Small corrections to help improve dominion RD

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Making public transport faster and more reliable is some of the main ways to make more people use it, which means more people can move around the city. However, very often, we have large projects to offer these improvements. Therefore, it is pleasant to see that Auckland Transport is consulting a handful of small low cost improvements at Dominion RD to accelerate buses.

Auckland Transport (AT) is asking for feedback to change the hours of operation of the Southern Road bus track in one hour to help improve congestion.

AT is also proposing to install a prohibition of right turn on peak time in certain bottlenecks to improve traffic flow.

“Dominion Road is long, but quite narrow, and we just can no longer fit vehicles – it has reached its peak,” says Chris Martin, the AT of AT road optimization manager.

“More Aucklanders is moving early afternoon, and this, combined with school traffic, means that the time of peak travel home at Dominion Road now starts at 3 pm instead of 16h. We need to follow it and make the appropriate changes to keep it moving,” says Martin.

“The only things we can do to speed up the trip are to make the most of the space on the road, and that means using the existing bus lane more and restricting the right -hand turns at important intersections.

“We believe this change will save the average bus passenger up to three minutes in travel time between 15h and 16h, along Dominion Road. This is up to 15 minutes a week,” he says.

People traveling through Dominion Road will know very well that it is usually congested at peak times.

It has been so for over a decade. While Auckland’s population has grown rapidly since then, the number of vehicles that can fit the road, about 25,000, remained the same.

At the top of these 25,000 vehicles, for example.

About 7,500 passengers ride the bus through Dominion Road every day, with 3,000 of these people marking at stops along this road.

This important route travels up to 29 buses (bus No. 25L, 25b, 252 and 253) per hour in both directions, making it essential for the community’s travel needs.

An essential aspect for these bus passengers is when they travel how most are likely to be traveling at peak times, but in traffic count suggest that 1,500 vehicles travel the road in each peak period. So in those moments, the buses are carrying most people along the hall.

There are only four proposed changes and, although small, the idea of restricting the right turns should disturb some people. So here is what is proposed.

Bus track time

Our data show that more people are using Dominion Road between 15 and 16h than in previous years, with the afternoon peak starting earlier and longer duration. Taking over 32,000 people daily, Dominion Road is an important bus route with increasing delays – up to 6 minutes in the morning and 8 minutes in the afternoon. While the bus lane from 4 pm to 7 pm improved bus travel during peak times, the increase in congestion from 3 pm, especially school traffic and the people who work at flexible hours, is now causing delays before the bus track began.

Proposed changes include:

To help everyone follow this path more efficiently to make congestion easier, we are proposing to add an extra hour to the bus runway during the week along the South Dominion Road (far from the city) so that it starts at 15h instead of 16h.

Changing the start time to 15h will help reduce delays by 2 to 3 minutes to all users of the road and better support the longest peak in the afternoon.

They should make this change (or rather) for all bus lanes across the region.

Avenue/ Dominion Road Intersection Memorial

This intersection is very busy, especially at peak times. In the morning, traffic to the north (towards the city) supports MT Albert Road and, in the afternoon, traffic to the south (far from the city) supported by Denbigh Avenue. These lines usually block the crossing of the Avenue Memorial. The bus lanes end before the intersection, so that the buses are stuck in the same traffic as other vehicles.

Proposed changes include:

1294 – 1306 Dominion Road: We are proposing the continuation of the bus runway through the cross of the Ave Memorial at Dominion Road. This means gathering them to them, where it breaks on both sides (approximately 30-40 meters on each side). This will allow two lanes (a bus, a general) to move through this cross.

We are proposing the installation of part-time right curve prohibitions at 7-10 and 15h to 19h on the days of the week inside and outside the Avenue Road Memorial to improve traffic flow.

Plans include the installation of broken yellow lines in the Avenue Memorial to improve traffic flow for those who go to Dominion Road.

Rua/Dominion Intersection of Wireu/Dominion

This area is usually congested because the road is narrow, there are many activities along the sides and its proximity close to two sets of nearby traffic lights (the Road / Balmoral Road / Road and an intermediate intersection near Rockfield Road). Entering and leaving the Wimu Street and Dominion Road also causes delays in both directions, as vehicles can accumulate waiting for the vehicle to rotate.

Proposed changes include:

Restricting curves on the right in the Wimu Street (602-618 Dominion Road) to improve productivity and congestion
The tenses proposed to restrict the right curves on Wiremu Street are from 7am to 10am and from 15h to 19h on the days of the week and from 11am to 7pm on weekends.

George Street/View Road/Dominion Rodad Crossing

This intersection experiences intense traffic, especially during the period of peak in the afternoon. Our observations have shown that the rows from afternoon peak to south (away from the city) tend to originate from the crossing of the Dominion Road / Valley Road, often extending through the intersection of View Road.

At the morning peak, the intersection of View Road / George Street decreases traffic because of its staggered layout, causing an inefficient signal time. It is a bottleneck to traffic to the north (going to the city) and usually makes it difficult to change buses to the road on the right.

Proposed changes include:

We plan to update the pedestrian crossing at the intersection of George Street/Dominion Road, adding a high pedestrian crossing, removing a set of traffic lights and a prohibition of rotation on the 24/7 inside and outside George ST to reduce accident risks.

We are proposing to install a Clearway in front of the 72-114 Dominion Road, near View Road to improve traffic flow. This means that no parking is allowed on the east side of Dominion Road, between the Street Horopito and the View Road (about 90 meters) at Pico da Tarde, 15:00 to 19:00 on the days of the week.

At the intersection of View Road, we also plan to remove the slip range on the left and install a pedestrian crossing.

These changes seem good, so it is worth supporting them, especially if you live in the area. The consultation is open until May 25th.

Maybe my biggest problem with them is that it took so long to get to them. They should have made such changes years ago and sought to do the same thing in other arterials throughout the region.

Since minor improvements such as those suggested by the OT have been made, perhaps we can also progress a larger correction.