Carterton Council To Call In A Promise Over Road Costs

Friday, 28 February 2025, 6:20 pm
Article: Emily Ireland - Local Democracy Reporter

Carterton District Council will look to call in a 7-year-old promise from NZTA when it comes to paying for road markings.

At Wednesday’s council meeting, elected members were asked to approve a budget of $65,000 to fix road markings at the intersection of Gallon Rd and SH2.

Gallon Rd was an important part of Carterton’s roading network, providing access to private properties, wastewater treatment irrigation areas, the council’s solar system, constructed wetlands, and the regional council’s newly established pole nursery.

However, the existing road marking layout on SH2 does not allow for a safe southbound right turn onto Gallon Rd.

The unplanned expenditure was proposed to be funded from the roading contribution reserve and would have no impact on rates.

Councillor Lou Newman asked why the council was footing the bill when the markings were on SH2.

Councillor Steve Cretney said there was a 2018 agreement between Carterton District Council and NZTA where NZTA agreed to pay for the “entranceway to be upgraded to Gallon Rd”.

However, this agreement was not currently in NZTA’s current planning or budget.

Councillor Steve Laurence suggested the council do the work and seek to recover the costs from NZTA as per the 2018 agreement.

Infrastructure manager Johannes Ferreira said it was a low volume of traffic that used the road but that it was part of council’s daily activities.

Not improving the road markings would be a heightened safety risk for staff.

Councillor Grace Ayling asked what portion of the total cost was traffic management but this could not be answered at the meeting.

She said by putting funding for Gallon Rd markings ahead of any other funding “we are prioritising our council interest above the wider district”.

For this reason, she voted against the proposal.

All other councillors voted in favour.

– LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air.

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