Traffic congestion choking Petone as rat runners look for easy route

Saturday, 12 May 2018

Petone has become a victim of its own success, with traffic gridlocks becoming the norm, especially on Saturdays.

Gridlock in Petone is now a weekend reality - no longer restricted to weekday rush hours.

The Lower Hutt community has transformed in recent years from a quiet place to shop and grab a coffee, to a bumper-to-bumper traffic jam, especially on Saturdays.

The owners of a service lane behind Petone Pak'nSave have had to close it to stop it being used as a short cut.

The area is a victim of its own success, as well as a victim to planning that allowed a cluster of major retailers to sprout up around the same time over a small area.

Box box retailers Kmart, Bunnings, Rebel Sport and Briscoes, along with two supermarkets, and a well-established The Warehouse means it's a haven for weekend shoppers from around the region, all struggling their way through the clogged streets of the western end of Petone.

Congestion both on Petone's main shopping street, Jackson St, and the Esplanade, which links to southbound State Highway 2 into Wellington, has got much worse in recent years

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Leo O'Sullivan has run his supermarket there for 24 years and has watched as the congestion has worsened.

He sees people trying to take shortcuts to beat the queues every day.

Recently, it got to the point where he was forced to close a service lane being used as a shortcut by frustrated drivers trying to avoid delays on Petone's main street, Jackson St.

In the morning the 'rat runners' drive through his carpark trying to acess the Petone Esplanade, despite speed bumps to deter them.

Congestion both on Jackson St and the Esplanade, which links to southbound State Highway 2 into Wellington, has got much worse in recent years, O'Sullivan said.

A typical Saturday morning, looking east along Petone's main street, Jackson St. Photo: KEVIN STENT/STUFF

And he is in no doubt where to put the blame.

'There does not appear to have been any planning by the council.'

Karen Arraj-Fisher has lived in Petone for more than 40 years and has witnessed plenty of change. She works on Jackson St and everyday watches the impact of congestion.

She recalled the 1970s when Petone was a working-class suburb where people relied on the Gear Meat Company and Ford Factory for work.

''People had large families and generally could not afford a car.'

It is now a destination for Wellingtonians wanting to enjoy Jackson's St's vibrant cafe scene or check out the latest bargains.

Traffic on the Petone Esplanade had also got much worse, she said.

Frustrated truck drivers avoid the Esplanade and instead now use Jackson St, which had become a major problem.

'Obviously traffic has increased significantly and personally I think we need the Cross Valley Link.'

A link road, taking traffic from Seaview and Wainuiomata in the east to SH2, has been talked about since the 1950s, but remains no more than a distant possibility.

Leonie Dobbs heads the local retailers' organisation and she said congestion is having a detrimental impact on businesses.

Frustrated shoppers and diners, she said, are being put off by the long delays, especially on a Saturday, and are heading to other destinations.

Recent road works had also highlighted how bad the congestion had become. Although the work only covered a small section of the main street, she said the flow on effect for retailers was significant.

Some retailers suffered a marked downturn as shoppers stayed away and buses got caught in the congestion.

'Couriers would not even deliver flowers for people's birthdays,' Dobbs said.