New paths and crossings on the way for Greta Point

For the next few months, this means there will often be two spots with stop/go traffic management on Evans Bay Parade (Monday to Friday, 9am-4pm) as work is also under way to replace seawalls at Hataitai beach. 

At Greta Point, wider new bike and walking paths will replace the existing shared path on the seaward side, continuing the roll-out and style of improvements already in place closer to the city and adjacent to Cobham Drive.  

There will also be two new pedestrian crossings going in to make getting across this busy road easier and safer. 

It’s all part of making sure Wellington remains a great place to live and visit. 

Like Te Ara Tupua, the new paths and coastal protection being developed between Ngauranga and Petone by the NZ Transport Agency, and Tupua Horo Nuku, the new seawall and shared path that Hutt City has under way between Point Howard and Eastbourne, our work is part of a bigger vision. 

Together, in partnership with iwi, we’re all working to make Te Whanganui-a-Tara a place where residents and visitors can easily enjoy and explore our beautiful harbour and coastline on foot or by bike. 

Mana whenua Taranaki Whānui ki te Upoko o te Ika have gifted the name Te Haerenga Roa o Te Aro (long promenade or journey) for this section to acknowledge the journeys of the peoples of Te Aro from their arrival in Aotearoa, their journey to Taranaki, and then from Taranaki to Wellington to this point. 

What to expect around Evans Bay at Greta Point 

The street changes in Greta Point village will take about six months and be carried out in two sections to help minimise disruption. Each section will take about three months.  

The first section is at the north end of the village – extending from where the new-style walking and bike paths currently end to just before the NIWA driveway.  

To do the work safely, a temporary 30km/h speed limit will be in place at all times around this zone. Stop/go traffic management will operate during work hours, generally Monday to Friday, 9am–4pm.  

The rest of the work in the village as far as Cog Park will start about July/August.   

The street changes were unanimously approved in November 2021 following consultation.  

The same amount of on-street parking will be retained in the village area, but some parking – mainly on the seaward side – will be out of action during construction.  

Hataitai beach update 

Until August, traffic management will also be in place at Hataitai beach where a section of seawall and the low retaining wall at the rear of the beach are being upgraded.  

Work on the seawall south of the changing sheds was tricky at first as we worked around the tides and some ground-related challenges, but the wall is finished, the work is on schedule, and our contractor Downer is now working on the foundations for the second wall.

To make use of the traffic management in place, and avoid having to work in this area twice, they will be installing the wider paths and other planned street changes in this vicinity now.  

In line with the approved plans for this area, this means some of the parking that has been out of action during construction will not be reinstated, and the bus stops just east of Hataitai beach (city-bound stop 7549 and eastbound stop 6549) will be permanently removed.  

The bus stop changes will happen once the paths are complete – watch for Metlink updates about this. The bus stops at Cog Park are staying and will continue to be a good place to get off if you are heading for the beach.  

Work will also include:

• slightly raising the pedestrian crossing 
• installing two new P10 parking spaces opposite the beach.  

Weather permitting, we expect to complete work on and adjacent to the beach in August.  

With summer over, we have recently started on the wall at the rear of the beach. You’ll still be able to swim and use part of the beach at all times. The changing rooms and toilets are open as usual.  

There’s more information available about the project and the changes that were agreed following consultation on our website transportprojects.org.nz/evansbay.