Cars removed from Golden Mile within two years as part of Let's Get Wellington Moving

Friday, 7 June 2019

A mass public transport system is due to be constructed between Wellington Railway Station and the airport as part of the $6.4 billion Let's Get Wellington Moving programme.

Wellington's Golden Mile could be car free by 2021, and speed limits on surrounding streets dropped to 30kmh.

Changes to city speed limits and the number of roads which have private vehicle access have been proposed in the $6.4 billion Let's Get Wellington Moving programme announced last month.

While the plans do not go into specifics, Wellington Mayor Justin Lester said that would mean 30kmh speed limits for all roads except main arterial routes, and the removal of private cars on most, if not all, of the city's Golden Mile.

Wellington Mayor Justin Lester says cars will be removed on most, if not all, of Wellington's Golden Mile within two years.

The Golden Mile runs along Lambton Quay, Willis St, Manners St, and Courtenay Place, and has more than 80 car parks.

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The roads would still be accessible to service vehicles, but would otherwise be used only by buses and pedestrians, Lester said.

Lester said there are plans for Mercer St, between Willis St and Victoria St, to become pedestrian-only.

There were also plans to 'claim back some of the street' along the thoroughfare, meaning shops and eateries could spill out onto the road.

Cars would definitely be removed as far as Taranaki St, but access could remain on Courtenay Place between Taranaki St and Kent/Cambridge Terrace, Lester said.

An artist's impression of a revitalised Lambton Quay, a shared space for pedestrians and buses.

'Courtenay Place will be treated slightly differently and we've got to go through the detail on that.

'I can't commit to what the final outcome might be, but there will be bus and pedestrian priority wherever possible.'

There would also be changes to surrounding streets on the Golden Mile such as Mercer St and Bunny St, which could become pedestrian-only or a shared space for pedestrians and cars, Lester said.

A similar change was made several years ago to Bond St, which once connected Vivian St and Willis St but is now a pedestrian-friendly, dead-end road.

'Bond St is a great example,' Lester said.

'It was a funny little place, actually. It used to be a slip road, but it's now been pedestrianised.'

Wellington City Council spokesman Richard MacLean said there were 55 general car parks on Courtenay Place and another 29 on Lambton Quay.

There were no car parks on Manners St, which is for buses only, or the section of Willis St between Lambton Quay and Manners St.

Lester said the changes would cost somewhere in the vicinity of the 'small hundreds of thousands [of dollars]'.

Let's Get Wellington Moving is a 20-year, joint venture between Wellington City Council, Greater Wellington Regional Council and the New Zealand Transport Agency aimed at fixing traffic congestion between Wellington Airport and the Ngauranga Gorge.

Programme director Barry Mein said Lester's promises were not out of line with what the group was proposing, but there were 'a few caveats'.

Wellignton Mayor Justin Lester said the changes would happen within two years. (File photo)

The programme proposed to introduce safer speeds, but that did not necessarily mean 30kmh.

'We still need to go through the process of determining what the speed limits would be and where they would apply.

First Retail Group managing director Chris Wilkinson said the changes would be good for businesses. (File photo)

'But most of the streets in the central city area can have a lower speed limit.'

The main arterial routes were Kent/Cambridge Terrace, Taranaki St, and the waterfront quays, but they would not all necessarily have lowered speed limits, Mein said.

Wellington Chamber of Commerce chief executive John Milford said parking should be retained on streets connecting to Lambton Quay. (File photo)

Likewise, the aim of providing bus and pedestrian priority on the Golden Mile did not necessarily mean removing cars.

'The proposal is to provide priority for buses, and pedestrian improvements. Whether that requires having to fully remove private vehicles is something we need to work through the detail of.'

RETAILERS BACK MOVE

First Retail Group managing director Chris Wilkinson said the changes would be good for the city.

'The reality is we need to create stronger priorities for public transport, and very few consumers actually drive through the Golden Mile.

'People don't drive down the Golden Mile, stop, and buy something. That happened 10 or 15 years ago, but over a long period of time parking has been declining in the city centre, which aligns with the [city] council's District Plan.'

The removal of private vehicles had less relevance to consumers than ever before, Wilkinson said.

'People orientate towards areas where there's a lot less vehicle dominance. The majority of businesses in Lambton Quay are major businesses trading in areas where this is happening all over the world, they're accepting of the fact this is where it's going.

'If Wellington wants to be a global city, this is the way that it needs to move.'

Wellington Chamber of Commerce chief executive John Milford said the chamber had no problem with losing the small number of car parks on Lambton Quay, but it was important parking remained on side streets such as Waring Taylor St, Johnston St, and Brandon St.

'We would like to see what solutions are proposed for that. Brandon St is also used by buses from the cruise ships.'

Any changes should be made as part of the city council's wider parking review, Milford said.