That traffi c! SATURDAY, 15 MAY, 2021 TWILIGHT HOLD-UP: Motorists at the end of this traffi c jam are about fi ve to seven minutes away from reaching the roundabout at the intersection of Childers Road and Customhouse Street. Gisborne’s new traffi c congestion problems are at peak times only, and still a far cry from the other regions in New Zealand. Picture by Ben Cowper Gisborne used to have a rush minute rather than a rush hour. Not any more. Also gone is the “fi ve minutes to anywhere”. Now motorists face a seven-minute wait at intersections some mornings. But help is on the way. Sophie Rishworth fi nds out about planned improvements. isborne residents have had this District/Tairawhiti, including the East Coast, slow in the early years and only over the has to do with schools’ start and fi nish times, city to themselves for years was 49,500 (Stats NZ). past two to three years has that traffi c really and Dave says that happens around the Gand years. We’ve been through In two years 2400 more people will be ramped up. country. decades of zero population living here, and in 2028, seven years later, Some even say over the past few months. “If you can minimise that, you can improve growth. Stats NZ is predicting a population in But that fi ve-to-seven minute wait as the your effi ciency around town. Gisborne drivers have been known to go Tairawhiti of 53,100 — that’s 3600 more car inches along Ormond Road, Gladstone “ at’s why we’ve got school buses, and around the block — a couple of times if need people and their cars. Road or Childers Road after the school drop- pick up and collection times around the be — to get a park outside the shop they’re Gisborne District Council (GDC) journeys off , or on the way to work, is all relative. city. going to. infrastructure manager Dave Hadfi eld Someone from Auckland would think our “It was a historical decision where schools Now there’s this population boom. Good has noticed it too — personally and 10-minute commute is fantastic. were placed and because there are no high parks are like hen’s teeth, and that traffi c! professionally. Dave says the bulk of the traffi c here is schools in the Kaiti area, all the students go People have chosen a provincial lifestyle, “On average for the last 10 years the traffi c referred to as the “tidal eff ect”. to another area across town.” especially since recent lockdowns that has been increasing about 200 vehicles each at’s where a wave of vehicles goes one at means school holidays have a big showed how a lot of people could do their year.” way in the morning, and the other way at the impact on traffi c fl ow. jobs from anywhere. at’s if you extrapolate it from 2010 to end of the day. In 2018 the population for the Gisborne now. But as Dave explains, the growth was Around 45 percent of the traffi c movement Continued on page 2 Di & Matai Rob & Katie 29 May 2021 Dancing War Memorial Theatre 10 Couples for Life Dance Education Event www.dancingforlifeedgisborne.co.nz < < Book Your Tickets Now! Supporting Life Education Trust Inc. Gisborne, East Coast & Wairoa 39540-02 2 THE GISBORNE HERALD LEAD OrmOnd rOAd/ Wi Pere Street rOUndABOUt: This photo was taken at school drop-off time — around 8.45am on a week-day morning. Forty-five percent of traffic congestion is driven by school start and finish times, which is why school holidays have a big impact on reducing traffic around town. Picture by Paul Rickard Plans afoot to ease traffic congestion From page 1 know $80,000 will be spent on traffic- calming measures on their street as well. Urban Intersection Improvements Dave says a lot of people who have moved The Lytton Road and Nelson Road 2023/242022/232021/22 to Gisborne recently say they wanted to get roundabout will have improvements, $190,000 away from the big traffic jams. as will the Gladstone and Stanley Road “The worst-case scenario would be if people roundabout by Gisborne Girls’ and Boys’ $180,000 leave Gisborne because of the traffic, and High Schools. $170,000 that would mean we’ve made a decision too Improvements to the Rutene and late.” De Lautour Road roundabout are also $160,000 Dave says the network still has capacity but planned. he appreciates that at peak points each day $150,000 THE DATA there are delays. $140,000 THREE NEW ROUNDABOUTS AND Waka Kotahi traffic data between 2015 $130,000 TRAFFIC-CALMING MEASURES and 2109 show Gisborne traffic volumes rising rapidly. $110,000 Plans to curb the congestion include three On Awapuni Road, east of Grey Street, $100,000 new roundabouts being built over the next traffic has increased 23.6 percent. In 2015 three years. the daily count was 4418 vehicles. By $50,000 One will go at the notorious Aberdeen 2019 this had increased to 5464 — an Road/Roebuck Road intersection. It will cost increase of 1046 vehicles a day. $175,000 and be done by the middle of next Traffic volumes on State Highway 35 Lytton/Nelson Stout/Wi Pere year. on the way to Wainui have increased 16.3 Aberdeen/Roebuck Aberdeen/Lytton Gladstone/Stanley Rutene/De Lautour Palmerston/Grey Gisborne District Council’s 2022/2023 percent. Between 2015 and 2019 the TOTAL $450,000 TOTAL $320,000 TOTAL $300,000 budget also has $160,000 for another number of vehicles a day rose from 6644 roundabout at the Aberdeen/Lytton Road to 7728 — or 1084 extra cars a day. intersection. On SH35 south of the Harris Street turn- GdC UrBAn interSeCtiOn imPrOvementS: This is where Gisborne District Council The third one will be at the Grey Street/ off, traffic has increased 6.5 percent, from is putting money over the next three years to improve the traffic flow in Gisborne. It includes three new roundabouts, and you will no longer be allowed to turn right into Wi Palmerston Road intersection, budgeted in 19,632 vehicles a day (across both lanes) in Pere Street from Stout Street soon. 2023/2024 for $150,000. 2015 to 20,900 in 2019. That’s an extra 1268 Stout Street will be made safer for traffic vehicles a day in four years. Street and the Roebuck Road bridge) has (between Childers Road and Gladstone Road) as well. Gisborne District Council has had traffic increased 16.3 percent between 2014 and the traffic has increased 19 percent. At the intersection with Wi Pere Street, counts at the same locations over the 2020 (12,578 vehicles a day to 14,634 a day). On the main road through Makaraka there only left-hand turns will be allowed. The years, driven by different road renewal And on Gladstone Road between Peel has been a recorded 7 percent increase in two safety designs for this new rule, to ensure no programmes. Street and Bright Street, traffic volumes have years — up from 8020 vehicles a day in 2018 right turns or straight-ahead manoeuvres, Nelson Road, between Anita Grove and increased 13.3 percent — up from 8493 (between Gladstone Road and Granny Tarr will cost $175,000. Another $110,000 is Lytton Road, has had a 42 percent increase vehicles a day in 2014 to 9625 in 2020. Street) to 8572 in 2020. in the budget for traffic-calming measures in daily vehicle movements over the past six Still on Gladstone Road but between One notable decline in traffic has been in Stout Street, where residents have years. The last count in August 2020 showed Lytton Road and Clarence Street, and over recorded on Huxley Road on Outer Kaiti, complained of speeding and there have been a daily total of 4769 vehicles. In 2014 it was the p[ast 11 years, the number of vehicles between Craig Road and Daphne Street — a a number of car crashes. 3360 vehicles a day. increased 24 percent — up from 8744 in 62 percent decrease from 2013 vehicles a day Tyndall Road residents will be pleased to Traffic on Wi Pere Street (between Stout 2009 to 10,854 in 2020, while on Grey Street in 2014 to 763 vehicles in 2020. SATURDAY, MAY 15, 2021 3 PROFILE HOME VISIT: Dr Katharine Holdsworth with her parents Dr Peter Holdsworth and Dame Bronwen Holdsworth. working to keep you safe.” Her whole career has been deep in the ADVOCACY: During her career, Dr Katharine operating systems, starting with phones Holdsworth has never missed an opportunity and now working on Windows, Azure and to encourage more women in to the engineering and computer science space. Microsoft systems. Pictures by Liam Clayton She loves creating for all the products she works on and is especially fond of Windows as there are 1 billion or more people using Windows 10. She loves the thought that the work she does every day helps keep people Te Karaka to tech hub protected and productive, allowing them to achieve more. “ at 1 billion number also freaks me out,” she said. Katharine Holdsworth returned mid-pandemic to Tairawhiti last week from her at means a bad bug has the potential to aff ect that many people. home in Seattle, Washington where she works for Microsoft, one of the world’s Making sure everyone was safe online kept biggest computer companies. She spoke about her career, and being a woman in a her awake at night, she said.