Plans for transport improvements through Rolleston will result in better connections for people and businesses in the area. Travel times through and around Rolleston will be more reliable,, making it easier for people to get around and do business.
This Road of Regional Significance project will provide a direct flyover connecting Rolleston township with business/industrial areas, improved safety at high-risk highway intersections and a more resilient and sustainable transport network. Travel through and around Rolleston will be safer for people and travel times will be more consistent, reliable and predictable.
Following two years of investigations and two rounds of public consultation we’re designing a straight flyover connection. It’s a shorter and more intuitive travel route and emergency services, cyclists and the businesses on Jones Road tell us a direct connection is their preference. The bridge structure is not as large and complex to build – 114m straight versus 166m long skewed – which also makes for more efficient travel and better connections for business by making it easier to cross or turnoff the highway.
The new roundabout at the Dunns Crossing and Walkers Road intersection with State Highway 1 will create new ways to enter and exit Rolleston and the industrial area from the south. This will provide efficiencies for freight as they will have a less congested connection into the industrial area. It also provides an alternate way to get to and from the residential areas of Rolleston.
The main improvements to the highway are:
Selwyn District continues to grow rapidly. Based on current travel choices, SH1 through Rolleston could increase from around 24,000 to 33,000 vehicles per day over the next 20 years or so. Even with improvements to public transport we expect traffic will continue to increase.
Traffic volume on the highway is almost at ‘tipping point’. This means even a small amount of extra traffic could trigger very long delays at the Weedon interchange as well as the Hoskyns Road and Rolleston Drive North traffic lights.
Increasing traffic makes it harder for people to get between Rolleston township and industrial areas, leading to long delays at the signals, rat-running, risk taking and increasing safety issues at uncontrolled intersections.
The high safety risk and inefficiencies caused by congestion at Hoskyns Road rail level crossing is unacceptable and needs to be addressed. Because the highway is close to the rail line there are short-stacking issues, meaning longer vehicles are unable to queue safely at the rail level crossing barrier. This causes queues, delays, and serious safety concerns resulting in KiwiRail slowing freight trains to an inefficient 40km/h. Future increases in rail activity will mean more traffic hold-ups at the Hoskyns Road level crossing.
More traffic is also making it difficult for people to safely turn right or cross the state highway at Walkers Road/Dunns Crossing. Recent conversations with the community about putting in an Intersection Speed Zone to slow traffic to 60km as they pass through that intersection resulted in several hundred people giving us feedback on how unsafe they felt turning in and out of Dunns Crossing and Walkers Road.
Rolleston Drive South, Brookside Road and Tennyson Street will become left- in and left-out to eliminate the more dangerous right turns out of and into these intersections with SH1.
CloseWe’re working with mana whenua, KiwiRail, Selwyn District Council and others who want Rolleston to be a great place to live. As part of planning, we’ve considered nearby areas and future projects. While some projects have different timing and delivery, they will all work together to strengthen Selwyn District’s transport network.
