Auckland City Council
Media release

1 October 2009

Auckland City Council will convene a forum about Tamaki Drive shared space issues, following the serious crash last weekend.

The council will invite representatives from organisations representing cyclists, private and public transport, residents and the Police.

Transport Committee chair Councillor Ken Baguley says the forum will help generate ideas for the safer sharing of this busy stretch of Auckland waterfront.

“The forum will move beyond the motorist vs cyclist antagonism which has this week dominated media and blogs, to constructively consider the needs and challenges of all road users.

“Council will take a lead by harnessing the community’s interest and enthusiasm to collectively working together to reduce the risk of serious injury or death,” said Cr Baguley.

The council is also initiating a road safety campaign educating cyclists and motorists about the road rules and appropriate behaviour along limited road space on busy urban streets.

Auckland city’s Road Safety spokesperson, Councillor John Lister, says more than 200,000 cycle trips have been taken along Tamaki Dr in the past 11 months – making it by far the busiest cycling route for Aucklanders. Saturday is the most popular day for cyclists to ride along Tamaki Dr, with more than 800 riders on some summer Saturdays.

But it also rates as one of the most dangerous, says Cr Lister.

“We completed a safety analysis of Tamaki Dr last month and it confirmed five of Auckland's nine cycle blackspots in Auckland are intersections along Tamaki Dr.

“These statistics are helping shape council’s safety and road improvement programme, and for Tamaki Dr we’re looking at a series of safety improvements.”

Cr Lister says the Tamaki / Ngapipi intersection has the highest rate of crashes along Tamaki Dr, and is of real concern.

“A safety upgrade will be in place by next February. An electronic trigger and sign system will be installed to highlight the presence of cyclists obscured by cars, to alert turning traffic.

Council made safety improvements to the problematic Tamaki Dr / Patterson intersection in 2008, with no reported crashes since.

Ends

© Scoop Media