7 September 2021
The Innovating Streets Programme launched in June 2020 to make it quicker and easier for councils to trial changes aimed at making streets safer, providing more travel choice and encouraging more people to travel in ways that are better for their health and the environment.
Thirty-three councils across the county ran 70 community projects to trial low-cost, temporary changes, like: better street crossings, protected bike paths, traffic-free zones, reduced speed zones and new street layouts.
Community involvement is an essential part of the Innovating Streets approach. Getting community input from the start of a project and trialling temporary changes helps community members get a sense of what their streets could be like and have their say.
Measuring the impact of projects is also essential. Councils use feedback and data collected to make insight-based decisions about which changes best create safer, more liveable spaces for local people and need to be made permanent.
Watch this video to find out more about Innovating Streets
Safer speeds are one of the best, most affordable, ways to make streets safer for everyone. At Waterloo Station in Lower Hutt, Wellington, a new road layout resulted in:
Children are one of the major winners, with Innovating Streets projects helping create more safe spaces for young people. For example: a pop-up cycleway in Cambridge resulted in a 56% increase in bike trips to the primary school.
While collecting feedback as part of these projects, some parents told us safer cycleways make them feel confident letting their children cycle to school. Some older people said they feel more connected to their community because slower or reduced traffic means they can confidently walk to local shops and cafes.
Between June 2020 and June 2021, $29 million was invested in Innovating Streets projects. Building on insights gained to date, a further $30 million will be invested on a range of new community projects as part of the 2021–24 National Land Transport Programme.
