Winter work is ramping up to construct the first part of a shared walking and cycling path linking Glen Innes to Tamaki Drive.
The existing walkway between Felton Mathew Avenue and the rail underpass leading to the Glen Innes rail station will be closed from today until mid-June. People who usually use this walkway to get to the rail station can follow the detour in place on Merton Road or Apirana Avenue.
The NZ Transport Agency’s Auckland Highway Manager Brett Gliddon, says people should allow extra time to get to the station.
“We’re still encouraging people to walk to the station but they might also like to add some more time because the detour is longer than what they might be used to. We want to make sure we get all the work completed in one go so we can open up the popular walkway again in June,” he says.
The work involves installing drains, paving and preparing the walkway to be connected to the new shared path. A raised concrete table will be built to keep speeds low and improve safety for pedestrians and cyclists.
Large signs have been erected at and project staff will be on hand to advise people of the alternative route during peak times.
When the improvements to the existing walkway are finished, the project team will start pouring the concrete for the base of the new shared path at Merton Road. Timber piles will also be installed for a bridge near the shared path and walkway junction.
The first section of the $40M project is scheduled to be completed between Glen Innes and St Johns Road by the end of this year and the remaining three sections by 2018. The Glen Innes to Tamaki Drive Shared Path has received $10m of funding through the Government’s Urban Cycleways Programme and is being jointly delivered by the NZ Transport Agency and Auckland Transport (AT).
Improving this connection from Felton Mathew Ave will make is easier to walk or cycle to the station and the path says Kathryn King AT’s Cycling and Walking Manager.
“It’s one of the many connections to the path that will really change the way many people travel around this part of Auckland.”
The seven kilometre off-road shared path starts at Merton Road and follows the rail line through to Tamaki Drive connecting local communities with public transport.
The consent applications for Sections Two and Three, between St Johns Road and Orakei Station, have been notified with Auckland Council.
AT, Auckland Council and the New Zealand Transport Agency are working together on a three year $200 million programme of investment in cycling to make it safer and more convenient to travel around Auckland by bike.
To find out more about this project visit: www.nzta.govt.nz/projects/glen-innes-to-tamaki-drive-shared-path/(external link) or www.AT.govt.nz/easternpath(external link).
For the Urban Cycleways Programme visit: www.nzta.govt.nz/walking-cycling-and-public-transport/(external link).
