We’re proposing two options for addressing and improving the safety of this intersection and we’d like to hear your views

Project status: Analysis & reporting
Open for feedback: 6th May 2019 - 10th June 2019
06 May 2019

Harewood Road/Gardiners Road/Breens Road intersection 

Safety at the intersection of Harewood, Gardiners and Breens roads has concerned local residents for several years. 

Harewood/Gardiners/Breens intersection

While seeking feedback on our Long Term Plan (2018-28), we received a number of requests for traffic signals at the intersection.

The Harewood Road Corridor Report was developed to look at the effect on Harewood Road of planned works in the first 10 years of the Long Term Plan.

Elected members requested staff develop improvement options for the intersection. We are now seeking your feedback on the two options selected by the elected members.

  • Option 1 - Left In/Left Out with signalised pedestrian crossing
  • Option 2 - Traffic Signals

As requested by Councillors, we have provided details on each of the options, the advantages and disadvantages of each, and impacts on the wider transport network.

In the Long Term Plan, a Major Cycle Route – Wheels to Wings – is planned to connect Papanui and the Airport. Various routes for the cycleway have been considered, with Harewood Road being identified as preferred for directness and connectivity. This project is still subject to future consultation with the community.

Funding

Council has allocated $400,000 funding to undertake safety improvements at this intersection. Any option that exceeds this budget would need to be included for consideration as part of the next Long Term Plan and there is no guarantee that this project would be prioritised. It is likely that another existing project would need to be deferred or a rates increase would be needed to provide the additional budget required.

How we assess accident risk 

This intersection was assessed using the NZTA Crash Analysis System (CAS) and KiwiRap, an analysis tool used to rank intersection safety across New Zealand. By using nationally accepted tools, this ensures consistency of assessments.

Not all accidents are reported to Police, especially if no one is injured. The analysis tools used take into account this under reporting of accidents.

Harewood Road has three significant intersections and two of these are ranked in the top 100 dangerous intersections for Christchurch. The Harewood Road/Greers Road intersection is ranked at 21 and the Harewood/Gardiners/Breens intersection at 61. Harewood/Greers has a higher ranking as it has had a serious injury accident in the last five years and a higher number of non-injury and minor injury accidents.

The Harewood/Gardiners/Breens intersection has had 17 reported accidents between 2008 and 2017. All have been non-injury or minor injury accidents. The accident analysis shows a pattern of similar types of crashes, and the solutions developed for this intersection aim to address these accident types.

Intersection site constraints and issues 

The layout of the Harewood/Gardiners/Breens intersection has existing constraints that are affecting safety.

  • Harewood Road has a central median with two lanes on either side.
  • There is a right-turn lane which can make it difficult to turn right or to travel through the intersection using the ‘Give Way’ controls on Gardiners Road and Breens Road.
  • There are known speed issues on Harewood Road, and it can be difficult for drivers turning left to see around other waiting vehicles.
  • The intersection is not easy to navigate by car, cycle or on foot.
  • The speed issue is partly caused as Harewood Road is designed for a 60km/h speed limit. The posted speed limit has been lowered to 50km/h, but the wide dual lanes create an environment that encourages higher speeds.
  • There are no pedestrian crossings at the intersection, with pedestrians needing to walk about 60 metres along Harewood Road to cross safely. Most pedestrians try to cross at the intersection using the narrow median for the right-turn bays.
  • Harewood Road has U-turn slots along its length, two of these are located about 160 metres either side of the intersection.
  • Vehicles crossing the intersection from Gardiners Road to Breens Road, or vice versa, effectively need to cross six lanes (four vehicle lanes and the two right-turning lanes) which creates several potential collision points.
  • Information about crashes at the intersection, obtained from Police reports, suggests that drivers become impatient while waiting for a suitable gap in the traffic and risk using a shorter gap than is required. Vehicles turning left are turning while unable to see around other queued vehicles travelling through the intersection. This results in some drivers taking a risk and not seeing vehicles approaching on Harewood Road.
  • Some vehicles have been observed turning left, then using the U-turn slots further along Harewood Road as a quicker and safer way of getting through the intersection.
  • With the planned changes to the wider road network over the next 10 years, traffic volumes are expected to drop, as Sawyers Arms Road will become a more attractive route to connect to the State Highway (Johns Road).

Proposed options 

Two options for improving the intersection have been developed: 

Intersection two

Option 1: Left in/left out with signalised pedestrian crossing
 
A left in/left out for vehicles, with buses still having the right turn into Gardiners Road, and a pedestrian crossing signal on Harewood Road.

Option 2: Traffic signals

Traffic signals with a pedestrian crossing on each leg of the crossing. 

 


Option 1 (left in/left out with signalised pedestrian crossing) is preferred as it is most likely to reduce accidents, with the least disruption to the wider network and construction can begin immediately with available funding.

Option 1

Left in/left out with signalised pedestrian crossing - preferred option 

To resolve the accidents that are seen occurring at the intersection, closing the median on Harewood Road is preferred. This will make both Gardiners Road and Breens Road a left turn in and left turn out. 

Vehicles travelling from Gardiners Road to Breens Road will need to use the U-turn slots already provided on Harewood Road.

Intersection

Pedestrian signals would be installed at the intersection to allow people to safely cross Harewood Road. Vehicles on Harewood Road would be stopped only when pedestrians push the button to cross the road, minimising traffic delays.

A bus-only right-turn slot would remain on Harewood Road to allow buses to turn into Gardiners Road. The bus would activate the pedestrian signal through sensors under the road, to stop oncoming vehicles while the bus turns. The turning slot signals will not activate for other vehicles.

 

 U-turn slots are common on four lane arterial roads to allow traffic to turn into side roads or vehicle entrances.
 Examples can be seen on Memorial Avenue and Fendalton Road.

Funding

This option has an estimated cost of $400,000 to implement and will likely be eligible for funding subsidy from the Government.

Advantages

  1. Traffic conflicts are eliminated, making the intersection safer for turning vehicles.
  2. The pedestrian crossing signals will provide a safe point for people to cross Harewood Road at the intersection. Traffic is stopped only while the crossing is in use. For students walking to Breens Intermediate School, the signals will be a significant safety improvement and may encourage more students to walk to and from school.
  3. This option has an estimated cost of $400,000 to implement and will likely be eligible for a funding subsidy from the Government.
  4. The left in/left out on Gardiners Road and Breens Road means a single lane approach to Harewood Road will be sufficient. This eliminates the problem of vehicles blocking the view for left-turning traffic, which has been implicated in some collisions at the intersection. This is within the current available funding and would also allow implementation within the next 12 months.
  5. Access from Gardiners Road to Breens Road, or vice versa, is still possible by using the U-turn slots on Harewood Road. This is a manoeuvre already used by drivers looking for a safe place to cross.
  6. The bus route from Harewood Road into Gardiners Road will remain.
  7. There will be minimal disruption to traffic flow on Harewood Road.
  8. Planting of trees and grass along the new median is included in the intersection redesign.
  9. This option is compatible with future planned work along Harewood Road, including new cycleway infrastructure if Harewood Road is the chosen route.

Disadvantages

  1. Some traffic currently crossing at this intersection will use other nearby streets rather than the U-turn slots on Harewood Road. This has been modelled and the effect would be minor.
  2. There will be a change to the community connectivity as a result of the median closure. Connectivity for pedestrians is improved, but connectivity for vehicles is reduced.
  3. Some local trips which would have used this intersection may require the use of local streets.

Option 1: Left In/Left Out with signalised pedestrian cross

Option 1: Click to enlarge

Option 2

Traffic Signals 

Traffic lights

A number of submissions to the Council’s Long Term Plan 2018-28 requested traffic signals at the intersection. 

Traffic signals can be designed to fit within the existing road reserve. A separate right-turn lane, straight ahead lane, and shared straight ahead and left-turn lane would be created on Harewood Road. Separate right-turn lanes with a combined straight and left-turn lane would be installed on Gardiners Road and Breens Road.

If following future consultation, the Wheels to Wings Major Cycle Route is approved to travel down Harewood Road, a review of this configuration would need to be carried out. The shared left and straight ahead lane will likely need to be changed to a left-turn only lane, leaving only a single straight through lane which would increase traffic delays on Harewood Road.

All pedestrian crossing movements will operate at the same time as the turning movements from Gardiners Road and Breens Road or the left turns off Harewood Road, meaning pedestrians are not fully protected and will still need to watch for turning cars. Greers Road/Harewood Road, for example, has a high crash rate involving pedestrians using intersection signals. 

With Harewood Road being a two-lane road, the right turns will require all other traffic to be delayed, further increasing congestion on Harewood Road.

The predicted cost of installing traffic signals is $1.2 million and would unlikely be eligible for Government subsidies.

Funding

There is no funding in the 2018-2028 Long Term Plan for Option 2 at $1.2million, so money would need the agreement of full Council to be put in the budget at the loss of another planned project elsewhere in the city or a rates increase.

Advantages

  1. Reduce delays on Breens Road and Gardiners Road for vehicles crossing Harewood Road.
  2. The bus route from Harewood Road into Gardiners Road will remain.
  3. Community connectivity remains.
  4. The traffic signals provide improved pedestrian crossing facilities.

Disadvantages

  1. Traffic signals do not prevent all accidents. Nose-to-tail collisions and right-turn versus straight ahead collisions are likely to still occur.
  2. Traffic signals will cause delays on Harewood Road. Modelling indicates that traffic queues may extend to Crofton Road in the morning peak, making Harewood Road a less desirable route. To reduce the delays, land purchases would be required from properties at the intersection to add separate lanes for straight ahead and turning traffic.
  3. Modelling indicates that congestion on Harewood Road would likely divert about 10 percent of the traffic to nearby streets to avoid the signals. This would affect several roads off Harewood Road.
  4. Modelling predicts traffic volume on Breens Road would increase by 30 percent in the evening peak.
  5. Increased traffic on Breens Road could have a knock-on effect on the Wairakei Road/Breens Road intersection, with more turning traffic increasing the risk of accidents at this intersection. Visibility at the Wairakei Road/Breens Road intersection is poor due to the road alignment from both directions. If the accident rate was to increase future safety improvements would be required.
  6. The route would become an attractive shortcut from the city’s north, along Johns Road via Gardiners Road to Wairakei Road and beyond. Local residents would then likely face increased through traffic.
  7. Pedestrians crossing at the traffic signals are at greater risk because of filter turns* being needed to avoid excessive delays for other vehicle phases.
    *Filter turns are where turning vehicles are not stopped by a red arrow if the pedestrian crossing signal is activated.
  8. On-street parking would have to be removed on the Harewood Road, Gardiners Road and Breens Road approaches to the intersection, affecting approximately 14 properties.
  9. Sufficient funding is not availiable in the current 2018-28 Long Term Plan. Installation of this option will be delayed until funding is available.

 

 If this option was funded, safety improvements at other higher-risk intersections could be delayed by a number of  years. Council currently has funding for safety improvements only at the top 20 intersections over the next 10 years. This would include delays to the Harewood Road/Greers Road intersection improvements. 

Option 2: Traffic signals

Option 2: Click to enlarge

Information sessions

Come talk to us about the proposal

Tuesday 21 May 2019 5.30pm – 7pm
(20min presentation followed by an opportunity to speak to the project team) 
Breens Intermediate School Hall, 85 Breens Road, Bishopdale

Thursday 23 May 2019 10.30am – 12pm
(20min presentation followed by an opportunity to speak to the project team) 
Bishopdale Community Centre, 13 Bishopdale Court, Bishopdale Shopping Centre 

Have your say