Roads – Page 14 – Waikawa Beach Ratepayers Association

Bumps and lumps and puddles

Roading issues develop. Here are some on the agenda at the start of 2018.

Roads wear away, potholes and puddles appear, and sometimes fixes are discussed.

On 17 January 2018 Kevin Burns and Miraz Jordan representing the Association met with Brent Tucker, Roading Officer – Āpiha Arawaka, from the Horowhenua District Council, who are responsible for local roads. We looked at several areas that need attention. Orders have been sent out for these three. Photos by Brent Tucker.

Corner of Walkers Lane: low shoulder needs to be built up and resealed as the edges are breaking.
Corner of Drake Street and Waikawa Beach Road: seal is broken and needs to be repaired.
Corner of Drake and Arthur Streets: the edge is broken and needs repair, and the shoulder has become quite high so a puddle develops. The shape of the berm needs to be changed.

Corner of Drake Street and Waikawa Beach Road.

We also looked at these (photos by Miraz):

At the village entrance the side of the road is breaking away and vehicles are going up on the berm. Water ponds here.
The Strathnaver Drive puddle that covered most or all of the road near 111B during the rainy parts of 2017. Brent will contact Horizons on this as it may be an issue with nearby property owners not keeping the streams or drains that run through their property clear.
The problem of the Strathnaver Drive speed bumps for cyclists. While cars and trucks slow and handle them in the usual way, quad bikes and motorbikes just whizz past on the berm, but the many cyclists are stuck either enduring the bump or trying to handle the shingle and rabbit holes beside the bump. We asked for something to smooth the ride for cyclists, such as a little extra seal around the ends.

At the village entrance — Kevin Burns and Brent Tucker.

Cyclists have to contend with shingle and speed bumps on Strathnaver Drive.

Beach speed submission 2017, Part Two

The Association made both written and oral submissions on the Council’s plans to change the maximum speed for vehicles travelling on the beach.

In Fast or slow: what’s the best speed for our beach? we talked about the Horowhenua District Council’s consultation on vehicle speeds on the beach, and the submission the Waikawa Beach Ratepayers Association sent in. In brief: we support lower speeds and would like a special 30 Kph zone along the part of the beach from roughly where the village ends in the north all the way south to the border with Kāpiti.

On 27 October 2017 we made an oral submission to the Hearings Committee to support our position. Here’s what John Hewitson said:

Thank you for opportunity to speak to our submission.

The association would like to see the beach speed reduced from 100km/h to 40km/h but would agree with the comment made by Senior Sargeant Paroli that at 50km/h the harm caused in an accident is reduced.

Access to the beach is through private land and there is a sharp bend in the track thereby making others on the track hard to see thereby increasing the risk of an accident. The speed through the track and on to the beach should be a maximum of 30km/h. During the School and Christmas holidays the number of families staying at the beach increases hugely and as an example we had 65 plus kayaks entered in the boat race at Christmas time and the number of people attending the sports day on New Years day would well exceed 100. Access to these events is on the road.

The speed on Waikawa beach road is too high at 100km/h and needs to be reduced permanently to 80 km/h. Should it not be possible due to the Act to reduce it all the way from SH1 consideration needs to be made in reducing the speed to 80km/h from the Farm house at Waikawa Beach Road to the 50 km/h sign at the entrance to the settlement similar to Waiterere.

There are new gateways being established from this residence and there was a need to reduce the speed at Walkers Lane to 30km/h during the removal of logging.

The WBRA would also prefer that the 50km/h signs be moved out just beyond the planting at the entrance so that they are clearly visible to all entering and leaving the settlement.

It should also be stated that there are no footpaths in any of the areas mentioned and hence the request for a 30km/h speed over the busy Christmas period.

It is also hoped that once the speed is reduced to 30km/h across the area in front of the settlement that the incidence of trail and quad bikes entering the dunes and destroying the vegetation will end.

The HDC Hearings Committee Open Agenda 27 October 2017 (19.2 MB PDF) and Agenda Attachment (5.4 MB PDF) documents also provide more information on this topic. See especially the Officer Comment on Page 7 of the Agenda.

Ōtaki to north of Levin roadway, Manakau meeting 02 July 2017

Feedback on the Ōtaki to north of Levin roading project is now welcome until Friday 7 July 2017.

There is still time to have your say online about the Ōtaki to north of Levin roading project at www.O2NL.nzta.govt.nz until Friday 7 July 2017. There is also a meeting at Manakau on Sunday. Additional Community Engagement Events says:

We have had a fantastic response to the Ōtaki to north of Levin project, and over 1000 people have attended various events and meetings so far throughout June.

Due to requests from local communities several additional events are now planned, and we have extended our feedback timeframe to Friday 7 July 2017. …

Event: Manakau Community Meeting

Location: Manakau Community Hall, 12 Mokena Kohere Street, Manakau

Date: Sunday 2 July

Time: 10am – 12pm

Project area: Otaki to north of Levin project area.

Ōtaki to north of Levin 4 lane expressway consultation

NZ Transport Agency are starting on developing a new a 4 lane expressway between Peka Peka and north of Levin. As this will go past Waikawa Beach, it’s something we need to keep an eye on.

NZ Transport Agency are starting on developing a new a 4 lane expressway between Peka Peka and north of Levin. As this will go past Waikawa Beach, it’s something we need to keep an eye on. Ōtaki to north of Levin engagement to commence:

We will be looking at how best to connect to the Peka Peka to Ōtaki expressway in the south, all the way up to the Manawatū River. It’s really important to stress that there is no preferred option for this route currently.

“We need to check that what you’ve previously told us is still relevant, to find out if there is anything new we need to know about, what the key issues are for the community, and how the project can support community aspirations,” says Mr I’Anson.

Previously contacted landowners will be contacted in May 2017 with an update on the project. We will be engaging closely with key stakeholders and community groups, as well as carrying out community consultation events in June 2017, where Transport Agency staff will be available to talk to people and hear their thoughts. People will be encouraged to contribute their ideas at those events, as well as through written submissions, and online options. Details of the events will be advertised widely.

Maybe a new road will help prevent accidents like this recent smash at Forest Lakes.

There are full details on the project page, where you can also subscribe to updates.

Check the Consultation page for details of where and when you can offer your opinions (June 2017).

Road resurfacing starts in February 2017

In the hot sun on 27 February 2017 contractors from Higgins were creating fresh surfaces on some of the roads around the village. By mid-afternoon they had resurfaced most of Reay Mackay Grove, a small patch on Strathnaver Drive, and Cathryn and Duncan Streets.

It’s great to see the place being maintained like this.

New road seal on Reay Mackay Grove, looking south.

New road seal on Reay Mackay Grove, looking north.

New road seal on one patch of Strathnaver Drive.

New road seal — Cathryn Street, photo by Kevin Burns.

Update, 16 March 2017: after some discussion with the Council about the shingle left all over the grass beside the road, a crew has come to clean up. Thanks to Kevin Burns for the photo.