Thursday 11 September 2014

Three Central City transport projects given the go-ahead for consultation

Christchurch City Council today gave the go-ahead to start public consultation on three concept designs for transport projects needed to support key Anchor Projects in the Central City.

The three transport projects are:
* Colombo Street - from Hereford Street to St Asaph Street
* Lichfield Street - from Durham Street to Manchester Street
* Tuam Street - from Durham Street to Barbadoes Street (including some associated changes to Manchester Street between Lichfield and St Asaph streets)

Consultation is scheduled to begin in mid-September 2014 and will take place over a three week period.

Transport and Research Unit Manager Richard Osborne says, "These projects follow quickly on the heels of recent Council-led consultation on Hospital Corner early works and Hagley / Moorhouse Corner.

"All of these projects work together to deliver a clear transport framework with linkages to the wider transport network. The design concepts support improved transport choices, slower traffic speeds and enhanced streetscapes and environments within the Central City. They also directly support the opening of the new Transport Interchange scheduled for April 2015.

"We now need to get the views of the local community, businesses and organisations around the finer detail in these three transport projects and the four streets they affect. We need to make sure they deliver the greener, pedestrian and cyclist-friendly spaces people said they wanted to see developed for transport in the Central City through the Council's 2011 'Share an Idea' campaign," he says.

Proposed changes for the Colombo Street project include:

* Converting Colombo Street into a pedestrian and cycle-friendly street through the 30 km/h core.
* Providing safe crossings for pedestrians.
* Including separated cycle lanes on both sides of the road between St Asaph Street and Lichfield Street.
* Enabling trams to cross east-west over Colombo Street at High Street and Cashel Mall.
* Streetscape design features along the frontage of the new Bus Interchange to enhance the street's appearance and accessibility.
* Links with the Tuam Street one-way conversion and the Lichfield Street two-way conversion, both within the 30 km/h speed zone.
* Providing access to the Lichfield Street car parks from Colombo Street.

Proposed changes for the Lichfield Street project include:

* Conversion of Lichfield Street from one-way to two-way from just east of the Cambridge Terrace / Durham Street intersection as far as Manchester Street.
* Lichfield Street operating as the preferred vehicle access route into the proposed retail precinct's parking buildings and the northern access to the Justice and Emergency Precinct.
* An exclusively pedestrian 'Barnes Dance'-style pedestrian crossing phase at the intersection of Colombo and Lichfield streets.
* Providing northern access to the Bus Interchange to the east of Colombo Street.
* Giving pedestrians and buses priority between the Bus Interchange access and Manchester Street.
* Becoming part of the proposed Central City 30 km/h slow speed core.

Proposed changes for the Tuam Street project include:

* Converting Tuam Street to one-way west to east between Durham Street and Barbadoes Street (as included in An Accessible City).
* Prioritise bus movement, where possible, towards the Bus Interchange.
* Signalising the entrance of the Bus Interchange to ensure safety for all users, while achieving bus priority on entry and exit.
* Incorporating a separated cycle facility on the north side from Durham Street to the east of High Street for one-way cycle travel eastbound.
* Becoming part of the proposed Central City 30 km/h slow speed core.
* The tram route from Poplar Street will cross Tuam Street to enter High Street then trams will return along High Street.

The proposed changes to Tuam and Lichfield Streets include some associated amendments to Manchester Street between St Asaph Street and Tuam Street. These include:

* Cycle lanes retained on both sides of the street.
* Kerb build-outs outside Sol Square and across the road.
* Lane changes to accommodate buses turning into Lichfield Street and St Asaph Street.

Subsequent separate consultation is planned over further Manchester Street changes north of Lichfield Street.

Background
These are the second set of early transport projects to deliver An Accessible City. This is the transport chapter which is an addendum to the Christchurch Central Recovery Plan developed under the Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Act 2011.

People initially shared their ideas and viewpoints about transport through the Council's 2011 'Share an Idea' campaign and more feedback came when CERA consulted on the Draft Transport Chapter of the Central City Recovery Plan (which became An Accessible City) in 2012 and 2013.

CERA and the Council have developed this feedback into transport projects that focus on changes to traffic flow in the Central City. These transport projects focus on improving traffic flow to anchor projects and focus on physical changes to the roading network associated with the opening of the new Bus Interchange in April 2015.

What is An Accessible City?
The Christchurch Central Recovery Plan means there will be exciting new places to live and visit in the Central City. An Accessible City will create the network which makes it easy, safe and enjoyable to move around the Central City.

An Accessible City:
* Plans for how we will avoid congested streets in the future as more people live in and travel to the Central City as a destination;
* Makes sure the areas around the roads, footpaths and cycleways are greener and more enjoyable for people to spend more time in; and
* Looks at how the different modes of travel, (improved choices for travel by car, public transport, cycle or walking) will be distributed and shared throughout the Central City street network. Some routes will be most suited to pedestrians or cyclists, others suited to those driving cars or for public transport; some areas will be shared zones.

These choices will help shape the economic, social and environmental recovery of the Central City.

For general information on the Recovery Plan and An Accessible City, visit www.ccdu.govt.nz/the-plan

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