The Council proposes to open Manners Mall to buses and extend Cuba Mall to Wakefield Street, subject to the outcome of a special consultative procedure under the Local Government Act 1974 to revoke the pedestrian mall status of Manners Mall.
This proposal would:
The changes are designed to make bus journeys through the city faster and more reliable. They are also critical to the Ngauranga to Airport Plan agreed to in 2008, which contains projects designed to make the journey between the Ngauranga Gorge and airport faster regardless of transport method.
During public consultation in late 2008, there was a clear message that people did not want public transport improvements to erode public spaces. In response, the Council changed its original proposal so that it includes a 'shared space' with priority for pedestrians in lower Cuba Street to compensate for the loss of public space in Manners Mall if it is opened to buses.
The new public space in lower Cuba Street will have limited vehicle access to support local businesses, including parking, but will look and feel like a mall. Vehicles will have to travel at walking speed, give way to pedestrians and could be excluded altogether for events like the Cuba Carnival.
Similar 'shared space' works well in Melbourne and a number of European cities, and Auckland is currently considering one for its central business district.
If the proposal goes ahead, the Council is also planning to create better pedestrian links and public spaces in Dixon, Wakefield and Mercer streets in the next three years. Vehicles will still use those streets, but there are opportunities for improvements as buses would no longer use them.
The Council has already agreed to:
The Golden Mile runs from the bus terminus via Lambton Quay, along Willis and Manners streets to the Embassy Theatre end of Courtenay Place. Before 1979, what is now Manners Mall was a city street and buses and general traffic were able to travel through it.
The changes will affect Taranaki, Dixon, Willis, Mercer, Wakefield and Manners streets.
Taranaki to Willis / Mercer Street Precinct Boundaries Map (668Kb PDF)
The special consultative procedure on the pedestrian mall status of Manners Mall closed on 30 October.
Initial discussions with stakeholders in the area began in August 2008 and wider consultation was carried out in late 2008. The Council heard oral submissions in February 2009 and made the decision to adopt the proposals (subject to the outcome of the special consultative procedure) in June 2009.
Report to Strategy and Policy Committee - 04.06.09 - Restoring the Golden Mile (1711Kb PDF)
Appendices:
The Council is expected to make a decision on the pedestrian mall status of Manners Mall in December 2009. If it is decided to open up the Mall, there is an automatic right of appeal to the Environment Court under the Local Government Act 1974.
Work on signalising the pedestrian crossings in Courtenay Place has begun and the first set of signals (outside Reading Cinema) will be in place by Christmas 2009. If the revocation of the pedestrian mall status of Manners Mall is approved by the Council, the busway through Manners Mall will be constructed in 2010 and the shared space in lower Cuba Street in 2011.
Greg Campbell
Principal Transport Planner
| Phone: | (04) 803 8199 |
| Email: | greg.campbell |
Department Details:
Urban Development & Transport