• A proposed $500,000 pedestrian crossing in Christchurch is being mocked for having speed bumps on one side only.
• The decision was made by the Waipapa and Waipuna community boards, leading to differing views.
• Ali Jones criticised the process, highlighting poor communication and questioning the crossing’s necessity and cost.

A proposed $500,000 pedestrian crossing on a busy Christchurch road is being ridiculed after different community boards voted to have speed bumps on only one side of the road.

Deans Ave runs along the western side of Hagley Park near the city centre and down the boundary of the Waipapa and Waipuna community boards.

A proposed crossing on Deans Ave, Christchurch, is expected to cost at least $500,000. Photo / George Heard

The Waipapa Community Board voted to include speed bumps on the crossing near Al Noor Mosque while the Waipuna Community Board did not.

The decision was made last Thursday in a joint meeting of the Waipuna Halswell-Hornby-Riccarton and Waipapa Papanui-Innes-Central community boards.

As a result, the speed bumps will now only be included on one side of the crossing.

Tyler Harrison Hunt from the Waipuna Community Board told Newstalk ZB’s Ryan Bridge there were differing views on the board.

“I pushed through to try and at least get better than the status quo which means putting in the crossing without the speed bumps.”

Waipapa Papanui-Innes-Central community board member Ali Jones believes the decision for speed bumps on one side, but not on the other, doesn’t make sense.

“If the safety issues are such that speed bumps are required on one side of the road, common sense would suggest those same safety issues apply to the other,” she said.

Jones said while speed bumps are an issue, the spotlight should be on the way the decision was handled.

“I think the whole thing has been a bit of a shemozzle, we should have had the opportunity to ask some questions,” Jones said.

Jones said communication throughout the process had been delayed and there could have been more opportunity for discussion.

During the decision process, the Waipapa community board also went into public-excluded meetings to discuss the issue, according to Jones.

“We couldn’t hear what was going on or what was being advised and discussed,” she said.

Deans Avenue, Christchurch. Photo / George Heard

A Christchurch City Council spokesperson told the Herald that members from both boards received a memo on January 20, outlining the project and informing members a decision meeting would be held in March.

Jones said like many other members, she was dealing with the sudden removal of 20 trees at the time, so did not respond nor recall receiving the email.

For this reason, the board did not receive any questions from board members and on March 4, decided that an information session on the issue for the Waipuna board would not be required.

According to Jones, they were able to send through questions on the matter, however, these were not answered until an hour before the final decision was made.

The council spokesperson said both boards read the report and heard the deputations and staff presentations.

“Each board then debated the issue and made an informed decision consistent with their respective delegated authority.”

The crossing is projected to cost $500,000, however, Jones said the report states it’s likely to cost closer to $600,000.

“$590,000 should not be used for people to cross the street when there are traffic crossings that are 400 and 450 metres respectively from that very spot,” she said.

According to NZTA data, there were six crashes in the five-year period between 2019 and 2023 in the area on Deans Ave, RNZ reported.

No one was injured in four of the crashes and two people suffered minor injuries in the others.

The decision comes after Auckland Transport announced last year it will proceed with at least 28 raised pedestrian crossings, despite a review to cut numbers and costs.