The NZ Transport Agency wants to hear from the local community about how it can help make SH3 and SH3A between New Plymouth and Hāwera safer and easier to travel.
It’s holding four drop-in community sessions next week (25-28 June) to canvas public opinion on the issues with the road and feedback can also be given on the Transport Agency website.
The Transport Agency Transport Systems Manager Ross I’Anson says the project team is keen to hear locals’ experiences of the road and their views on what could be done to improve it.
“This road is a vital link between New Plymouth and Hāwera and it connects a number of towns along it, but too many people are dying and being injured on the route.
“Increases in traffic over recent years has also led to congestion and delays on the road and made it difficult for communities living along the route to move safely and easily around their towns,” says Mr I’Anson.
“We need make changes to the road to ensure everyone using it gets to their destination safely. Personal insights and first-hand knowledge from locals will help us develop the most appropriate safety solutions for the road so I encourage people to come along to a drop-in event near them and have their say.”
Twenty-four people were killed and 105 were seriously injured on the route between 2007 and 2016. Most of the crashes happened at intersections or when drivers lost control of their vehicles and ran off the road or crashed head on. A high number of incidents on the road involved pedestrians.
The Transport Agency is considering a number of options for improving the road. These include:
Monday 25 June
New Plymouth Library
1 Ariki Street
New Plymouth
12pm - 2pm
Tuesday 26 June
Stratford i-SITE Visitor Information Centre
Prospero Place, Stratford
3pm - 5pm
Wednesday 27 June
Inglewood Public Library
46 Rata Street, Inglewood
3.30pm - 5.30pm
Thursday 28 June
Hāwera Library Plus
46 High Street, Hāwera
12pm - 2pm
Feedback can be provided online at www.nzta.govt.nz/np2h (external link)
