Auckland motorists could end up with egg on their faces

By JASON COLLIE

transport reporter

People who drive through red lights and pedestrian crossings in central Auckland could get shell-shocked on Friday.

Protesters calling themselves the Pedestrian Action Group are planning to lob eggs in front of errant drivers to display, Humpty Dumpty style, what happens if motorists break road laws.

But the police and Automobile Association warned yesterday it could startle drivers and cause the very accidents the group is protesting against.

Former bFM deejay Nick D'Angelo said the group, which had grown through people circulating e-mails, was fed up with motorists constantly running red lights and driving through crossings as pedestrians used them.

About a dozen people would be at central Auckland intersections tossing eggs in front of cars running red lights, he said. However they would not be throwing the eggs directly at cars.

"The only way a car will be hit is if they are illegally running a red light or failing to stop for pedestrians," he said.

He said the group would steer away from confrontation with angry drivers.

The group is appealing for people in the central city to join them during their lunch break.

Inspector Derek Davison, planning manager at Auckland central police, said he could understand the frustration pedestrians felt but this was not the way to protest.

"Protesting is fine, but protesting should not increase the risk," he said. "Should a driver's vision be impaired by an egg on the windscreen it could create some danger to other road users and pedestrians.

"If a driver is startled and crashed into a car or pedestrian, the person who threw the egg might be reasonably expected to have some liability."

Automobile Association northern regional manager Stephen Selwood added: "We have sympathy with the issues they are trying to draw attention to and in no way want to condone red light running, but I don't know if this is the best way to protest."