A baseline safety survey is being undertaken, with more than 200 responses. To date, 40% of respondents feel that Aranui Rd is either unsafe or very unsafe for school children and teens to walk, scoot skate and cycle.

58% of respondents feel that Aranui Rd is either unsafe or very unsafe for the elderly or those with limited mobility.

Feedback so far has highlighted the following concerns:

Cars driving too fast along Aranui Rd.

No safe places to cross the road.

Footpaths too narrow.

In November 2022 Tasman District Council extended an invitation for interested residents to join a working group. This group (10-20 people) has met several times since then to discuss and work to generate a concept to improve Aranui Rd for active modes of travel, walking and cycling.

A baseline survey has been open since late 2022 for people to provide feedback. Input has also been sought from Mapua School students. Presentations have also been made to MDCA and MDBA events. Some informal gatherings at local coffee shops have also happened.

This was an early preference by the Working Group. But unfortunately, to work within the existing road corridor there is insufficient width to accommodate a compliant cycle lane each way, while still maintaining vehicle lanes in each direction. The shared path essentially provides more space for walking and cycling than is currently available. It is not perfect but is in an improvement.

Community feedback will be gathered once the pilot is implemented. Adjustments can be made to the design in response to this. That is in essence what Streets for People is all about.

Currently we are working through contractor pricing and materials availability. We are also undertaking a safety audit of the design which may recommend some changes. We expect construction to start within the next few months. We are planning to have some budget left over to modify the design or add further elements, in response to feedback.

To start out with, we want to avoid being too prescriptive with how people use the space. Simply providing more width for walking and cycling could in and of itself alleviate several pain points. It is also the simplest solution to implement, so is a good starting point. However, if feedback shows that it is not working, we will look to amend and tweak the design in the working group.

Original concepts showed street parking being removed the entire length of Aranui Rd. However, businesses were concerned by this. As such, between Java Hut and the medical centre there will only be minimal parking loss. In this zone, the parking removal is required to improve sight lines coming out of driveways, and for the pedestrian crossings. Outside this zone, street parking will be removed for the entire length of Aranui Rd until the last bend before the wharf. Note that this loss of parking along Aranui is in line with the Walking & Cycling strategy for Mapua (and wider Tasman) released last year.

Waka Kotahi - NZ Transport Agency - stipulates that the funding must be used for walking and cycling improvements along Aranui Rd, in line with TDC’s walking and cycling strategy. The type of construction must also use ‘interim materials’ that can be relatively easily removed i the layout needs to be adjusted or removed entirely. It’s a different approach to project design. Rather than spend years at the drawing board, it’s about implementing solutions and adapting to feedback.