Council seeks views on Cranford Street changes

Community feedback is being sought on options for dealing with the higher volumes of traffic expected to use Cranford Street when the Christchurch Northern Corridor (CNC) opens.

The CNC extends the Northern Motorway through to QEII Drive and Cranford Street and will make travel times in and out of Christchurch shorter. It is due to be completed in 2020.

See how the Christchurch Northern Corridor will look in this animated flyover.

“The CNC will result in less traffic on some roads, like Main North Road, but it will lead to more traffic on Cranford Street, south of Innes Road,’’ says Christchurch City Council Head of Transport Richard Osborne.

“We need to make some changes to Cranford Street and the surrounding streets to improve the travel times for people travelling through and to deter people from taking short cuts through side streets.

“Before Council considers any possible changes, it is important we hear the views of the local community and get their feedback. Once we have that feedback, we can start to pull together a comprehensive traffic management plan for the area,’’ Mr Osborne says.

One option the Council is considering for improving traffic flows on Cranford Street is introducing clearways between Innes Road and Berwick Street. The clearways would use the parking spaces on the edge of the road to allow more people to travel during peak hours.

A clearway heading south, towards the city, would operate in the morning peak, while a clearway heading north, out of town, would operate in the evening peak. No parking would be permitted in the clearways when they were in operation.

“We’re also looking at making some intersection improvements so we can make it easier for motorists to get onto the central city one-way system,’’ says Mr Osborne.

The intersection improvements being considered range from changes to traffic light phasing to replacing the roundabout at the intersection of Warrington Street and Forfar Street with traffic lights.

The Council is also looking at three-laning sections of Madras Street and Barbadoes Street between Warrington Street and Bealey Avenue.

On the side streets off Cranford Street, the Council is looking at a number of options for discouraging ‘rat running’ – the term used when drivers cut through residential areas to get to their destination in order to avoid traffic on the main road.

Those options include introducing raised intersections, narrowing sections of the road, adding chicanes or mid-block raised platforms, and putting in place turning restrictions.

The community have until Monday 4 June to give their feedback on the proposed changes.

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