Auckland City reflects on road safety

Auckland City Council is introducing new, highly visible, road signage to enhance road safety for pedestrians and school children.

The Land Transport Safety Authority (LTSA) has approved the use of fluorescent yellow green retroreflective sheeting for road signs. This change falls within the new sign classification, Vulnerable Road User (VRU). This category includes permanent warning signs related to pedestrians and cyclists.

The fluorescent yellow green colour uses ultra violet light rays to increase daytime sign visibility. This is especially noticeable at dusk and dawn and on murky wet days when signs are less visible and driver awareness of the presence of school children and pedestrians is critical.

Auckland City will be moving across the city, replacing existing signs with the new, highly visible fluorescent yellow-green signs, beginning with the main arterial routes. Staged surveys have begun to identify all current VRU signs located on Auckland arterial streets and prioritise replacements.

“We need to ensure that our roads are as safe as possible for our vulnerable road users which include children and cyclists” says Joseph Flanagan, traffic and roading services manager. “By introducing the improved, highly visible signs we are continuing our work towards this.”

The 150 old signs that are being replaced will be fully evaluated and tested for reflectivity. Some will be used to restore signs that have been damaged or are missing, until they are finally replaced with the fluorescent yellow-green signs.

The implementation of new signs will be rolled out gradually due to the number of signs within Auckland and the cost of replacement. Main arterial roads have been identified due to higher use by pedestrians and cyclists. Until the arterial routes have been completed, new signs will only be erected on minor roads with the approval of Auckland City if there is a known safety concern.

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