Great news! - March 2021

Following continuous pressure and advocacy, $63 million has been allocated for the Glenvar Rd/East Coast Rd realignment project in the Auckland Transport Alignment Project (ATAP) 2021-2031.

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ATAP is an agreement between the Government and Auckland Council on transport priorities.

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An important part of the work is to agree a 10-year investment package that guides the Auckland Regional Land Transport Plan and the National Land Transport Programme.

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The inclusion of the Glenvar project is an important and essential step to getting this long-overdue project completed.

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At this stage, we still expect the project to start in the 2022/2023 financial year.

AT threatened to postpone this project - Dec 2020

Due to budget constraints, Auckland Transport (AT) threatened to postpone this project indefinitely. So I presented to the board just before Christmas asking for this much-needed upgrade to be prioritised.

 

AT have agreed to allow the design phase of the project to continue.

 

In a statement, AT said “If funding is available, it’s hoped the Glenvar Road-East Coast Road project would be delivered in three sections starting in 2022/23 with a total budget of $52.2 million.”

 

I will keep pressure on AT to make sure this project happens.

Here's a breakdown of the proposed changes provided by Auckland Transport:

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IN DETAIL

Footpath upgrades

At present, there are sections of Glenvar Road with no footpath. We propose a shared path along the eastern/ southern side of Glenvar Road - this will require widening the existing footpath. It will be similar to the newly constructed Glenvar Ridge Road shared path and will make it safer and easier for people to walk and cycle.

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Intersection upgrades

We propose upgrading the following intersections with traffic lights:

• Glenvar Road - East Coast Road - Lonely Track Road

• Glamorgan Drive - East Coast Road

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This would allow for safer movements for everyone – whether driving, walking or on a bike.

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The intersections would also be raised, meaning the entire intersection will be raised from the level of the road with ramps at each entry point. Intersections generally have a heightened risk of crashes occurring. This safety measure aims to slow vehicles to a safe speed to minimise harm should a crash occur.

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Safety measures

In addition to the intersection upgrades, we propose:

• A new raised pedestrian crossing to connect pedestrians and people on bikes on Glenvar Road to the newly constructed Glenvar Ridge Road shared path.

• New pedestrian crossings and/or coloured surface treatments across the side roads connecting to Glenvar Road to provide better pedestrian connectivity and safety.

• Planted kerb buildouts along Glenvar Road and ‘slow’ road markings which will help to reduce vehicle speeds to make the area safer - particularly for children getting to and from school.

• A raised median on East Coast Road (between Glenvar Road and Glamorgan Drive). This would improve safety by reducing the potential for vehicles to crash while turning. The downside is it will limit access to some properties, albeit while providing a safer road overall. We acknowledge the concerns some residents have previously raised, we are eager to get everyone’s feedback on this feature of the proposal.

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Cycle facility upgrades or amendments

The existing cycle lanes on East Coast Road do not provide people on bikes with any separation or protection from vehicles. There were two serious injury crashes involving people on bikes in 2018 on this section of East Coast Road.

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We propose to add a raised island or berm between the existing cycle lane on East Coast Road to improve the safety and attractiveness of these lanes (similar to the adjacent example). This will encourage less confident riders to use the cycle facilities.

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On Glenvar Road, we propose a shared path for people walking and on bikes to share – as described above.

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Transit lanes

With increasing demand on Auckland roads, transit lanes are key to using road space more efficiently, providing more capacity and getting more people to where they want to go faster. A transit lane can only be used by buses, motorcycles, mopeds, bicycles, and motor vehicles carrying a specified minimum number of persons. Transit lanes are generally either T2 or T3 lanes, these being for vehicles with 2 or more people (T2) or 3 or more people (T3), where ‘T’ stands for transit. These lanes operate during specific times of the day or potentially 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

 

PROJECT TIMELINE

November-December 2019: AT seeks public feedback on potential improvements

February-March 2020: AT will publish the public feedback report

February-March 2020: AT reviews proposal based on public feedback and submits funding application to NZTA

Mid 2020: AT works on detailed design based on NZTA outcome/feedback

Late 2021: AT finalises design

2022-2023: Construction to begin