Streets for People

Artist's impression of revised changes to Waipawa's main street following central government's nationwide pause on the use of raised platforms on state highways, which include two flat (at street level) pedestrian crossings (marked 1) and one centre island (marked 2) to narrow the carriageway and slow traffic as it approaches the roundabout.

We've completed the Streets for People project.

The NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi (NZTA) funded projects across thre motu aimed at creating safer, healthier and more people-friendly streets so everyone can get to where they are going safely.

The Waipawa Project Council-led in partnership with the community. Its purpose was slowing down traffic outside the shops on Waipawa's SH2 and providing safer options to cross the road.

This is a busy stretch of road our children frequently use, so it's important to ensure the vehicles are operating at safe speeds.

Our Streets for People project delivered important improvements to Waipawa’s High Street, reflecting feedback from local businesses and residents garnered in the FOLKL survey (July 2022) on how to make the street safer and more accessible for everyone, and our Integrated Spatial Plan 2020–2050 and Waipawa Town Centre Plan.

The improvements included:

traffic calming interventions into Waipawa.
improved walking connections across State Highway 2 and at key intersections, including two new flat (at street level) pedestrian crossings with safety lighting, one at the northern end of High Street near the library and one at the southern end, near BP Station.
a centre island near Madge Hunter Park and Centennial Memorial Swimming Pool to narrow the carriageway and slow traffic as it approaches the roundabout.
a temporary roundabout (centre is pre-cast concrete, surrounded by asphalt) at the intersection of Ruataniwha Street and State Highway 2 to slow traffic and extending the footpath on Harker St.
new signage and road markings to slow traffic as it approaches Waipawa from the north and south, and at the Waverley/Church streets intersection.
additional plants and planter boxes to provide visual cues to help slow traffic.

The project worked and we reduced the speed with the traffic calming interventions, including the roundabout and additional pedestrian crossings, so these will be kept.

Now we are moving onto the beautification of the Waipawa town centre, which will build on what we have already started through Streets for People.

We wish to thank the community for your feedback and patience throughout the project, and for contributing to making Waipawa's main street a safer, more people friendly street!

Research on the Main Street

In July 2022, Council worked with Napier-based research company FOLKL to monitor and evaluate traffic and people movements on the main street. This research has provided us with vital information as to how pedestrians, cyclists and motorists use Waipawa's main street, including traffic movement and speed, sound monitoring, and how people move around the main street, cross the road, utilise the existing crossings and cycle.

The information has been instrumental in informing the final designs for Waipawa's temporary safety interventions, with the aim to make the main street safer and more people friendly.

Designs & Technical Drawings

Using feedback from the codesign group and following the two raised safety crossings installed in October 2023, revised detailed designs have been developed by technical designers and engineers and can be viewed here. These will be used by the contractor to complete project works in April and May 2024.