What was the consultation about?

Located in the central part of Northcote, the intersection of Pupuke Road, Raleigh Road, and Ocean View Road is a key connector of people in Northcote to places in the wider North Shore. Many commercial vehicles also travel through the intersection to transport goods and services as well as three bus routes that connect to destinations in Hillcrest, Sunnybrae, and the Akoranga Bus Station.

Growing communities mean a busier intersection

As Northcote and the surrounding neighbourhoods have grown, so have the number of travellers through the intersection.

According to recent traffic studies we’ve done of the area, between 1,400 and 1,500 vehicles travel through the intersection during the weekday morning, evening, and Saturday noon peak traffic hours. During these times, the delays getting through the intersection can be as long as two and half minutes.

Future planned housing developments are projected to increase the number of vehicles travelling at peak times to between 1,700 and 1,800 (a 22%-26% increase) in the next five years. Without upgrades to manage traffic flow and accommodate these new travellers, delays at peak times could be anywhere between three and half minutes to 26 minutes.

These kinds of delays would significantly reduce efficiency of traffic movement, the quality of life for the residents living near the intersection, and the reliability of the neighbourhood bus services.

Improvements are needed to keep the intersection safe to drive

Signalising the intersection will help ensure buses with stops along the connecting streets continue providing reliable service as the area grows and traffic increases.

Delays are highest at the intersection for drivers trying to turn from Ocean View Road on to the connecting roads and for drivers turning right on to Ocean View Road from Raleigh Road.

Drivers from these sides often have trouble finding safe gaps to turn through fast-moving traffic coming from opposite directions. At peak times, when many more vehicles are passing through, it becomes even harder, especially if the vehicle trying to turn is a bus or other heavy vehicle that needs more room to move.

As the number of vehicles travelling through increases in the coming years, if no improvements are made, the issues for drivers trying to turn on and from Ocean View Road will exacerbate. Longer delays could lead to riskier behaviour as drivers try to keep time, creating a less safe environment for both travellers and residents.

We also want to improve the intersection for people who walk

Dedicated crossing facilities at busy intersections make it safer for older people and people with limited mobility to cross.

The intersection does not currently have crossing facilities for people who walk or use a wheelchair. Those wanting to cross any side of the intersection either have to walk several metres out of their way and use the available crossings further up and down the connecting roads, or they have to rush across three lanes of busy traffic. Many who live near the intersection have limited mobility and accessibility needs. Crossing can be especially challenging for these groups.

Our plan to upgrade this intersection

Because of the above factors and feedback from residents, Kaipātiki Local Board has prioritised the Pupuke Road-Ocean View Road-Raleigh Road intersection for upgrades with funding by its Local Board Transport Capital Fund.

After thoroughly evaluating the intersection, we’ve developed a plan that will address safety, traffic management, and accessibility needs now and in the future while also making the best use of the available funding. With the local board’s approval, we’re taking the proposed design to the wider Northcote community for consultation.

Visual overview of the proposed upgrades to the Pupuke Road, Ocean View Road, and Raleigh Road intersection.

Our plan includes:

• Installing traffic lights at all corners of the intersection
• Installing traffic light-controlled crossings across Raleigh Road, Ocean View Road, and the left turn lane from Pupuke Road to give people who walk or use a wheelchair safe places to cross
• Adding high-friction road surfacing on the left turn lane from Pupuke Road on to Ocean View Road to encourage safe turning speeds
• Upgrading the existing traffic island to include better turning lines for vehicles, and footpaths and ramps for people who walk or use a wheelchair
• Placing yellow guidance pavers on all pedestrian crossing points for the visually impaired
• Placing ‘no stopping at all times’ yellow lines six metres from the intersection on all sides to discourage stopped vehicles that would block traffic and obstruct drivers’ views

Download the detailed construction drawing

Benefits and impacts

Our main goals in upgrading the Pupuke Road-Ocean View Road-Raleigh Road intersection are:

1. to ensure the growing volume of traffic flows safely and smoothly through the intersection now and in the future, and
2. to make it safer for drivers and pedestrians of all abilities to turn and cross the intersection.

We believe signalising the intersection and adding traffic light-controlled crossings and facilities achieves these goals with the least amount of disruption while making the best use of the available funding.

Many people who take the bus cross through the Pupuke Road, Ocean View Road, and Raleigh Road intersection to reach bus stops like this one for their daily commute.

The proposed upgrades would bring the following benefits:

• Significantly reduces delays during peak hours. Traffic delays would reduce to 16-40 seconds for travellers at all sides of the intersection.
• Allows for smooth, safe, and orderly flow of traffic through the area
• Helps ensure traffic continues flowing smoothly in the future as travel demand increases with new developments
• Helps ensure bus services that pass through the intersection will continue running efficiently and reliably
• Ensures drivers can turn safely from all sides of the intersection
• Gives people who walk or use a wheelchair safe, dedicated places to cross at all sides of the intersection
• Improves overall safety for travellers of all modes and abilities, and for residents in the area

Though minimal, there would be some impacts from the upgrades:

• To make room for the larger traffic island, we would need to merge the separated turn lanes off of Ocean View Road into one turn lane for both directions.
• To add more ‘no stopping’ lines, we would need to reallocate road space by removing about three northside and two southside street parking spaces on the Ocean View Road side of the intersection.

Summary of the feedback

Overall, there was a high level of awareness of this project to the community at large:

• 1,856 people visited our consultation page.
• 482 people interacted with the page by clicking a link or viewing media on the page.
• 245 people submitted feedback via our online survey.

Many in the community wanted to learn about the safety improvements, but of those who visited, only 13% felt strongly enough to give feedback. The feedback we did receive was robust, detailed, and informative on why members of the community felt the way they did about the improvements. Of the 245 people who did submit feedback:

• 41% believed that the upgrades would improve the intersection by increasing overall safety, improving navigation and reducing unsafe driving behaviour.
• 59% did not believe that the upgrades would improve the intersection. Their main concerns were that upgrades would increase congestion, the upgrades are not needed, we should consider other designs like a roundabout, and that we should remove the pedestrian crossing elements since other crossings already exist near the intersection.

The safety aspects of the project are not as much in question by participants as the traffic management aspects.

• Of those who were in favour of the improvements, most expressed they were in favour because they believed they would significantly improve safety for drivers and pedestrians.
• On the other hand, most of those who were not in favour of the improvements were not so because of concerns around the traffic lights’ ability effectively manage congestion and traffic flow. The reception was very similar at the two drop-in sessions at Northcote Library.

When those who expressed their concerns around the traffic management aspects of the project were asked to elaborate on their opinions, many of them cited negative past experiences with other traffic lights at busy roadways/intersections in their area (at Lake Road and Onewa Road, for example) with issues around signal timings and phasing. They also said they themselves had not experienced any significant congestion issues at the intersection when they travelled through it.

Most of the suggestions for changes to the design revolved around putting in a roundabout instead of traffic lights or moving/removing the crossings at the intersection since others already exist further on Pupuke Road and Raleigh Road.

Our response to community feedback

We have taken a good look at the community feedback and all the concerns and suggestions put forth by consultation participants. We believe the design as it currently stands remains the most cost-effective way to achieve Kaipatiki Local Board’s goals of improving safety and traffic management at the intersection now and in the future.

We recognise the experiences of those who have not experienced congestion issues at the intersection, as there are currently periods in the day where congestion is not an issue. However, our traffic models do show the added number of vehicles from planned developments nearby will create significant congestion issues in just a few years. Our models also show that in a scenario where the intersection is controlled by traffic lights, wait times to turn from any side of the intersection, particularly at peak times, will reduce to between 28-40 seconds on average. That’s a significant improvement even for existing wait times to turn at the intersection.

Regarding participants' suggestions about installing a roundabout, we did examine the idea of putting in a roundabout instead of traffic lights. However, the road space is too small and the slope of the area too steep for an effective roundabout to be put in place.

We also re-examined the crossings and their placement. However, our surveys of pedestrian movements in the area indicate that people are still crossing at the intersection despite the existence of the other crossings. The other crossings (including the newest one at Raleigh Road near the improved bus stop) are still too far away to fully deter people from crossing at the intersection. As long as pedestrians are crossing there, safety will be an issue for them, which is why we have included traffic light-controlled crossings at the intersection in our design.

Traffic light-controlled crossings on all sides of the intersection will help ensure pedestrians of all ages and abilities can cross safely.

For all the other concerns and suggestions noted by participants, we have provided direct, detailed responses in the feedback report.

In recognition of the concerns raised by consultation participants, we will commit to the following:

• Thorough monitoring and review of the new traffic lights as soon as they’re activated
• Continuous monitoring in the future to ensure they are performing effectively as the community grows
• Strategic signal coordination during peak times to streamline bus movements, significantly reduce start/stop occurrences, and ensure total delays remain minimal
• Adjusting the signal timings and phases of the lights to adapt to changing traffic patterns as they happen
• If the above efforts still are not effective enough, option the lights for optimisation with smart traffic light technology. We’re already using this technology at some key intersections of Auckland CBD with promising early results.

We recognise how important this intersection is for the Kaipatiki Local Board’s long-term plans for the area, our own long-term plans in growing and optimising our transport network, and for the people of Northcote and beyond to get to work, shops, schools and more. It’s in all our interest for it to be safe and efficient for people of all abilities to travel through however they choose to do so, especially as the area grows and more people flock to Northcote.

By applying these needed improvements and working together to ensure their effectiveness, the intersection of Pupuke Road, Ocean View Road, and Raleigh Road will stand as a key driver of people to places and opportunity for many years to come.