Road safety

Requests for broken yellow no stopping lines

We use broken yellow no stopping lines to manage kerbside parking on Porirua's roads.

They are also used to:

• Address access issues, for example when vehicles frequently park across and block a driveway
• To manage visibility issues, for example if parked cars are blocking sightlines
• To make narrow roads safer and more accessible by preventing parking on one or both sides, while also being conscious that a narrow road slows traffic and reduces speeding issues

Public requests for broken yellow no stopping lines

We receive a lot of requests for broken yellow no stopping lines around the city and use the following process to manage them:

1. All requests are logged and reviewed by the city’s Traffic and Road Safety team.
2. If the review shows that broken yellow lines would be beneficial at this location, we undertake consultation with the public on the proposed layout of the broken yellow no stopping lines.
3. If consultation supports the installation of broken yellow no stopping lines, the request will be submitted to the Council for approval.
4. If approved, the broken yellow no stopping lines will be added to Council’s bylaws and the lines painted on the road. This process will ensure the new lines can be enforced.
5. This process can take up to about 6 months to complete.

Many residents request speed humps, but there are other traffic calming measures that should be considered or used before speed humps, as there are strict guidelines around installing speed humps which are set by local, national, and other best practice guidelines.

It's also important to note that speed humps are often not popular with the residents who live alongside because of the noise generated by cars navigating them.

Dangerous driving

If residents are concerned that someone is driving dangerously on their street they should call the police on 111, 105 or *555 from a cellphone.

What Council considers when looking at traffic calming requests

Council considers a number of factors when investigating if traffic calming is required, this includes:

• The type of road, (eg cul-de-sac, local access, distributor route, etc)
• The posted speed limit (needs to be 50 km/h or less)
• Traffic volumes (the minimum is 300 vehicles per day and the maximum is 1500 a day)
• Speed data (30% of vehicles exceed 50km/h or 20 percent exceed 60km/h)
• Roading geometry (the technical practicalities of installation)
• The proximity of schools, hospitals, shopping centres, or busy pedestrian areas, especially where vulnerable Road Users are present
• Crash data history over 5 and 10 year periods
• Whether it has been identified by a crash reduction study or routine safety audit
• Any nearby significant developments proposed in the future
• Can alternatives be investigated and found to be adequate or appropriate, such as signs, line markings or narrowing the road.
• Priorities and available funding in the Minor Road Safety improvement programme budget
• Level of feedback from residents in the area supporting installation

When reviewing requests for speed humps, Council will not install them on:

• Busy urban through roads and rural roads • Residential cu-de-sacs
• Emergency vehicle access routes and roads used frequently by heavy vehicles
• In any other situation where using speed humps is considered to be inappropriate having looked at all the factors explained above

Porirua City Council no longer installs or maintains traffic mirrors in the public road reserve.

Traffic mirrors are not installed because they can pose a potential public safety risk:

• They provide limited visibility when raining and at dawn and dusk
• They have image distortion
• A driver can misjudge speed and distances of approaching vehicles because of the mirror’s curvature
• Glare or reflections can dazzle or disorientate driver
• They are easily broken and vandalised

Instead, other options can be considered by a property owner and/or Council if there are visibility issues when exiting a driveway or side road, such as:

• Improving vehicle turning on-site
• Improving sightlines through earthworks, such as cutting back a bank
• Improving sightlines through the removal of roadside vegetation
• Improving sightlines through the removal or realignment structures, such as a fence
• Moving or realigning a driveway or vehicle accessway
• Road markings and/or signage

If we are advised that a mirror has become a safety hazard because it has moved or is damaged, we will remove the mirror and it will not be replaced.

If a resident wants to become responsible for a mirror, they will need to take the following steps first:

• The resident needs to approach Porirua City Council (PCC) to obtain permission for them to take ownership and full liability/responsibility.
• If PCC gives approval for the resident to take ownership and full liability/responsibility, it needs to be formally agreed, in writing, that the resident will become completely responsible for that mirror and that PCC no longer has any liability/responsibility.
• The owner of the pole/structure on which the mirror is located needs to be contacted, by the resident seeking ownership of the mirror, advising them that (a) ownership of the mirror has changed and (b) permission is sought to undertake any changes/repairs necessary.
• If changes are necessary, and permission has been given from the owner of the pole/structure, the resident now responsible for the mirror will need to liaise with PCC’s Corridor Access team to ascertain what may be necessary to facilitate enabling the changes/repairs to be undertaken (e.g. a Traffic Management Plan) https://poriruacity.govt.nz/services/parking-transport/working-road-corridor/

If you have any further questions, feel free to contact us via our road safety inbox roadsafety@poriruacity.govt.nz