Pukekohe Town Centre pedestrian improvements and traffic signals Pukekohe Town Centre pedestrian improvements and traffic signals

We’re making improvements to make Pukekohe town centre safer for people walking and driving.

Construction update

Thursday 29 February 2024

We are set to start work on phase 3 of safety improvements, including new traffic lights, rebuilding the footpath, and road marking.

Work will begin on Monday 4 March. This section is expected to last for 19 days.

There will be no detours or road closures, and all businesses will remain open and accessible throughout.

Where	East Street, Stadium Drive south corner up to the bridge
Start date	Monday 4 March 2024
Hours of work	7am to 7pm (day shift), 8pm to 5:30am (night shift)
Duration	19 days (weather dependent)
Businesses	All businesses in the area to remain open as normal
Road closures/detours	No road closures or detours during construction. Stop go will be applied during night works only.

We’re installing these traffic lights to improve safety on roads in your neighbourhood and improve crossing opportunities for people walking or cycling. Traffic lights at both intersections ensures that the lights are synchronised to:

coordinate timing of the traffic lights along the road and intersection so that motorists have fewer red lights, allowing for smoother, more efficient traffic flow
give priority to people crossing the road.

Proposal outcome

In August 2022, we canvassed the community for their views on our proposals to improve safety for people walking and driving in the town centre.

At some key intersections in the town centre, vehicles have priority and drivers are not required to stop and give way to pedestrians. We think for a town centre, we can do better to make our roads safer for everyone.

Our proposals to install new traffic signals at 2 intersections in town were developed after:

listening to community experiences
exploring alternatives to traffic signals
undertaking analysis of all options using traffic surveys and population growth predictions before recommending that change is needed for safety and future growth.

After reviewing all the feedback, we are proceeding with all 4 proposals – pedestrian and traffic signals improvements.

View the public feedback consultation report (PDF 937KB)

What we proposed

Convert existing raised tables into zebra crossings on:

Seddon Street, King Street, Queen Street, and West Street
King Street and Edinburgh Street.

Install new raised zebra crossings on:

Edinburgh Street, Stadium Street, and Tobin Street
Edinburgh Street, Massey Street, Westley Street.

Install traffic signals on Stadium Drive and East Street
Install traffic signals on King Street, Stadium Drive, Massey Avenue, and Manukau Road.

Feedback closed on 31 August 2022.

Pedestrian improvements

Proposal 1: Converting existing raised tables into zebra crossings

We proposed adding zebra crossings to 2 intersections. They are:

Seddon Street, King Street, Queen Street, and West Street
King Street and Edinburgh Street.

Drivers are already alerted to slow down at these intersections. They would now also have to stop and give way to people waiting and using the zebra crossing.

There would be no changes to parking on the street.

Proposal 2: Installing new raised zebra crossings

We proposed to install new raised zebra crossings to improve safety for people crossing the road.

The intersections are:

Edinburgh Street, Stadium Drive, and Tobin Street
Edinburgh Street, Massey Street, and Wesley Street.

We would build Swedish-style raised tables on each leg of the intersection, erect new road signage, remark the road, and change the kerbs to show where people can cross the road safely.

The roundabout would remain and there would be no changes to parking on the street.

Swedish-style speed tables are raised tables with only one sharp ramp, which creates a smoother ride for heavy vehicles, buses, and tractors. This type of table is more appropriate for a business area than a typical speed table used on residential streets.

What the pedestrian improvements would mean

Pedestrians	Drivers
An obvious place to cross the road
A safer way to cross the road
Zebra crossings prioritise pedestrians. Vehicle drivers must stop and give way	Drivers slow down, stop and give way to people crossing the road
Pedestrians are more confident and feel safer crossing the road
Increases pedestrian visibility to drivers	Improved visibility of people crossing the road
No change to on-street parking	No change to on-street parking
Improved customer experience and east-west flow of people walking

Both pedestrians and motorists are responsible for keeping people safe. Learn more about pedestrian safety.

Traffic signal proposals

In recent years, there has been significant growth in Pukekohe and surrounding communities. More housing, employment and families means more people moving around on the road.

We proposed to install new traffic signals at:

East Street and Stadium Drive
King Street, Stadium Drive, Massey Avenue and Manukau Road.

We know these roads are used by local traffic, heavy trucks, tractors, and people driving in from Tuakau, Bombay, and further away. There are safety issues, a lack of pedestrian crossings, and increasing congestion.

We are also aware of the large numbers of people walking along these roads to get to the bus and train stations, schools, and through the town centre.

Evaluating these intersections as one connected piece of the road network is essential. The intersections are only 80m apart, which means that how one performs affects the performance of the other.

The traffic signals are not a stand-alone project, but part of the 10-year development strategy plan for the Pukekohe Town Centre, in partnership with Eke Panuku, the Franklin Local Board, Auckland Council, and mana whenua.

Main benefits of traffic signals

By signalising both intersections ensuring the lights are synchronised, we will be able to coordinate the signals and increase the efficiency of both junctions.
Ability to quickly adjust and respond to traffic flows at peak times and across the day
Ability to adjust and respond to predicted increase in traffic in the next decade
Link in with the existing signals at Pukekohe Station
Safe and controlled pedestrian crossings
Traffic signals generally have a smaller footprint, which means we will not need to purchase land.

Stadium Drive, East Street traffic signals proposal

Why change is needed

Safety is the main reason for replacing the current give-way control. This intersection is well-known for safety issues, including Police reports of vehicle crashes and near-misses.

Currently, traffic on Stadium Drive has priority. As a result, traffic builds up on East Street waiting to exit. At the same time, there are queues on Stadium Drive waiting to move ahead onto East Street. Too many drivers are making risky decisions to 'shoot through the gaps'

Traffic signals would give drivers more 'green light' opportunities to turn or move straight ahead safely.

There are also limited safe pedestrian crossing points, so people have to dodge vehicles to cross the road. The proposal includes a new signalised pedestrian crossing on Stadium Drive in front of the Z service station (in partnership with Eke Panuku). It would only activate when pressed by someone waiting to cross.

The changes will include:

The new signals controlling traffic priority. East Street traffic will be given dedicated green times to safely exit.
Providing a signal-controlled pedestrian crossings across both Stadium Drive and East Street
Building a new footpath on the southern side of Stadium Drive from reshaping the driveway exit and entrance of the corner businesses.

Why a roundabout at Stadium Drive and East Street is not an option

We are recommending traffic signals instead of a roundabout for the following reasons:

Physically constrained space

There is no room to fit in a proper-sized roundabout. Space is constrained by the rail overbridge, Roulston Park, various driveways, and businesses at the corners. We would also need to purchase privately-owned land.

Cannot control traffic flow

A roundabout would have similar traffic flows, queues, and waiting times to what happens now. This means that there would be no genuine improvement for drivers. The safety of people walking and riding their bikes would also not improve.

Unable to link and coordinate with the traffic signals at Stadium Drive, Manukau Road, Massey Avenue and King Street

A roundabout is uncontrolled. By signalising both intersections, we can coordinate and synchronise the phasing of the lights. This would increase the efficiency of both intersections.

King Street, Stadium Drive, Massey Avenue, Manukau Road traffic signals proposal

Why change is needed

We need to replace the existing roundabout to optimise the movement of people and traffic demand. The intersection is busy, and growth will put more pressure on its current layout. Manukau Road carries the most traffic, including both local traffic and traffic from Tuakau and further away.

There is already significant queueing, with some drivers taking risks to enter the roundabout.

Traffic signals will help balance queues and minimise delays by spreading the waiting time across all roads.

Signals will improve safety for people crossing busy Stadium Drive and Massey Road and those accessing the commercial and retail precinct on the southern side of Manukau Road, including the bus and train interchange.

The existing roundabout is not a suitable size for current and future traffic volumes. Its smaller size is a problem, as there is not much space (collision zone) separating two vehicles using it, such as large trucks.

Enlarging the roundabout is not an easy option either because the rail overbridge restricts this from happening.

The changes will include:

Removing the right turn from Stadium Drive into King Street
Removing of the roundabout, with traffic priority controlled by the new signals
Providing signal controlled pedestrian crosswalks across all 4 roads
East Street traffic will not be able to turn right into King Street. Instead, drivers can access the town centre by turning right on to Stadium Drive or straight ahead via Massey Avenue.

There would be no changes to on-street parking.

Alternatives to traffic signals

We evaluated 6 alternatives against the benefits that traffic signals will make on the road network.

Option 1: Option 1 is the current layout. However, keeping this layout is not a realistic option, as it will not address safety issues, congestion, or safely help people cross the road.

Option 2: The intersection of Stadium Drive and East Street is converted to a roundabout. However, there is not enough space to build a roundabout, and it would not improve safety or traffic control.

Option 3: The intersection of Stadium Drive and East Street is converted to traffic signals, while the roundabout at King Street, Stadium Drive, Massey Avenue, and Manukau Road is maintained.

While signals at Stadium Drive and East Street would improve safety and traffic flow at this junction, on their own there is no genuine improvement for the road network. Having a roundabout and one set of traffic signals doesn't work as well as two sets of signals, because:

Traffic signals cannot synchronise with uncontrolled roundabout movements
80m is too short a distance to spread competing traffic demand between the two intersections.

This would cause queues and waiting times to worsen on all roads.

Option 4 and Option 6: These options have the same reasons and outcome as Option 3.

Option 5: We recommend using traffic signals at each intersection.

Why we prohibit right turns from Stadium Drive into King Street

We recommend prohibiting right turns from Stadium Drive into King Street because:

Space is physically constrained

There is not enough space on the rail overbridge for a dedicated right turn pocket.

Also, AT and KiwiRail currently have no plans to upgrade the rail overbridge, and the cost would be prohibitive.

It would make the intersection operate efficiently

We want to move as many people through traffic lights as efficiently as possible and minimise delays for all users. So we use traffic modelling to predict how road layouts would work and what waiting times are likely. Excessive wait times for people driving or crossing the street are not ideal.

We considered 3 network layouts for the King Street, Stadium Drive, Massey Avenue, and Manukau Road intersection. We assessed how these layouts would move people during peak times.

These graphs show the predicted waiting times for all 3 layout options. Layouts 1 and 3 deliver similar outcomes.

Layout 1 – Changing King Street into a one-way road
This layout would be the best choice for optimal network performance. However, it would require turning King Street into a one-way street.

Based on community feedback from last year's Innovating Street trial, we presume this opinion is unlikely to get support.
Layout 2 – Maintaining King Street as a two-way road
This layout accommodates drivers entering and exiting King Street, similar to now.

However, our modelling predicts that it will take drivers significantly longer to move through the intersection in the morning and afternoon than layouts 1 and 3, to a degree that is likely to make the intersection inefficient and undesirable for road users to use.
Layout 3 – Implementing a right ban into King Street
This is the preferred option.

It maintains King Street as a two-way road. It also has the same waiting time as layout 1 in the morning, and only a slightly longer waiting time in the afternoon.

However, it would require removing the right-turn movement from Stadium Drive into King Street.

Stadium Drive traffic moves at the same time as Massey Road traffic

Providing a shared lane on Stadium Drive with a straight ahead and right turn into King Street is not viable.

We envision vehicles on Stadium Drive will be given the green signal to move straight ahead at the same time vehicles from Massey Road are moving ahead.

Drivers waiting to turn right will clash with the traffic coming from Massey Road and will have to wait for a gap. This waiting will cause traffic to build up behind it, where the rail overbridge constrains the space. These movements will also significantly delay the intersection's overall operation.

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