Woodend township safety issues: Monday, 29 October, drop in session

The NZ Transport Agency is investigating how State Highway 1 through Woodend, in North Canterbury, could be made safer and community connections improved.

Transport Agency Director Regional Relationships Jim Harland says the aim of the consultation is to make short-to-medium term safety improvements to the existing section of SH1, through Woodend township.

“We currently have safety investigations underway on either side of Woodend and now we’re wanting to focus on the section of SH1 through Woodend township,” Mr Harland says. “This is work we are looking at in advance of the longer-term planned bypass, which is still at least ten years off.”

In 2016, the Woodend community assisted the Transport Agency explaining the difficulties people were experiencing getting on and off the main highway, as well as some of the behaviours and situations that caused them safety concerns. The current consultation is designed to tease out this feedback and see if it is still relevant.

“Some people viewed this section of road as functioning well,” says Mr Harland. “Now we want to check back on those findings, so we can come up with some cost-effective options for improvements, with the aim of making SH1 in Woodend safer and more accessible.”

The Transport Agency is holding a public drop in session at the Woodend Community Centre on Monday, 29 October, in the afternoon and early evening, 2 pm to 7 pm, to answer questions, get feedback and suggestions.

Community feedback on local experiences of road use helps the Transport Agency in understanding the problems at a local level. Technical advice alongside community feedback helps planners and engineers work out and design the best solutions. The Transport Agency is also working closely with Waimakariri District Council* to understand what impacts any work on the state highway may have on local roads and road users as they do this safety work along the highway corridor.

“There are a number of ways safety and access can be improved, however we need to know exactly where the problems lie, to come up with the right combination of improvements. That’s why it is important people tell us their ideas on how their trip could be improved. And we need to know if we have missed anything, or if anything has changed in recent years.

“It’s also very important that people understand the Woodend Safety Improvements project is happening over the short-to-medium term – over the next ten years – and is not confused with the bypass. The bypass is planned for the longer term,” says Mr Harland.

*Background on the Waimakariri District Council’s speed limit reviews for Rangiora Woodend Road and surrounding roads here: https://www.waimakariri.govt.nz/have-a-say/lets-talk/consultations/rangiora-woodend-road-speed-limits(external link) (Waimakariri District Council staff will also be at the Drop In session on Monday, 29 October 2018).