Mount Maunganui surfie families lobby council for Oceanbeach Rd pedestrian crossing

Surfie family Paul Wacker, Jane Asbury, Tuscan Asbury, 12, and Lucca Asbury, 10, along with Abby Cummins and baby Johnny want a new pedestrian crossing on Oceanbeach Rd. Photo / George Novak

The difficulty of crossing a busy beach road with kids, a dog and unwieldy surfboards in tow has Mount families lobbying for a new pedestrian crossing on Oceanbeach Rd.

Paul Wacker and Jane Asbury brought their surfboards to a Tauranga City Council meeting this week to make their point about the need for a pedestrian crossing, rather than a refuge between lanes.

Wacker said he often drove to the beach despite living in walking distance, off Links Ave, because Oceanbeach Rd had become so hard to cross due to the traffic.

Mount families say crossing Oceanbeach Rd as a group with kids and surfboards is nearly impossible at most times of day without a defined crossing. Photo / George Novak

"As close as we are, I frequently drive because I can cross that road much easier in a car, a steel box, than I can on foot, which is a disgrace. I feel guilty every time I do it."

He asked the council to install a crossing outside Berescourt Reserve on Oceanbeach Rd.

Wacker said this was close to their home and he realised it was not feasible to have a crossing near everyone's home.

One was needed in this location, however, because lots of people wanted to cross there, he said.

In the 1.2km distance between the nearest pedestrian crossing at Golf Rd and a pathway in Berescourt Reserve, off Berescourt Place, is Mount Maunganui Golf Club.

Wacker said that meant all the people living behind the course had to go south to reach the beach by foot and many ended up at Berescourt Ave.

Wacker said there were a lot of families with young children in the area, and pedestrian refuges did not work for groups - especially not in a surfie community like the Mount.

Asked by councillor Bill Grainger why he did not hold the board vertically, Wacker said it was more secure under his arm, with less risk of it being caught by the wind.

Asbury said trying to rush through rare gaps in the traffic with scared kids was an "anxious" experience.

Crossing was "kind of" possible when she started her walk each morning at 6am, but by 7am the traffic was "head to tail".

"I've got surfboards, two children, standing at the white line. No one stops.

"I feel like there is going to be an accident."

Council infrastructure general manager Nic Johansson said the council appreciated them coming in and the council needed to talk more about "prioritising moving people" rather than just people in vehicles.

"We'll take this information away and see if from a road safety perspective if anything we can do."

He said the council was working on a plan, which had been through safety audits, for a series of new refuges in the Papamoa Beach Rd area.

Wacker encouraged other people to contact the council about areas that needed new pedestrian crossings.