More WCC idiocy

The Spinoff reports on Thorndon Quay:

But instead of making minor pedestrian improvements, the proposed design goes way overboard. Five raised pedestrian crossings with traffic lights, plus a sixth non-raised crossing with traffic lights. It’s a big-budget, gold standard approach, but it goes against the primary aim of the project. Raised crossings and excessive traffic lights will make bus and bike access worse, not better. 

Metlink group manager Samantha Gain is wary of criticising the project, but gave this carefully worded statement: “Metlink prefers the installation of traffic control devices, like speed bumps and raised crossings, to be minimised on high frequency bus routes. They can accentuate wear and tear on our buses and reduce ride quality for our passengers.”

So they are doing a gold plated option that will make it worse for cyclists, buses and cars.

As a general principle, pedestrians should always come first when designing streets. But in this case, Thorndon Quay serves primarily as an arterial route, not as a pedestrian destination. It’s an industrial area, backing onto a railway yard, shadowed by a motorway overpass. It’s never going to be a cutesy neighbourhood shopping centre. 

As Joel said, it is a major arterial route. This is an idiotic plan.