening the footpath on either side of Bonnie Brae Road, however widening the footpath on either side subsequently means that the pedestrian refuge must be narrowed to allow for the safe turning of buses. This effectively provides the same outcome as the existing design but at a higher cost. As there is no additional benefit to widening the footpath and narrowing of the proposed pedestrian refuge, we are retaining the current design.
  • Respondent asks how the proposed design will reduce the speed of cars entering Bonnie Brae.
    The entry speed of drivers is reduced due to narrowed lane width available. The narrowed lane width requires that drivers slow down so they can safely negotiate the constrained width while turning.
  • Respondent suggests to upgrade this proposal to a formal pedestrian crossing.
    During the investigation phase of this project, we undertook pedestrian counts in the vicinity of the Meadowbank Road/Bonnie Brae intersection. We observed very few pedestrians crossing near the intersection, too low to justify the installation of a pedestrian crossing. We have however observed a few drivers entering Bonnie Brae Road at speed and the level of service for pedestrians is poor due to the long crossing distance. We have also had requests from the residents to improve the crossing distance across Bonnie Brae Road near the intersection with Meadowbank Road.
  • Respondent suggests there is need for more pedestrian crossings.
    There will always be a need for more pedestrian crossings across Auckland, however pedestrian crossings must be installed where they are justified based on pedestrian amenity or  demand, and are prioritised with all other projects depending on a number of factors such as safety, community expectation, cost, etc.
  • Respondent thinks that degree of no parking is unnecessarily long. Suggests that it be stated at the start of the driveway at number 2 Bonnie Brae, which occupies the corner site.
    The proposed and existing 'No stopping at all times' parking restrictions (broken yellow lines), are essential to the safety of pedestrians crossing, so there is adequate visibility of approaching cars and for drivers unobstructed visibility of pedestrians who are waiting at the crossing when they approach the crossing.
  • Respondent suggests parking for the train station is about to reach this intersection in the next few months.
    Whilst we appreciate that commuter parking can be an inconvenience for residents, the road is a public asset available for the use of all road users and the parking spaces outside a private residence is not there for the exclusive use of the adjacent property owner.
  • Respondent suggests to make it residents only parking on some parts of Bonnie Brae.
    There is a programme underway for residential parking permits in high density housing areas where there is no off street parking available and tends to be in areas in close proximity to the CBD. There are no plans to implement a residential parking zone in other streets beyond those areas nearest the CBD.
  • Respondent is concerned about parking outside 98 Meadowbank Road.
    As mentioned above, the proposed 'No stopping at all times' parking restrictions (broken yellow lines) on Meadowbank Road, are essential to the safety of pedestrians with the added benefit of unobstructed visibility for drivers turning out of Bonnie Brae Road. Please note that parking is still available to the south of the driveway for No. 98 Meadowbank Road.
  • Respondent suggests there needs to be a curb build-out on the south side as that curve encourages the speed.
    The position of the proposed pedestrian refuge restricts the entry speed of drivers since the entry lane for Bonnie Brae Road narrows from approximately 12m to 8m, almost halving the lane width available for drivers turning into Bonnie Brae Road. The crossing distance for pedestrians is also significantly reduced.
  • Respondent suggests it would be great if the change also pinched the width of Meadowbank Road at the intersection, perhaps creating a visual cue, to discourage some of the speeding heading north up the road.
    The traffic island will provide a visual narrowing effect for northbound traffic, when approaching the Meadowbank Road/Bonnie Brae Road intersection.
  • Respondents suggests speed is an issue on the corner and making it more of an angle to get around the corner would slow traffic to a more safer speed.
    The entry lane for Bonnie Brae Road has been narrowed as much as it is practicable while allowing the safe tracking of buses into and out of Bonnie Brae Road.
    The existing north and southern lane widths for Bonnie Brae Road are approximately 6m and 12m respectively with the lanes being separated by white road marking compared with the reduced lane widths or 5m and 8m, which are separated by a traffic island.
  • Respondents suggest square off the curb lines so that cars cannot turn in quickly, thus reducing the crossing distance for pedestrians.
    As mentioned above, we had considered widening the footpath on Bonnie Brae Road, however widening the footpath subsequently means that the pedestrian refuge must be narrowed to allow for the safe turning of buses. This effectively provides the same outcome as the existing design but at a higher cost. Since there are no additional benefits to widening the footpath and narrowing of the proposed pedestrian refuge, we intend to proceed with the current design.
  • Respondent suggests improving the lighting over the 'duck bridge.' Currently, at night the stairs at the northern end of the bridge at the top of the stairs are unlit because the lights are broken.
    Since this relates to an asset within a park/reserve, we will pass your concerns on to the Auckland Councils Parks and Reserves team.
  • A number of respondents highlighted that the bus stop on the Northern side of Bonnie Brae is now only used by a single school bus once per school day. The introduction of yellow lines for no parking is unnecessary here and an unnecessary irritation for residents.
    Although this bus stop is used only in the morning and afternoon, there still needs to be a provision for a school bus stop, so children can safely get on and off the bus. As such, the bus stop restrictions will only apply during school pick up and drop off times and at all other times, parking will be permitted at this bus stop.

Next steps

This work will happen between July 2019 and July 2020 but we will let you know if there are further changes or delays. Our contractors will send notices to affected residents 48-hours prior to construction starting.