Upgraded Stanley Bay crossing priced at $175K

A $175,000 raised pedestrian crossing is planned outside Stanley Bay School.

Of the 14 submissions to Auckland Transport (AT) about the crossing, three opposed the changes, eight were in favour and three were neutral.

Submissions against included concerns about the need for a raised crossing – traffic volumes are low and the times when foot traffic is high are during school drop-off and pick-up, when the existing crossing is patrolled.

Stanley Bay resident Nathan Male, who obtained a financial breakdown from AT, couldn’t believe the cost of changes to the existing crossing.

Raising the crossing is “unwarranted and unnecessary”, Male said.

He suggested the raised crossing should instead be installed at the intersection of Russell St and Calliope Rd, where traffic flows at higher speeds.

“There needs to be a department of common sense established to review what is sensible and what is not.”

The proposed upgrade also provides for two new catchpits at the side of the crossing at a cost of $39,000, which forms part of the $175,000 bill.

Traffic-management costs of $58,000 makes up a third of the project’s budget.

Asked about the outlay, an AT spokesperson cited the safety benefits and said “we find the costs for this work to be reasonable and worthwhile to the community”.

The raised crossing was prioritised as part of AT’s ‘Safe Speeds’ programme to support a lowering of the speed limit in the area to 30km/h.

The crossing would increase safety for schoolchildren by “improving pedestrian visibility to motorists and giving them a safe crossing point where they have priority”, the spokesperson said.

The Stanley Bay School Board said it “supports any measure to keep our children, staff and families safe”.

The crossing is currently at the detailed design stage, and on track to be approved for funding in the 2023/24 budget and to be constructed between August 2023 and February 2024.