Accident at SH1 intersection north of Blenheim sparks safety calls

Thursday, 31 January 2019

A man who was left an incomplete tetraplegic after a crash at a Marlborough intersection says the dangerous spot should be closed.

'Close this intersection,' Steven Evans said this week, after another crash occurred at the intersection between Ross Lane and State Highway 1, in Grovetown north of Blenheim.

He is among Grovetown residents who say they've been advocating for safety improvements for more than a decade.

KiwiRail would also prefer the crossing to close, but the New Zealand Transport Agency says there are 'no viable alternatives'.

* Survival defies medical opinion

Last week Michelle Spencer and her partner were in a crash at the notorious intersection as they tried to make a right-hand turn across the highway.

* Road closure pleases residents**

The intersection requires drivers to pull off SH1 at 100km per hour, cross a train line and negotiate cyclists.

The railway tracks meant drivers who stopped at the crossing had half of their vehicles over the southbound lane of SH1.

Alternatively, they must take the turn in one swing, ensuring there are no trains beforehand. A cycle lane which opened in 2017, added another hazard.

The intersection is on State Highway 1, just north of Blenheim.

Residents say the best solution is to close the intersection and extend a new road running parallel to the tracks to Aberharts Rd where it was safer to turn.

Evans almost died when a car he was the passenger in was hit by a freight train at the level crossing in Grovetown 10 years ago.

Then 18 years-old, Evans had just visited a home he hoped to buy and was due to start a new job the following day – instead he spent 19 days in a coma, and a year in hospital.

Grovetown residents from left, Sheryl Ruffell, Steven Evans, Dave Knight and Michelle Spencer are calling for safety measures at a State Highway 1 intersection.

He was left an incomplete tetraplegic and requires 24-hour care. He lives on one of the most expensive government care packages in the country.

Evans' mother Sheryl Ruffell has also crashed at the intersection.

She looks after her son six nights a week and works full time.

'If they had to spend a day in my shoes, and everything you've got to do to look after the victim of an accident, why not just prevent it?

Heading north toward Picton, the left-hand lane has been widened which means cars must cross two lanes of traffic and the railway.

'The cost is not just financial, it's emotional and physical, it's been everything for Steven. What's it going to take to get the point acoss?'

Last week, their former neighbour Michelle Spencer and her partner had an accident at the intersection.

They were heading north on SH1 when they pulled over to the left and let traffic past, intending to turn right into Ross Lane.

The intersection requires drivers to pull off State Highway 1 at 100 kilometres per hour, cross a train line and negotiate cyclists.

Spencer's partner was driving and believed the road was clear, but as he pulled out to make the turn, was hit by a car coming from behind.

'I bought this house (19 years ago) knowing it was a hazard, but over the years I feel like it's got more and more traffic, and a lot more dangerous,' Spencer said.

'Avoiding the trains, traffic and now cyclists. It really brings it home to how scary this crossing really is.'

Dave Knight, who lived on a road off Ross Lane, had been advocating for the crossing to be closed for more than a decade.

'It doesn't really matter what you say or do, it feels like it's never going to change anything.'

Knight had not had an accident, but his children had.

'Everybody's had a bit of a ding up there. We live up there, of course you're going to have one sooner or later.'

A KiwiRail spokesperson said there had been a 'near miss' with a train in 2010.

'KiwiRail has concerns about this crossing and has discussed several options with the Marlborough District Council and NZTA, including closing it and installing a new one at a different location.

'This remains KiwiRail's preferred option.'

NZTA system manager Frank Porter said the intersection had been looked at several times but there were 'no viable alternatives'.

Crash data from 2009 to 2018, which did not include Evans' accident, showed there had been one serious crash and three non-injury crashes as reported to police, which was low, Porter said.

'Residents in general are very aware of the need to take care at the intersection,' he said.

A few years ago the layout was tweaked as much as possible and signs were improved, Porter said.

The speed limit had also been reviewed, with the the outcome of that investigation being to install barriers.

In 2010, the current layout was constructed. At the time, residents said more could be done.

In 2011, Marlborough District Council agreed to close direct access to the lane from SH1, saying the intersection was too dangerous. It did not eventuate.