LAND USE ZONING

Presently there are pockets of industrial and commercial land scattered amongst residential land. This leads to the intrusion of commercial vehicles including heavy trucks into neighbourhoods. Future land-use zone changes must consider the roading network and include buffer zones between two areas of conflicting land use.

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The Central Business District (CBD) is bounded by the “ring road” formed by Princess Street, Ferguson Street, Pitt Street, Bourke Street, Walding Street and Grey Street. The CBD is losing its attractiveness. Central employment figures are declining, as businesses are moving out. For the city to have a strong heart, the CBD needs to be strong. Unnecessary through traffic needs to be diverted to other routes and conflicts need to be avoided. Through traffic volumes throughout the central area need to be reduced to achieve an emphasis on local access, easy circulation and ample parking within an improved overall quality environment. At present, it is estimated that up to 35% of traffic around the Square is through traffic. The CBD needs a face-lift. To do this, the ring road needs to be strengthened to encourage traffic to use these roads to get around the CBD, and across town, while only those vehicles with a specific destination within the CBD are provided for within the ring road. In order to distinguish between the two street types, it is recommended that streets within the ring road are designed primarily as circulation, parking and pedestrian streets. To encourage the unrelated through traffic to use other peripheral routes, some of the central area traffic signals should be removed. The wider streets within the ring road are to include central parking strips together with central planting, including trees at the end of each parking bay. A parking management study needs to be undertaken to determine the best use of the parking spaces in this area. Desirably, traffic volumes around the Square and surrounding streets should be limited to at most around 600 vph, or 6,500 vehicles per day, noting that present traffic volumes in the area are up to between 11,000 and 22,000 vpd. The southern quadrant is the busiest part of the Square.

Vehicles in the Square have one of three functions: • Local traffic parking

• Circulating traffic looking for a car park

• Through traffic not having an origin or destination in the area.

The latter component needs to be removed, and circulating traffic needs to be minimised, by ensuring that parking management is effective.

Several actions need to occur before the vehicles volumes will reduce:

• The through-traffic capacities of the internal streets and intersections need to be reduced

• The efficiency of the ring road needs to increase

• Alternative arterials for connecting the suburbs within the city need to be reinforced • Consideration needs to be given to the future provision of alternative bridge

crossings so that present vehicles do not need to rely so heavily on Fitzherbert Avenue and be directed towards the Square.

CENTRAL AREA

The removal of some of the signalised intersections from within the central area will assist in encouraging unrelated through-traffic to follow other peripheral routes, and will assist in establishing a more distinctive and recognisable pedestrian friendly environment. A reduction of signalised intersections will enable more road space for parking.

Walking distances for shoppers and commuters vary. Typically, commuters will walk up to 350m between their cars and place of work, whereas shoppers will only walk up to a maximum of about 150m. Recognising that the central business district extends beyond a radius of some 500m from the Square, maximum use of parking is required within the ring road, ideally with car park driveways strategically located within easy access to the ring road.

The provision of on-street parking requires careful detailing in order to achieve efficient, convenient and safe layouts. Although cyclists are encouraged to use the central area, they should not be given separate cycle lanes and should generally be expected to cycle in the centre of traffic lanes. As vehicle speeds in the central area should be generally less than 20 km/h, cyclists will not unduly delay vehicles.

Heavy vehicle restrictions are generally for vehicles that weigh more than 5 tonnes. This does not include vans and courier vehicles, but does include trucks and sometimes buses. Existing bylaws do not allow heavy vehicles to enter the CBD unless they are servicing the area. It is recommended to alter the existing bylaw such that heavy vehicles cannot enter the CBD, between the hours of 10:30am to 5:30pm. Details need to be discussed with the businesses involved in preparing a specific recommendation for adoption by Council. Signs would need to be located at all the entrance points to the Square. Ongoing enforcement of such heavy vehicle restrictions is not usually required but is able to be actioned if and when needed.

It is recommended that a separate study be initiated to identify and recommend the required strategies and detailed management plans for both visitor and commuting parking.