QLDC gears up for the summer visitor influx

QLDC is gearing up for the anticipated influx of around 100,000 visitors over the holiday period and has increased its levels of service across the district accordingly.

Extended waste bin clearances have been arranged to deal with the increase in rubbish produced over the summer rush to keep up with peak rubbish demands in Queenstown, Wanaka, Arrowtown, Glenorchy and Kingston.

QLDC is working with their suppliers and have asked for extra custodians to be put on patrol to ensure the town centres remain clean and suitable for residents and visitors alike.

Several reserves have been opened in Queenstown and Wanaka for overflow parking to help ease the congestion in the town centres. In Queenstown Warren Park by the high school will be open for daytime parking for approximately 150 vehicles and another 40 parks with a four hour limit will be made available at the Queenstown Primary School. In Wanaka there will be temporary parking provided at the Wanaka Showground for around 200 vehicles. All of the temporary parking will be free of charge.

Traffic management personnel are on standby to help manage the pedestrian crossings on Shotover Street if the need arises, as well as any other pinch points on the QLDC roading network. Extra parking management staff will also be on hand to ensure a good turnover of or parking capacity during the peak period. After discussions with QLDC the New Zealand Transport Agency will also provide manual traffic control at the BP roundabout during peak traffic times.

The town centre public toilets in Queenstown, Arrowtown and Wanaka will be kept clean by dedicated contractors, while additional port-a-loos will be in place on the Glenorchy foreshore.

The annual New Year’s liquor ban in Queenstown, Frankton, Arrowtown, Wanaka and Hawea will be enforced from the 27th of December through to the 6th of January. Any breach of the liquor ban may result in a fine of $250 – more information is available here

A number of community guides will be available in Queenstown over Christmas/New Year period to help with the liquor ban, keep the place tidy and provide an official presence in the CBD.

QLDC Chief Executive Mike Theelen is confident these extended measures will help ensure our district continues to look the part over the busy summer break. “It’s always busy this time of year and with the extra people comes a number of challenges. We’ve got a large number of people geared up and ready to respond to issues that may arise over the next few weeks.”

“We’re anticipating over 100,000 visitors over the holiday break and this will inevitably stretch our resources. We’re geared up to respond but we’re also asking that people be responsible, patient and make sure they plan ahead when travelling, particularly around known pinch points such as petrol stations and town centres”

“We’ll be monitoring the needs of the community and are ready to adjust our levels of service as required, at the end of the day we, like everyone else, want to ensure our region’s residents and holidaymakers have a fantastic break in our backyard.”

ENDS

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