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Saint Johns Road, St Johns – Raised Zebra Crossing Saint Johns Road, St Johns – Raised Zebra Crossing

Consultation status: Closed

Reference number: RSU1920-034B

Proposal outcome

In October 2021, we consulted the community on our updated design to improve pedestrian safety on St Johns Road by raising and moving the existing zebra crossing. After reviewing all the feedback, we are proceeding with the following design changes: 

  • Install a bus shelter at the relocated bus stop outside of 127A St Johns Road. The bus shelter was requested by the Ōrākei Local Board and some respondents in their feedback on this proposal.
  • Install a seat at the relocated bus stop outside of 142 St Johns Road.

These works will help support our Vision Zero goal.

What happens next

We anticipate the changes will be constructed in the 2021 to 2022 financial year, before June 2022. We will be in touch with local residents and businesses before any construction takes place.

Community feedback

Thank you for helping us make better decisions for your neighbourhood, informed by your local knowledge.

The majority of the local community supported this proposal. Respondents stated that the upgraded crossing will be safer for pedestrians walking in the area, especially children.

Supporters of the proposal were also pleased that it will increase safe access to the bus stops on St Johns Road, which the community regularly uses. Residents also said that the raised design of the crossing would be a benefit, as it will slow high driver speeds on St Johns Road, especially before the pedestrian crossing and around the intersection of St Johns Road, Ipswich Place and Truman Street.

Here is a summary of feedback and our responses to community questions:

Parking Removal

  • Concern that painting more broken yellow lines (no stopping at all times) on St Johns Road will worsen parking access issues, as there is already high demand among residents for parking. 
    We are committed to the Vision Zero strategy and providing safer crossing facilities for pedestrians. This project aims to improve pedestrian and driver safety at the intersection of St Johns Road and Ipswich Place, which is a location of concern. 
    The proposed location for the upgraded crossing is the most suitable in terms of pedestrian crossing demand, visibility, and loss of parking. We understand that removing parking can be inconvenient, so we have removed as little parking as possible.
    While there will be a minor loss of parking in the immediate vicinity of the intersection, plenty of parking will be retained on St Johns Road and adjacent side streets. 
  • Concern that the proposed works will raise the height of the road, which will make the driveway of 2 Ipswich Place steeper.  
    The design will not affect the driveway and footpath levels next to 2 Ipswich Place.
  • Concern around the removal of 2 on-street parking spaces on Ipswich Place, as it leaves 1 remaining on-street parking space for residents.
    The wide nature of the intersection of St Johns Road and Ipswich Place make it a location of concern for safety. The proposed buildouts on Ipswich Place will tighten the sweeping curve on the western side of the road. This will slow vehicles down, improve visibility, and significantly reduce the pedestrian crossing distance. There are about 32 on-street parking spaces on Ipswich Road. This proposal will remove 2 of these spaces to accommodate the required safety works. This will leave plenty of parking for residents to use.

Traffic Congestion

  • Concern that the proposal will cause westbound traffic to slow and block the intersection. Concern that the proposal will increase the number of vehicles travelling on St Johns Road each day and increase traffic congestion on this road. 
    The proposed location of the raised zebra crossing aligns with the bus stops, giving people using these stops a safe place to cross. It will be slightly further from the intersection of Truman Road and Ipswich Place than the existing zebra crossing at 135 St Johns Road. Vehicles will only need to slow down to 25 to 35 km/h to safely travel over the raised zebra crossing.
    As traffic volumes on Truman Road and Ipswich Place are low, we expect minimal delays and congestion in the area.

Crossing Location

  • Suggestion to move the proposed raised crossing further away from the intersection, perhaps to 144 St Johns Road.
    We investigated several locations for the zebra crossing. However, our options are limited by the need to avoid restricting peoples' turning movements in and out of existing driveways. The proposed location also minimises the loss of parking for residents. 
  • Suggestion that the intersection could be raised, near the St Johns Road entrance to Summerset Village, as people cross the road here to access the bus stops.
    Currently, we are not raising the intersection, but we will enquire internally if any pedestrian crossing facilities are proposed as part of Summerset development.
  • Concern that the current zebra crossing location is fine and does not need moving. Concern that there are other locations in the area that need an upgraded crossing point more, like at the intersection of St Johns Road and Dorchester Road, where there have been several accidents. 
    There have been 2 rear end crashes related to pedestrians crossing at the existing zebra crossing location on St Johns Road. Roughly 1 in 7 drivers on this section of St Johns Road drive at or above 52.5km/h and there is a clear pedestrian demand to cross St Johns Road here.
    The existing zebra crossing is on the opposite side of the intersection and is not close to the bus stops. This means that passengers need to cross 2 streets to use a safe pedestrian crossing facility. The new layout lets people cross directly at a safe facility.
    We appreciate your feedback on the intersection of St Johns Road and Dorchester Road and will pass it to the relevant department to investigate.

Request to signalise the intersection

  • Request for the intersection to be signalised. There is growing concern that traffic congestion will increase on St Johns Road once Summerset Village opens.
    We considered signalising the intersection, but further investigation showed that this would not be cost-effective due to low traffic demands on the side roads. It would also increase delays for vehicles on the main road, causing network disruptions.

Bus stop and shelter

  • Request for shelters to be installed at the new bus stops on St Johns Road.
    We can confirm that in collaboration with the Ōrākei Local Board a bus shelter will be installed on the southern side of St Johns Road, outside of 127A.
  • Concern that moving the bus stop further up the road will worsen traffic congestion. The bus stops will be on either side of the road, opposite one another, making it harder for cars to pass stationary buses. Currently, the bus stop outside 129 St Johns Road lets traffic safely pass a bus while it is stopped. 
    We have placed the relocated bus stops where the remaining roadway is is 3.5 m wide in each direction. This is wide enough for larger commercial vehicles to safely pass busses while they are stationary. For this reason, we do not expect significant traffic delays. 

Disruption to affected residents 

  • Concern that the safety benefits do not outweigh the disruption and inconvenience this proposal will cause for affected residents.
    Our Vision Zero approach is about providing a safe environment for all users, especially the most vulnerable groups (such as pedestrians, cyclists, children, and people with disabilities), and ensuring that any incidents are not severe.
    There have been 2 rear end crashes related to pedestrians crossing at the existing zebra crossing. There is a clear pedestrian demand for crossing St Johns Road at this location, but roughly 1 in 7 drivers on this section of St Johns Road drive at or above 52.5 km/h.
    These factors and the need to keep pedestrians safe justify this proposal. The proposal keeps adequate road widths, which will avoid disrupting traffic.
  • Concern that the proposal will create a safety hazard for drivers turning right out of their driveways on the southern side of St Johns Road, after the raised zebra crossing.
    We checked movements to and from nearby driveways when preparing the design. These meet required standards. In fact, the design will make turning safer by slowing down motorists on St Johns Road.
  • Concern that this proposal is not required as there has never been a pedestrian related accident on St Johns Road caused by the bus stop or crossing.
    This project aims to help us achieve our Vision Zero strategy of minimising the deaths and serious injuries of vulnerable road users, including children, pedestrians, and people with disabilities. We do this by identifying and addressing high risk locations before a serious accident happens.
    There have been 2 rear end crashes related to pedestrians crossing at the existing zebra crossing. Roughly 1 in 7 drivers on this section of St Johns Road drive at or above 52.5 km/h and there is a clear demand to cross St Johns Road at this location. By slowing drivers down and increasing visibility, this proposal will help keep vulnerable road users safe.

We're proposing improvements in your area

Auckland Transport previously consulted with you on our proposal to raise the existing zebra crossing at 135 St Johns Road. We have listened to community feedback on the project and now have an updated design to improve pedestrian and road user safety at this location. We ask for just a few minutes of your time to give us your feedback on this updated design. 

We are proposing to:  

  • Relocate the existing zebra crossing at 150 St Johns Road to be on the west side of the intersection at 144 St Johns Road. The crossing will also be raised to be level with the footpath. The new crossing will have tactile pavers at both approaches, which are yellow guidance paving markers to help visually impaired people to find their way to crossings and safely across roads. 
  • Relocate two bus stops on St Johns Road 20m to the west to support the new crossing facility. This will involve extending the existing kerb at the intersection of St Johns Road and Truman Street.  
  • Install a pedestrian island crossing at the top of Truman Street (where it meets St Johns Road). A pedestrian island is raised platform in the middle of a road that makes it safer to cross a road by breaking up the journey.  
  • Enlarge the existing pedestrian island at the top of Ipswich Place (where it meets St Johns Road).  
  • Extend the footpath and kerb outside of 146 and 150 St Johns Road. This will make it safer for pedestrians by reducing the distance they need to walk over the road and provide them with a safe place to wait until they are ready to cross. This will result in the loss of two on-street parking spaces on Ipswich Place.  
  • Paint broken yellow lines (no stopping at all times) on either side of both relocated bus stops to allow busses to manoeuvre safely. Additional broken yellow lines will be painted on St Johns Road to ensure that motorists and pedestrians have clear visibility of each other when approaching the crossing. This will result in the loss of five on-street parking spaces. 
  • Paint broken yellow lines (no stopping at all times) around the corner at the intersection of Truman street and St Johns road. No legal on-street parking spaces are being removed.  

Download proposal drawing

The intersection of St Johns Road, Truman Street and Ipswich Place has been identified by Auckland Transport as high risk, with significant safety improvements needed to ensure the safety of pedestrians and motorists at this location. The proposed changes aim to improve the safety of people crossing St Johns Road and Truman Street, whilst also reducing high traffic speeds of motorists travelling through the intersection. We understand removing parking can be inconvenient, so we have minimised the removal whilst maintaining clear lines of sight for both pedestrians and road users. 

Give your feedback  

If you would like to post in your feedback, download and print our feedback form template, fill in your details and send it to Freepost using the address details on the form. 

What happens next 

  • We’ll consider all the feedback we receive, and then decide the best way to move forward.  
  • We’ll post the outcome of this proposal and a summary of community feedback on this webpage. 
  • We can email you the proposal outcome as soon as it’s ready – just select that option when you fill in the survey. 

More information 

  • This proposal is partly funded by the Auckland regional fuel tax. 

Saint Johns Road, St Johns: Safe with us 

Auckland Transport cares for your safety. We want to make our roads safe for everyone, people walking and cycling, especially for our kids and senior citizens and people driving. Projects like this one around Saint Johns Road are another step towards our goal of achieving no deaths or serious injuries on our roads. We are guided by the Vision Zero approach to transport safety, which prioritises human safety over other measures (like minor time saving).