Coatesville-Riverhead Highway, Kumeu – Intersection Improvements Coatesville-Riverhead Highway, Kumeu – Intersection Improvements
Proposal status: Closed
Reference number: RSU1920-087
Proposal outcome
In June 2021, we proposed to improve safety at the intersection of Coatesville-Riverhead Highway and Old Railway Road, in Kumeu. These changes are in response to an investigation which found that between 2015 and 2019, there were 5 crashes reported at this intersection, 3 of which resulted in serious injuries and 2 in minor injuries. These changes will help improve the safety of all road users travelling through the Coatesville-Riverhead Highway/Old Railway Road intersection.
After reviewing all the feedback, we are proceeding with the following minor changes:
- Provide the right turn bay with a flush median on Coatesville-Riverhead Highway.
- Remove the no-overtaking lines along the proposed right turn bay and the flush median markings.
- Change the type of activated warning signs to electronic warning signs (or driver feedback signs) displaying the speed of approaching vehicles and ‘SLOW DOWN’ message when activated.
- Remove the semi-mountable kerbs from the proposal for drainage reasons
Please see an updated drawing of the changes.
These works will help support our Vision Zero goal.
What happens next?
We anticipate the changes will start construction likely in May 2022. We will be in touch with local residents and businesses prior to any construction taking place.
Community feedback
Thank you for helping us make better decisions for your neighbourhood, informed by your local knowledge. A summary of the additional comments and queries we received, and our responses to them, is below.
Visibility concerns
- Belief that the lack of visibility of oncoming traffic while turning right out of Old Railway Road onto Coatesville-Riverhead Highway is responsible for accidents, and concern that the proposal does not address this problem.
The visibility for the traffic turning right out of Old Railway Road has been evaluated and observed during the investigation stage and was confirmed to meet safety standards.
Road safety improvements
- Request to improve the safety for drivers turning into the Golf Course coming from SH.16.
The current proposal is considered to provide a safer environment for drivers turning right from Coatesville-Riverhead Highway into the driveway of the Huapai Golf Club for the following reasons:
- The proposal includes a flush median on Coatesville-Riverhead Highway which will provide a space for drivers turning right to wait for a suitable gap in oncoming traffic to turn right into golf club. This is considered a safer system compared to the current layout.
- The proposal also includes driver feedback signs which will encourage motorists to drive at safe and appropriate speeds. These signs are activated when drivers are travelling at excessive speeds as they approach the intersection and warn them to reduce their speed.
- An investigation observed that the right turn demand and queues which form on Coatesville-Riverhead Highway at both golf club access and Old Railway Road intersection is low. Hence the likelihood of the right turn vehicles at both locations meet at the flush median is considered very low. Therefore, the flush median is considered safe to be used by the golf club right turn vehicles.
Auckland Transport is committed to improve the safety at this intersection, as well as taking the opportunity to make it safer for the right turning motorists into the golf club. Once the construction is completed, we will be monitoring the safety at this location, and determine if further safety treatments are required.
Road widening
- Request for the intersection to be widened and implement drain improvements when turning left from Old Railway onto Coatsville-Riverhead Highway, and also while turning left into Old Railway Road coming from SH.16.
The intersection has been designed and widened to accommodate the function of the intersection and road. We have checked the tracking of the appropriate vehicles and proposed widening of the intersection where required. The drainage investigation and design will be undertaken as part of the detailed design phase.
- Request that Coatesville Riverhead Road is widened on the Golf Course side before the turnoff onto Old Railway Road.
We acknowledge your request of road widening on the eastern side of the road, i.e: the golf club side. We wish to clarify that the proposal does include widening of the road where it is required for the proposed right turning bay project to meet the standard safety requirements. The proposal currently has a proposed right turn bay and a through lane which means that the proposed road widths are sufficient for both turning and through vehicles.
Traffic reduction
- Request for a bypass for Kumeu to reduce traffic using this intersection.
This suggestion is outside the scope of this project.
- Request to make safety changes to Old Railway Road and State Highway 16 Intersection to lessen the use of Coatesville-Riverhead Highway as an alternative route.
The intersection at Old Railway Road / SH16 is on the state highway network, which means Waka Kotahi New Zealand Transport Agency is the road controlling authority for this intersection. Please kindly contact Waka Kotahi New Zealand Transport Agency for any further feedback of this intersection.
We're proposing improvements in your area
We are proposing safety improvements at the intersection of Coatesville-Riverhead Highway and Old Railway Road, in Kumeu.
We are proposing to:
- Install a new right-turn bay on Coatesville-Riverhead Highway to provide a safer place for vehicles to stop when waiting to turn right into Old Railway Road.
- Paint double yellow centre lines (no overtaking) on Coatesville-Riverhead Highway.
- Widen the road to allow for the safety improvements by the right-turn bay. This will also include installing new kerbs.
- Install activated warning signs on both sides of Coatesville-Riverhead Highway on the approach to the intersection with Old Railway Road. These warning signs will be activated only when vehicles are detected on the side road, helping to warn people travelling on Coatesville-Riverhead Highway of the likely turning traffic out of Old Railway Road.
- Upgrade signage and road markings to support the proposal. This includes new advance warning signs on Old Railway Road to inform the approaching motorists of the intersection or stop control ahead.
- Trimming of trees at the southern side of the intersection to improve visibility.
Download proposal drawing (PDF 2.31 MB)
Between 2015 and 2019, there were five crashes reported at this intersection, three of which resulted in serious injuries and two in minor injuries. The most commonly occurring types of crashes at this location are rear-ended collisions caused by vehicles colliding with a stationary vehicle in front that is waiting to turn right into Old Railway Road, and collisions caused by people failing to stop when turning from Old Railway Road.
These changes would help improve the safety of all road users travelling through the Coatesville-Riverhead Highway/Old Railway Road intersection. The widening of the road and installation of a new right-turning bay would provide a safe place for vehicles to wait and turn into Old Railway Road. The activated warning signs will help to inform and warn the approaching drivers of Coatesville-Riverhead Highway of the likely turning traffic from Old Railway Road.
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 supported by the Auckland regional fuel tax.
Kumeu: 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 Coatesville-Riverhead Highway 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).