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Church Street, Otahuhu - Raised Zebra Crossing Church Street, Otahuhu - Raised Zebra Crossing

Proposal status: Closed

Reference number: SSM2122-007

Proposal update

Kia ora,

In September 2022 we invited community feedback on our proposal to provide students with a safer crossing and promote safer speeds on Church Street. 

Construction is now planned for the school holidays, July 2023. We’re aiming to do most of the work during the school holidays to minimise disruption.

We are installing a raised zebra crossing outside 163 Church Street. This project will improve safety for students travelling to and from nearby Fairburn School.

Proposal outcome

In September 2022, we proposed to install a raised zebra crossing on Church Street, near Fairburn School. After reviewing all the feedback, we are proceeding with the work as proposed.

These works help support our Vision Zero goal of improving safety across Auckland and contributes towards fulfilling the Central Government mandate of improving safety around schools by lowering driving speeds.

What happens next

We anticipate the changes will be constructed between April and October 2023. We will update you with a more precise construction start date closer to the time.

Community feedback

Thank you for helping us make better decisions for your neighbourhood, informed by your local knowledge. We heard in the feedback that many motorists don’t slow down at the crossing for children walking to school. The proposed raised crossing will help prevent this.

Here is a summary of additional comments and our responses to them:

Vision Zero / Safety

  • Suggestion to have a raised zebra crossing on Church Street at the bottom of Nixon Street. This will improve safety for pedestrians especially for children.
  • Suggestion to add speed bumps.
    This proposal is focused on improving pedestrian safety by converting the existing zebra crossing to a raised zebra crossing that promotes safer speeds. While we cannot install other speed calming measures such as speed bumps or new zebra crossings within the scope and budget of this project, we will investigate and consider these requests as part of future improvements.

    We have logged the requests for additional speed calming and pedestrian facilities. The reference number is CAS-640343-T2L4X0. You may follow up on this investigation by calling us on 09 355 3553.

Drop off Zone

  • Suggestion for a painted drop off area to manage school traffic.
    Our Community Transport Team works with schools across Auckland to promote walking, cycling, and public transport to get to and from school. This is to support safety outside of the school gate and to reduce congestion.

    Pick up and drop off areas can sometimes increase congestion and create other safety issues outside the school gate. We will not be installing a painted drop off area as part of this project, but we will continue to work closely with schools to manage congestion and other issues around the school gate.

    While this proposal is unlikely to affect congestion around school drop off and pick up time, we expect it to have a significant impact on improving safety for everyone in the area.

Intersection Signage

  • Suggestion there needs to be added signage at the junction where Fairburn Road and Church Street meet. Request for slow signs at this end and before you reach the pedestrian crossing on Church Street to prevent sudden braking.
    We will be installing additional warning signage that highlights the presence of the crossing and the bend.

Intersection Signalisation

  • Concern about the safety issue of the speed at which drivers enter Church Street from the Fairburn Road intersection.
  • Suggestion more attention is needed on the intersection itself to make this area entirely safe.
    We consider several factors, such as traffic volume and flows, the general road environment, and police reported crashes, when determining if the signalisation of an intersection is required and appropriate.

    Installing traffic signals where unnecessary may cause excessive delays, driver frustration, and non-compliance of the signals, an increased crash frequency (especially rear-end type crashes). It may also cause 'rat-running', which is when motorists weave between main roads in an attempt to beat traffic and avoid main intersections. This increases the traffic volume and speed on local roads.

    Overall, we need to ensure traffic and pedestrian safety are not negatively impacted by the implementation of any changes to road design. Taking into consideration all factors, we will not be proposing to signalise this intersection right now. However, we do expect that this proposal to upgrade the zebra crossing and the speed limit changes that have recently been proposed as part of our Safe Speeds Programme will have a positive effect on safety at this intersection and in the wider area.

Miscellaneous

  • Do flashing belisha beacons go at all times or only during peak school times?
    The flashing belisha beacons will be active at all times. This is the requirement for belisha beacons at all zebra crossings. Typically, the light levels of the belisha beacons are fairly low and they will be designed with consideration given to minimising light pollution of neighbouring properties.

We're proposing improvements in your area

We are proposing to:

  • Install a zebra crossing on top of a flat, wide speed pump outside 163 Church Street. This speed bump would be raised to the height of the footpath.
  • Install tactile pavers which are yellow guidance paving markers to help visually impaired people find their way to the crossing and safely cross the road.
  • Paint new road markings and install new signage to support the changes.

Download the proposal drawing for Church Street (PDF 1.5MB)

Auckland Transport would like to work with you to deliver safer roads in your neighbourhood. These improvements would provide pedestrians, especially school children, with a safer place to cross the road to access Fairburn School, as it would:

  • Slow motorists to a safer speed.
  • Raised pedestrians, especially children, crossing the road to be at eye-level of approaching motorists, making them easier to see from a distance.
  • Improve visibility between motorists and people waiting to cross the road.
  • Make it more comfortable for everyone, including people with prams and wheelchairs, to cross the road as the crossing is level with the footpath.

No path would be removed from these improvements.

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 with funding from the Auckland regional fuel tax.

Ōtāhuhu: 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 Church 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).