‘Absolutely stoked’: Parents welcome safety upgrades at Nelson ‘black spot’

Safety improvements for one of Nelson’s worst roundabouts have now been completed, much to the joy of parents and businesses alike.

The roundabout, at the intersection of Toi Toi and St Vincent Streets, saw 28 injury accidents over the past decade.

Now it has raised pedestrian crossings on all four approaches.

“We are very confident that that is going to deliver a safety dividend,” Nelson Mayor Nick Smith says.

“You'll never get zero risk, there'll always be people that make mistakes. But the principal reason for this upgrade is that it was the worst black spot in Nelson.”

Nelson City councillor James Hodgson frequently travels through the area with his two children, aged 5 and 3, on their way to school and preschool and thought the traffic calming measures were “perfectly implemented”.

“I feel a lot more chill with my kids coming through here, like they sometimes know to stop when they get to a road,” he says.

“I'm absolutely stoked.”

Lisa Wakelin lives nearby on Emano Street with her three kids. She moved in about three years ago and noticed that the roundabout was dangerous “almost straight away”.

The raised crossings had made her feel more at ease and even seemed to have slowed traffic near Emano Street, where she said it had previously been too fast.

“It's made a huge difference. Parents feel safe sending the kids across it,” she said.

“We're almost at the point of just letting the eldest go by himself.”

KidsCrossing Nelson Whakatū advocate Andrea Warn is “rapt” with the crossings which she has been wanting to see installed for at least five years.

“This is a game changer for this community as it relates to this park, in the summer with volleyball, getting to the local dairy, getting to the fish and chip shops. It makes it more user-friendly.”

Her next priorities were to see upgrades of the intersection of Nile and Collingwood Streets, as well as at the “Roundabout of Doom” where Nile and Tasman Streets meet, both of which she said had been promised but pushed back for several years now.

Further upgrades at other dangerous sites can be expected over the coming years, with another $5.5 million allocated in the council’s Long-Term Plan for additional projects.

Many residents have been strongly advocating for road safety upgrades in their communities, but Mayor Nick Smith says future upgrades would be determined on the basis of “where we can get the biggest safety dividend for the investment.”

He also acknowledges that the roadworks had “a negative impact on business”, compounded by the current economic environment in which businesses are under “real pressure”.

He says the council needed to engage with businesses to try and minimise the impact of roadworks.

“We've got work to do where some of the traffic management is excessive and is both pushing the cost up of the projects and as well as that, causing too much business disruption.”

Pritesh Mandaliya owns On the Spot Victory Square and has previously said that the roadworks were “killing” businesses. He was relieved to see the roadworks completed.

“Finally, it’s over and we’re finally getting back on track with the sales and the customer numbers.”

The 12 weeks of roadworks were a “nightmare”, with revenue dropping about 50 per cent and having burned through most of their savings.

Mandaliya says it was frustrating when “half of the time, when I looked out the window, no one was working” and didn’t think the work should have taken 12 weeks.

He adds that the council needed to consider the impacts of roadworks on businesses, particularly in terms of customer access to their establishments.

Mihir Vaid owns Victory Square Fish and Chips and similarly saw his revenue halve during the works but was sure that his business would “bounce back”.

“We’re happy,” he says. “[It’s a] good thing they have done – a flash look, a nice one. It’s good for everybody.”