Looking out over Richmond houses towards the sea
Woman riding bike in cycle lane

Project introduction

Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency and the Tasman District Council are working together to look at ways to improve transport issues in rapidly growing Richmond.

  • Project type

    Study and investigation
  • Project status

    Investigation

Project updates

Background

Richmond is Tasman district’s largest population centre. It is also one of the fastest growing with people attracted to the area by the surrounding natural beauty and vibrancy of the town. In recent years, it has seen swift growth in population, and an increase in the amount of traffic and businesses using local roads. We’re also seeing more commercial vehicles passing through to Nelson and freight going to the Port.

Waka Kotahi and the Tasman District Council are working together on a business case to address Richmond transport needs over the next 30 years.

The business case is called the Richmond Transport Programme Business Case (PBC). It focuses on making Richmond a safer and more reliable place to travel around by offering everyone improved transport choices, whether you are driving, walking, cycling or taking the bus.

On Tuesday 24 May 2022 the Waka Kotahi Board endorsed the Richmond Transport Programme Business Case (PBC). Tasman District Council also approved the PBC.

Waka Kotahi and Council are working together to initiate State Highway projects. Council’s programme of works also included the cycling network and new public transport services, which are already underway.

The PBC delivers short-, medium-and long-term transport options out to the year 2050.

Read the full Programme Business Case document [PDF, 67 MB]

View the engagement summary report [PDF, 448 KB]

Hope Bypass designation lapse-date extension

  • The Hope Bypass designation lapse date has been extended until 1 November 2038. It had been due to expire in November 2023.
  • Extending the lapse date of the designation means Waka Kotahi retains the ability to plan for long-term transportation measures should more capacity in the network be required in future.
  • Waka Kotahi has contacted affected landowners to inform them of the lapse date extension and what it means for them.
  • The next step will be to get funding for a single staged business case, which would look at the transport system in the lower Queen Street/Gladstone Road area. This would also focus on the intersections that connect with the state highway, walking and cycling, and public transport.

The programme area

We’ve been looking at making improvements in the central Richmond area extending along the Waimea Plains from Wairoa River to the south, Waimea River to the north and Champion Road to the east.

There are also people further out that may be affected by what this programme achieves, and this larger area extends out to Motueka and Wakefield, and to Port Nelson.

What are we trying to achieve?

Richmond will continue to grow in population and popularity in the coming years. It is important we find ways to ensure the cycling and walking paths, roads, and public transport can deal with this growth, and ensure Richmond is a connected place that is easy to live in and travel around.

Increased traffic is making it harder to plan trips and get around Richmond and through to the wider Tasman and Nelson areas. People driving commercial vehicles are also finding it can take longer to get freight to and from Port Nelson.

Our investigations show that the community of Richmond often rely on cars for short trips, choosing not to walk, bike or take a bus. Roads around Richmond’s shops, homes and schools are also congested, making it unsafe and unpleasant to walk and bike around the places people value.

Aligning with national and regional transport strategies, we are seeking to:

  • make Richmond’s roads safer for everyone
  • improve connections between streets, and build safe and attractive walking and cycling paths, helping make Richmond an even nicer place to live
  • help ensure journey times are more reliable for both people and freight, particularly during busy times of the day
  • make it easier for people to walk, bike or take different transport options to get to work and school.

The Tasman District Council are developing a Walking and Cycling Strategy, a regional speed management (speed review) plan and updating the District Plan, which will align with this business case. The Council will carry out separate public engagement on these plans and strategies in the near future.

About the Programme Business Case

For this project, we are currently at the Programme Business Case (PBC) phase where we focus on the main problems, opportunities and constraints.

We are not looking at detailed solutions during this stage, but we are considering a broad mix of options that might be delivered by multiple parties over time to create a transport system that improves the lives of the Richmond community. 

Having an endorsed PBC is one of the steps towards getting funding for the projects and ensuring that the right transport solutions are identified. There will be opportunities to provide your feedback in future project stages as we develop the programme.

What we are considering

The emerging programme has been developed to offer everyone improved transport choices, whether you are driving, walking, cycling, scootering, or taking the bus.

These improvements are needed to deliver a more sustainable transport system that supports Richmond to be a vibrant place as the population and economy grow.

That means we are looking at what Richmond needs now as well as what Richmond will need over the next 30 years.

The information below covers options packaged into short, medium and long-term improvements to the year 2050. As improvements are rolled out, we will monitor and evaluate the programme to see if it still meets the needs of Richmond.

Feedback closed at 5pm on Friday 13 August 2021. However, you can still view what others had to say on our interactive map.

View online feedback(external link)

  • Short-term emerging programme

    We’ve been looking at what should be done first to provide safer roads and greater options for people to travel around and through Richmond by using other forms of transport, like walking, cycling and buses.

    We are also looking to make the best use of the current transport network by focusing on ways to improve existing roads and intersections.

    Before starting the Programme Business Case, Waka Kotahi and the Tasman District Council had already begun, and in some cases completed, some improvements for the Richmond area. These include reviewing speed limits on State Highway 6 from Hope to Wakefield; improving the roundabout at the intersection of Champion and Salisbury Road; and building the two-lane vehicle and walking/cycle bridge across Borck Creek along Berryfield Drive in Richmond West. You will see some of these improvements are marked on the short-term programme map.

    Additional improvements we are proposing in the short-term include:

    • Improving the existing Queen Street bus stop to allow buses to stop in both directions to support the planned new bus routes.
    • Charging for long-term parking within the town centre.
    • Extending the shared zone in Queen Street to the surrounding side roads.
    • Intersection improvements on State Highway 60/McShane Road/Pugh Road, and Berryfield Drive/Lower Queen Street.
    • New and improved crossing points for walking and cycling at the Hope Recreation Reserve, Gladstone Road and Church Street intersection, Salisbury Road and Talbot Street intersection, as well as better crossing points on Talbot Street, McGlashen Avenue and Salisbury Road.
    • Separated cycle lanes on Salisbury Road and on-road cycle lanes on Hill Street, Champion Road, Wensley Road, Queen Street and Hart Road. Creating these cycle lanes will mean some on-street parking may need to be removed.
    • Shared walking and cycling path along Potama Creek and a separated cycling lane on Church Street connecting to the town centre.
    • Changing the design of William Street to slow and calm traffic making it safer for everyone, including children and adults walking and cycling to school or town.
    • 30km/h speed limit zone on the town centre streets between Oxford Street, Talbot Street, Salisbury Road and Gladstone Road.
    • 30km/h speed limits on Salisbury Road, between Queen Street and Champion Road, so that there are safe speed limits outside of schools.
    • Prioritising freight and public transport on Gladstone Road. This will include looking at current phasing of the traffic signals, removal of on-street parking in some places, creating clearways or priority lanes.
    • Investigating how cars are moving through the three roundabouts which connect Salisbury Road with State Highway 6 (near Main Road Stoke) and looking at ways to encourage drivers to stay on State Highway 6 instead of using the local roads around Richmond.
    • Installation of a median barrier along State Highway 6 Richmond Deviation to help prevent deaths and serious injuries from head-on crashes.
    • Creating residential slow speed neighbourhoods or ‘Greenways’ throughout Richmond, which provide quieter and safer streets for the community. This could require parking restrictions in some streets to support residents and deter all day parking from non-residents. (This is connected to the Innovating Streets Programme.)
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  • Medium-term emerging programme

    Following the completion of the short-term programme, we would look to investigate further improvements to make Richmond’s roads and intersections safer and provide more walking and cycling paths. These medium-term improvements could include:

    • A new central Richmond bus terminal to help provide more frequent buses.
    • Park and Ride facilities for the new bus routes at McShane Road and near Hope.
    • As residential development continues in the south and west of Richmond, we propose making the following roads safer for everyone: White Road, intersection of White Road and State Highway 6, Paton Road, the intersection of Hill Street and Hart Road, Lower Queen Street, McShane Road, as well as the intersection of Lower Queen Street/McShane Road.
    • Walking and cycling improvements for the intersections of Queen Street/Salisbury Road; Oxford Street/Wensley Road; and Wensley /Paton/Hart/Bateup Road.
    • We will also look to improve the intersections at Queen Street/Hill Street and Champion Road/Hill Street.
    • On State Highway 60 we are proposing road safety improvements including median barrier and intersection improvements at SH60/Lansdowne Road and a new intersection at SH60/Richmond West Commercial/Mixed Zone (between McShane Road and Three Brothers Corner).
    • On State Highway 6 we are also proposing road safety improvements such as widened centre lines and intersection improvements at SH6/Aniseed Valley Road and SH6/Clover Road.
    • Enhancing walking and cycling paths connected to new subdivisions, including in Richmond South and extending the Borck Creek shared path to State Highway 6 to include a walking and cycling crossing at Gladstone Road.
    • In the medium term, we will make some of on-road cycle lanes (from the short-term programme) into separated cycle lanes. We are proposing separated cycle lanes for Upper Oxford Street, (upper and lower) Queen Street, Wensley Road, Hart Road, and Champion Road.
    • Re-designing Lower Oxford Street to help keep traffic moving and make it easier for people driving cars to turn on and off the road. 
    • New bus detection system on Salisbury Road for detecting buses at traffic lights so that buses have priority.   
    • Continuing from the short-term programme, we will create more residential slow speed neighbourhoods or ‘Greenways’ throughout Richmond, which provide quieter and safer streets for the community. This could require parking restrictions in some streets to support residents and deter all day parking from non-residents. (This would continue through to the long-term programme.)
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  • Long-term emerging programme

    The short and medium-term programmes will make it easier for people to walk, cycle, or take buses, instead of relying on cars. These improvements will make a significant difference for people living or making their way through Richmond.  

    Before finalising the long-term programme, we will review how the transport system is operating with the short- and medium-term improvements in place. If we find that further improvements are needed, a business case will be undertaken for the transport system. The transport system business case will investigate whether further improvements such as the Hope bypass are needed. At this stage, a bypass may or may not be required.

    The long-term programme could include:

    • A new car parking building in the centre of town.
    • A cycleway connection between Hill Street South and Haycock Road to support future housing development.
    • If the bypass is needed, Gladstone Road would become a local road (not a State Highway) and cycle lanes could be added to this road.
    • If the bypass is needed, our main intersections on Gladstone Road will be reviewed to make sure the intersection and surrounding roads are more attractive and easier for people to walk or cycle.
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Next steps

The Tasman District Council has recently adopted its Regional Land Transport Plan and the business case is expected to be completed at the end of 2021.

Tasman Regional Land Transport Plan(external link)

With your feedback taken onboard, we are finalising the programme and seeking approval from Waka Kotahi and the Council to support future funding applications to deliver the short-term programme.

The Council and Waka Kotahi will continue to work together on delivering this programme of work, including further investigations and engagement with the Nelson and Tasman residents.

Project partner

Tasman District Council logo