A return to two traffic lanes in each direction, more places for pedestrians to cross the road, and a new two-way cycleway are all part of the recently completed upgrade of Cameron Road from Harington Street to 17th Avenue.

While there are still a few finishing touches to be done, Tauranga City Council is encouraged by the positive feedback from the community.

“We’ve received quite a lot of positive feedback on the changes and we’ve noticed a lot more people using the cycleway in particular,” says Council’s Manager of Transport Infrastructure Outcomes, Kelvin Hill.

“We know that people got into the habit of avoiding Cameron Road while construction was under way, but the works are largely completed, with just a few finishing touches remaining. We invite everyone in the community to come into the city centre, check out the improvements for themselves and support those businesses who have waited so patiently for the work to be completed.”

The upgrade also provided an opportunity to replace 100-year-old water pipes under the road, which will serve an increasing population on the Te Papa peninsula.

Wide open cycling spaces, and not having to worry about people opening car doors on them have got Welcome Bay cyclists Andrew and Pam Thorpe singing the praises of the new cycleway.

The retired couple not only use the new two-way separated cycleway for recreational cycling, but also to get to appointments in the city centre. They’re also using it with their Welcome Bay Wheelers cycle group.

“If we could work out a way to get our grocery shopping home, we’d probably use it for that too,” jokes Andrew.

“Getting over and along Cameron Road has always been a challenge so we’ve tended to avoid it in the past. Now that we’ve got the path it’s really easy to drop onto, even as a group.

“I love not having to worry about people opening car doors on me. It’s a weight off my mind.”

The tiled shared paths, where cyclists, pedestrians and bus users all have to share the same space is a little more challenging.

“We’ve got people who aren’t used to cyclists in their space, so they sometimes step out in front of you, but it’s a low-speed area and there’s lots of room there so it hasn’t been an issue. We’ll all have to get used to sharing with each other,” says Andrew.

Other than the cycleway, Andrew and Pam love the new planting and the “spacious feel” the upgrade has given Cameron Road.

The couple are finding drivers generally considerate of cyclists on the cycleway at intersections, giving way to let them past as the give way rules dictate.

“We’ve found at the intersections not controlled by lights that drivers have been very considerate, stopping before the intersection to let us go straight through which is great,” says Pam.

Tips for cyclists and drivers using the cycleway are available at www.tauranga.govt.nz/cameronroad.
 

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