Māpua Streets for People pilot opens

Māpua

Māpua 24 October 2023 - 

Streets for People pilot opens

After months of design work and weeks of construction Māpua’s Streets for People pilot layout of shared paths, cycle lanes and raised pedestrian crossings is now being used by riders and walkers.   

The project was officially launched with help from the students of Māpua School on Friday. (20 October 2023).  

Tasman District Council Transportation Manager Jamie McPherson is grateful to the many residents and business owners in Māpua who have given their time and energy to helping the design team with the incredibly challenging task of fitting the pilot improvements into the available street space.  

He says there was plenty of ambition for improvements – and the pilot layout is only a small step towards meeting it. 

“I hope people can look past some of the elements that clearly will not meet the future ambition, like the planter boxes that are temporarily in place of possible future gardens/trees, or the cycle lane that we would like to be wider if only there was enough space.” 

One of the innovations included in this Streets for People project was that our contractor, Downer, used more than 52 tonnes of recycled concrete aggregate as fill under the new footpath.  

The recycled concrete aggregate comes from stockpiled concrete from footpath replacements, kerb and channel and other jobs that have waste concrete which is then crushed and reused instead of being sent to landfill. 

But Jamie McPherson says the Māpua project is not over yet. 

“We will soon be seeking feedback on how users now interact with the street, and whether they think the layout meets the goal of making it safer and more convenient for people who are not in motor vehicles to get around.” 

We have already made some early adjustments outside Foursquare and the bakery where planter boxes were removed to ease access for large delivery trucks and the disability park outside the Medical Centre is back.  

Jamie McPherson adds that he is proud of the team of people who have worked hard to deliver this first stage of the project. 

“It hasn’t been easy, especially when some people in the community don’t agree with the decisions being made or even the goal of the project, but the team care deeply about making Aranui Road and Māpua an even better place and have been buoyed by the many messages of support.” 

Jamie McPherson, Transportation Manager.

Tasman District Council. 

Pigeon Post News, Richmond.

Māpua