Harewood Road, Gardiners Road, Breens Road intersection

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.

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: Click to enlarge

Traffic Signals 

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: Click to enlarge