How we got here

Gathering ideas and narrowing options

Using the feedback from public engagement and talking with key stakeholders, we drew up a very long list of ideas to improve Thorndon Quay and Hutt Road. These ranged from providing seats on Thorndon Quay to re-opening Kaiwharawhara railway station.

Creating a long list of options

To get to a long list of potentially viable options, we assessed the hundreds of ideas against project objectives. This initial assessment got the very long list down to about 16 options.

Some of the ideas that did not make the cut for the long list included building a roundabout at Tinakori Road intersection or combining buses and people riding bikes into one lane.

Narrowing options to a short list

To get to a short list of 16 options, we assessed the long list in more detail. The options were assessed against the project objectives, the impact of the changes and how easy they would be to build.

One of the options that did not make it onto the short list is an off-road cycle path between the commercial buildings and the railway on Thorndon Quay. This was discarded because the land is owned by KiwiRail and there could be safety concerns with a path through this area. Other ideas that did not progress included retaining the angle parking on Thorndon Quay and any options which required the purchasing of land or property.

Common elements

There are a number of common elements between all 16 options on the short list.

These include:

providing bus lanes and bus priority at the Mulgrave Street and Ngauranga/Jarden Mile intersections to improve bus reliability
moving some bus stops to improve bus travel times and provide more convenient walking distances between bus stops
providing a cycle path to connect Te Ara Tupua to the city
improving traffic lights at Mulgrave Street to improve the safety of pedestrians and cyclists
upgrading the existing crossings and installing more crossings for pedestrians and bikes at the Ngauranga/Jarden Mile intersection
upgrading footpaths and improving pedestrian crossings
improving the look and feel of Thorndon Quay
improving the intersections at Tinakori Road, Rangiora Avenue and Onslow Road
converting angle parking on Thorndon Quay to parallel parking
reviewing speeds on Thorndon Quay and Hutt Road.

Elements for buses include:

providing bus lanes into the city, or
providing bus lanes into and out of the city.

Elements for cycle paths on Thorndon Quay include:

providing a one-way cycle path on both sides of the street, or
providing a two-way cycle path on one side of the street.

Elements for Hutt Road include:

providing a roundabout on Aotea Quay to help take traffic away from Hutt Road, and
keeping a painted central median on Hutt Road, or
building a central raised median on Hutt Road to restrict right-turns, or
building a service lane on Hutt Road to restrict right-turns.

Some of the combinations of the elements are shown in the images below.

Examples of road space (artist impression)

Thorndon Quay examples

Hutt Road examples

Developing the 2021 proposal

To get to a proposal from the short list, we looked at each of the 16 options in more detail.

One of the options that did not make it off the short list for Hutt Road was the one-way service lane shown in example 1 above.

This was proposed as a possible way of providing alternative vehicle access to the businesses along Hutt Road between Onslow Road and Kaiwharawhara Road (on the eastern side) to prevent right turns into and out of properties across Hutt Road. The service lane option is not preferred because it is more disruptive, fits less well with other regional projects and has larger implementation risks.

Find out more about the 2021 proposal

Getting to a preferred solution

While the proposal is out for feedback, we are doing even more detailed assessments against a range of criteria that, combined with your feedback, will help us get to a preferred option for construction. The criteria include:

the project objectives
the effects on Tangata Whenua values
the social and economic impact
the effect on property access
how the option fits with other Let's Get Wellington Moving projects
how easy the option would be to build, maintain and operate.