Otahuhu town centre upgrade Otahuhu town centre upgrade
The Ōtāhuhu town centre upgrade aims to transform the streets and public open spaces, making changes to roads and connections to provide better infrastructure for walking and cycling.
- View a map of the project area.
- Get details of the upgrade features and design.
- Get the results of public feedback and read the consultation report.
Consultation status: closed 6 September 2017.
Project status: Investigation
Project zone: South
Image: Artist's impression of the Great South Road and Park Avenue intersection.
Project overview
The Ōtāhuhu area will experience significant growth over the next 30 years and beyond. We want to revitalise and enhance the town centre to make sure it is ready for the changes ahead and provide more transport choices so you can safely and easily get to work, school, your local shops or park.
The upgrade focuses on Ōtāhuhu’s main street along Great South Road from Princes Street to Atkinson Avenue, Station Road, and Mason Avenue, with improvements that will provide better connections between public transport facilities, businesses, key community facilities, and public open spaces.
The upgrade is an Auckland Council project that will be delivered by Auckland Transport (AT).
Key features
- Shared cycling/walking path along the southern side of Station Road and Mason Avenue.
- Safety improvements for public transport users, pedestrians, and people on bikes.
- Enhancements to the street environment for pedestrians and street-based retail.
Benefits
- Improved connectivity through the centre and to Ōtāhuhu Station.
- Better walking and cycling connections.
- A more attractive town centre for businesses, residents, and others.
- Reflect the area's rich history and cultural diversity.
Map of the project area
Upgrade features
Walking and cycling path
We propose to install a (approximately) 3.5m-wide shared cycling and walking path along the southern side of Station Road and Mason Avenue.
The path will connect the main street on Great South Road, the community facilities on Mason Avenue (including Tōia recreation precinct), Ōtāhuhu bus and train stations, and Ōtāhuhu Primary School on Station Road.
The path will also help accommodate the increase in foot traffic resulting from the construction of Ōtāhuhu Station and the bus stops on Avenue Road.
Road changes
- Remove the roundabout and install traffic signals at the intersection of Great South Road and Princes Street.
- Narrow the width of the road to slow traffic speeds.
Safety improvements
- Build out (extend) kerbs to reduce crossing distances at intersections and pedestrian crossings.
- Change pedestrian crossing signals to allow more time for people to cross the road.
- Improve street lighting to help with safety at night.
Improvements for pedestrians and street-based retail
- Widen the footpath at key locations.
- Create a consistent and uncluttered footpath surface.
- Remove pedestrian fencing near intersections.
- Incorporate new or enhanced public spaces at the intersection of Great South Road with Atkinson Avenue and Park Avenue, Criterion Square, and at the intersection of Great South Road and Princes Street.
- Use a range of good-quality, durable materials to reduce on-going maintenance and operational costs.
- Improve street and town centre signage to help visitors find their way around. This will include feature wayfinding signage to highlight mana whenua presence in Ōtāhuhu.
Changes to on-street parking
To make space for the proposed improvements to the town centre, we will need to remove of some on-street parking spaces.
Of the over 900 on-street parking spaces in and around the project area, we propose removing:
- Approximately 25 parking spaces from Great South Road (25% of the current spaces).
- Approximately 48 parking spaces from Station Road (50% of the current spaces).
- Approximately 44 parking spaces from Mason Avenue (65% of the current spaces).
We will take care to minimise parking removal. It is important to note that the town centre benefits from a considerable amount of off-street public parking, which can help to accommodate any additional parking demand.
Planting and changes to street trees
As part of the town centre upgrade, we will plant native species to enhance local character and improve the environment and biodiversity. This will also provide a series of green links around the town centre.
We propose to:
- Remove 41 fan palms on Great South Road and replace them with 58 native street trees to be planted at regular intervals to provide order to the street environment. The fan palms are very tall and difficult to maintain. In addition, falling palm fronds have put pedestrians at risk and caused damage to cars and buildings
- Remove the two Cook pine trees, in Criterion Square and at the intersection of Great South Road and Atkinson Avenue, to improve visibility and increase usable public space
- Relocate or remove up to 10 totara trees on Station Road to accommodate footpath widening on the northern side, and to provide a continuous 3.5m wide shared path on the southern side. A total of 38 new native trees will be planted on Station Road.
- Plant 20 new native trees on Mason Avenue. No tree removal is planned for this street.
Design images
Great South Road
Great South Road and Princes Street intersection
Great South Road and Station Road intersection
Criterion Square (Great South Road and Criterion Street intersection)
Great South Road and Atkinson Avenue intersection
Station Road / Moa Street / Mason Avenue intersection
Station Road and Walmsley Road intersection
Mason Avenue
Mason Avenue around the Tōia recreation precinct
Scheme plans
The draft scheme plans show detailed design concepts along the various streets.
Download the overview plan and find the code for the area of the upgrade you want to see in detail.
- Overall draft scheme plan (PDF 1.39MB)
- C201 - draft scheme plan (PDF 526KB)
- C202 - draft scheme plan (PDF 833KB)
- C203 - draft scheme plan (PDF 787KB)
- C204 - draft scheme plan (PDF 599KB)
- C205 - draft scheme plan (PDF 511KB)
- C301 - draft scheme plan (PDF 878KB)
- C302 - draft scheme plan (PDF 884KB)
- C303 - draft scheme plan (PDF 1.08MB)
- C304 - draft scheme plan (PDF 997KB)
- C401 - draft scheme plan (PDF 1.6MB)
- C402 - draft scheme plan (PDF 994KB)
Outside scope of the project
Former Ōtāhuhu Bus Station
Auckland Council and AT are working together to make the most of the former Ōtāhuhu Bus Station site between Avenue Road and King Street. At this stage, we do not have plans for this land. Consideration will be given to the needs of the community as a whole, and how this location supports the growth of Ōtāhuhu.
Development of this site will be a separate Auckland Council project.
Park and ride near Ōtāhuhu Station
AT continues with its mission to provide better transport options for all Aucklanders, and transport hubs like Ōtāhuhu Station are at the heart of this transformation.
One of the key objectives of this project is to make it easier to get to and from the Ōtāhuhu Station by foot, bike, or bus.
Any further improvements to the station will be a separate AT project.
Public engagement
Auckland Council (AC) and Auckland Transport (AT) proposed a town centre upgrade focused on the main street of Ōtāhuhu, along Great South Road from Princes Street to Atkinson Avenue, Station Road, and Mason Avenue.
We consulted on this proposal from 10 August to 6 September 2017, and received 220 public submissions.
Key themes in feedback
From your feedback we identified the following key themes:
- support for the proposed design overall (90 responses) to upgrade the town centre.
- support for the proposed removal of trees (151 responses) to enable the upgrade.
- indication from over half of all respondents (113) that improvements to the area will encourage them to walk or cycle to/from/around the town centre or Ōtāhuhu Station.
- support for Bike Auckland’s proposal for a separated cycleway instead of a shared path along Station Road (52 responses), a reduced town centre speed limit of 30km/h (40 responses), and adding both raised tables (40 responses) and zebra crossings (38 responses) to the intersections along Great South Road - see summary of Bike Auckland’s proposal in the Other Submissions section.
- oppose proposed carpark changes to enable the proposed upgrade (35 responses).
- could do more to improve the design for cyclists in particular (29 responses).
- oppose proposed traffic lights to replace roundabout at Great South Road/Princes Street intersection (24 responses).
- concerns about trees, planting, and berm maintenance (23 responses).
Changes to proposal
Following consultation, we have revised our proposed town centre upgrades to:
- introduce mixed-species street planting within the carriageway (we will retain 26 of the existing palm trees at key intersections, transplant 4 and remove 14. We will also introduce 89 new native trees).
- relocate the Cook pine at Criterion Square (a new location is currently being considered) and retain the Cook pine at the Southern Plaza in its current location
- retain the clock tower and Luke Memorial in the Southern Plaza in their current locations.
- conduct a further review of the design of the Northern Plaza, Southern Plaza and Criterion Square.
Feedback report
Download the Otahuhu town centre upgrade feedback report (PDF 2MB, 46 pages).
Next steps
We expect to be able to provide the public with details of the revised design for the Ōtāhuhu town centre upgrade in February 2018.
Construction of the Ōtāhuhu town centre upgrade is expected to start mid-2018.