Preferred option for Frankton road links identified

The primary link for traffic between the replacement Kawarau River Bridge, Hawthorne Drive and the new Eastern Access Road at Frankton should continue to be via Lucas Place for the foreseeable future.

That’s the conclusion of the “Western End Study”, a review of options for road linking Hawthorne Drive and the Eastern Access Road with State Highway 6 near the Kawarau Falls Bridge.

The study, released by the Queenstown Lakes District Council today, supports the continued focus on the existing major roads in the area through the future upgrade of the intersection of SH6 and Lucas Place, and eventually widening Lucas Place to four lanes.

Although a new link via Robertson St would be the most direct route on paper, this option is not favoured on both economic and safety grounds.

The other two options reviewed in the report are extending Humphrey St directly through to Lucas Place, which would involve cutting through private property, and upgrading the existing route via Humphrey St, Douglas St and Robertson St. In both cases the cost of doing this work clearly outweighs the benefits.

Deputy Mayor Lyal Cocks, the Council’s portfolio leader for infrastructure, said the report had been given to the Frankton Community Association, Remarkables Park Ltd and the property owners who would have been affected by the proposed redirection of traffic along Humphrey and Douglas St.

He said the preferred option was identified taking into account traffic modelling, costs and the impact on people who live in and travel through Frankton.

The preferred option will be factored into NZTA’s business case for improved transport and roading in the area. That is likely to include widening the highway between the bridge and the BP roundabout to increase capacity and reduce delays for general traffic and public transport, and making improvements at the BP roundabout to improve traffic flows.

ENDS

© Scoop Media