Part of the Henderson Streets for People trial will be removed early as a response to potential safety and compliance concerns.
The original road layout will be reinstated along Railside Avenue near Great North Road, and the left turn lane from Great North Road onto Henderson Valley Road will be reopened.
“This trial was intended to test several different ways to make Henderson’s streets safer for people walking and cycling, to add colour and vibrancy and to make the town centre less dominated by multi-lane traffic movements,” says Eke Panuku Development Auckland Priority Location Director, John Carter.
“However, once implemented, we learnt that people felt a portion of it was potentially unsafe and not delivering on its intended objectives.”
The trial includes a bus lane and shared path along Railside Avenue, a slip lane removal and shared path along Great North Road, a road artwork on the intersection of Great North Road, Railside Avenue and Ratanui, a shared path on Ratanui Road, a road artwork at the intersection at Trading Place, Waitākere Lane and Great North Road, and improved access to the existing pedestrian bridge over the Oratia Stream.
The trial will be adapted to reinstate the original road layout along Railside Avenue, and the left turn lane from Great North Road onto Henderson Valley Road.
Over the last month, approximately 258 feedback forms were received online via Auckland Council’s Have Your Say website. In addition, over 2500 comments were received via Eke Panuku’s social media channels. A portion of this feedback related to how safe people felt walking, cycling and driving through the changed layout. Feedback on the project remains open until the end of the trial.
“We saw this project as an opportunity to support the regeneration of Henderson and set the stage for future homes in the town centre. However, the cost of retaining these parts of the trial outweigh their benefits and therefore we have made the call to remove them early,” says John.
“I would like to thank the Henderson community for the high level of engagement and feedback we have received. It has been hugely valuable to us and we look forward to working with the community to create a Henderson that meets the needs of existing and future residents and businesses.”
The trial elements on Railside Avenue will begin to be removed from 5 July. This will take approximately two weeks, weather dependent. The remainder of the trial will remain in place until a further decision is made in late July.
Henderson Streets for People, a Waka Kotahi-funded project, was instated in the Henderson town centre from mid-May. Led by Eke Panuku Development Auckland,
To give your feedback on the Henderson Streets for People trial, visit akhaveyoursay.aucklandcouncil.govt.nz
