Plans to improve the safety of a dangerous intersection at the entrance to Wakatu Estate in Stoke are being finalised this week and will feature a stop sign, turning lanes and traffic islands to guide traffic flow.
Last year, the Nelson City Council implemented a temporary speed reduction outside Wakatu Estate, four months after a series of nasty accidents at the intersection of Main Rd Stoke and Elm St. Council promised that “operational changes and on the ground road markings will be undertaken to make the intersection safer” and this week revealed it was meeting with contractors to discuss the planned changes.
A council spokesperson says the new layout will include a stop sign at the exit from Elm St and a left-turning lane from Main Rd Stoke into Elm St. There will also be off-on ramps for cyclists to enable them to use the off-road path outside the entrance to Wakatu Estate and new traffic islands to guide traffic flow.
Tasman district police road policing services team leader, Senior Sergeant Grant Andrews, who drives past the intersection on his way to work, is relieved the road layout is going to be changed. Grant says the temporary speed reduction is helping to make the intersection safer but the fundamental problem is the layout of the road that is only “designed for lower traffic volumes”.
“There are more cars using the road now, especially with Wakatu Estate getting bigger and all the development at Saxton Field. So many people drive down that road and the intersection is not designed to accommodate the extra traffic.
“We had another crash there this week. Reducing the speed limit is helping but all it really means is that the impacts are at a slower speed.”
Workers in Wakatu Estate are also relieved council plans to change the intersection’s layout although Gary Walton says it should have happened sooner.
“Somebody’s going to get killed there unless they fix it,” Gary, who works at Freeman Roofing, says. “The lower speed limit has done nothing to improve it, the hazard is still there.”
Gary says the problem is that the road layout is poorly designed and has no clear markings which is confusing for drivers.
“Nothing is marked, nothing is clear, it lacks direction. It’s not designed for so many cars and it’s only going to get busier.
“The trucks are also a big problem because they obscure the vision of car drivers. I’ve also seen truck drivers get so frustrated with waiting to get out on to Main Rd Stoke they just pull-out and the cars have to stop – it’s really dangerous.”
Dave Johnson says the only benefit of lowering the speed limit has been to reduce the speed of any collisions. Dave, who works at O2B Healthy, says the only way to improve the safety of the intersection is to change the road layout.
“I think the speed limit has made it worse because cars are going slower and it’s actually harder to get out now. There’s a huge amount of traffic on that road now so they need a roundabout.”
Nelson City Council couldn’t put a timeline on the changes until it had discussed the project with contractors this week.
