Changes to Pukekohe Streets for People Trial
King Street in Pukekohe will be reinstated as a two-way street after public feedback on a temporary one-way trial has shown that it wasn’t working for the community.
Part of Waka Kotahi’s Innovating Streets for People Programme, the Pukekohe Streets for People trial is currently underway, allowing Panuku to test several temporary installations intended to make the Pukekohe town centre safer to move around.
“The Pukekohe community has been telling us that the King Street part of the trial isn’t working as intended,” says Richard Davison, Priority Location Director – South.
“We’ve listened to their feedback and based on this will be removing this one-way section and wider footpath part of the trial in the coming weeks.”
Over the past six weeks, a significant amount of feedback has been received through the Auckland Council Have Your Say page, on-site surveys, social media comments and a business survey.
The removal of the one-way system and extended footpath will take place mid-June and is expected to take a week, depending on weather.
While the one-way will be removed, some road paint will be staying in place and can be used to widen the footpath for events or pop-up outdoor dining occasions in the summer months. In the interim, the painted parts of the road can be used for parking.
“While people haven’t supported the idea of the one-way street, there has been some enthusiasm for more pedestrian-friendly events and activities,” says Richard.
“We’ll also be working with the Pukekohe Business Association on alternate ways to increase the vibrancy and attractiveness of lower King Street over the next few months.”
The Devon Lane shared space trial will continue until the end of June. Feedback is open on the Pukekohe Streets for People Have Your Say page until 12 June 2021 and a decision will be made on the outcome of the trial in July.
Panuku is also keen for interested community members to sign up for updates on the Have Your Say page. This will allow them to be notified of other opportunities to contribute their thoughts and ideas for Pukekohe town centre later in the year.
The project team has welcomed the amount of feedback gained during the trial, where people could comment on how the changes affected them in practice.
“This type of engagement has been hugely successful from the point of view of the amount of feedback we’ve received from the various aspects of the trail,” says Richard.
“Traditional, paper-based consultation only gets a limited response. By trialling a lower-cost version of this idea, we’ve received many different perspectives from hundreds of people within the community.”
“We have been very impressed with the amount of feedback we have received, and we’ll be taking it on board as we continue our work in the town centre,” says Richard.