Getting Onewa Road Moving

Past improvements to Onewa Road, such as adding the T3 lanes (for buses and vehicles with 3 or more passengers), have made it very efficient in moving people during peak hours. 

However, it’s not as efficient off-peak, especially in the early afternoon when schools finish and on weekends. As the area continues growing, it is important Onewa Road is efficient and reliable for more people at all times of day.

The changes we’re proposing target some key pain points along the road that contribute most to delays, congestion and safety issues, even at off-peak times. By making these changes, we can ensure everyone has a smooth, efficient journey on Onewa Road no matter when they’re travelling or how they’re travelling. 

There is no change to T3 hours. 

Most of the changes can be done relatively quickly – in a few nights –  with minimal disruption. We’re aiming to deliver most of the corridor improvements this year. 

The upgrades to the Birkenhead Avenue/Onewa Road intersection require more investigation and planning before we can implement them. Our design plan will not likely be ready until at earliest next year.

Over the years, Onewa Road has gotten much busier. The traffic demand is high even during the off-peak and when the T3 lanes are not in operation. 

Currently, vehicles can park on parts of this road off-peak, which can disrupt the traffic flow, create more delays, and increase the risk of crashes related to lane changing, reversed parking, and limited visibility for vehicles turning out of side roads. 

Between 2019 and 2023, 140 crashes were reported along the road corridor. Of these, nearly half were rear-end, lane-change, and right-turning crashes where drivers were trying to get around parked cars. 

Also, the T3 lanes are underused when they're not operating because drivers don't want to go through the trouble of having to slow down and navigate in and out of the lane to get around parked cars. Merging in and out can create backups and delays in the other lanes. 

To resolve these issues and help people move safer and more efficiently at all times, Onewa Road needs to transition from a partial clearway to a full clearway.

This has been discussed with NZTA Waka Kotahi. However, it is not currently feasible to add a second general traffic lane from Onewa Road to the motorway heading towards the Harbour Bridge. 

It would require very significant infrastructure for the second traffic lane and would shift the congestion onto the motorway. Also, the disruption associated with physical works of this scale would add to the congestion.

Queue detection and pedestrian detection technology both use advanced cameras and sensors to detect how many vehicles or people are waiting on one side of an intersection or signalised pedestrian crossing. 

If, at an intersection, queue detection technology sees traffic on a particular side of the intersection is significantly backed up, when it’s that side’s turn to go, it will extend the green light longer so that more vehicles pass, clearing the queue faster.  

Meanwhile, at pedestrian crossings, if someone presses the button to cross but they leave before the signal changes, pedestrian detection technology will sense they are no longer needed to cross and cancel it before it happens. If it senses multiple people waiting to cross, it can extend the green pedestrian signal time so that the group has more time to cross together. 

With this technology, our aim is to help clear up busy intersections faster and make crossing safer and better for pedestrians.  

Pedestrians, cyclists, people on wheelchairs and other mobility devices, and riders of scooters and other wheeled recreational devices may all use shared paths. For the new shared path, we will have signage along the path clearly showing where it starts and ends. 

We’ve observed multiple instances of people jaywalking across Onewa Road in moving traffic, particularly in the afternoon when classes finish at Northcote College. 

The majority of these people are students who are trying to get to the bus stop (stop ID 4078) directly across the road from the school gate. This creates significant safety concerns and disruption on this part of Onewa Road. 

We’re considering closing this bus stop for a trial period to see if that helps to stop this behaviour and encourage people to use the safer crossing facilities (i.e., mid-block signalised crossings). There are alternative bus stops located next to each of the signalised crossings. 

We’re still selecting the size and design of the shelter, but it would likely be similar to the existing shelter directly in front of the church, with seating and covering. We welcome the community’s suggestions on what else we should consider for the shelter.