KEY POINTS:
I find your little column helpful and interesting. Out of curiosity, why are there now large patches of buff-coloured seal in Shakespeare Rd, Milford? Are they testing a new type of road sealing?
Bob Jones, Mairangi Bay.
Thank you, Mr Jones.
The buff colour is actually a mixture of red and orange, says Philip Keating of North Shore City Council. It's a road safety measure to protect those using a pedestrian crossing, particularly school students.
Drivers running red lights have been in a few close shaves lately, so the council has added red paint to the road surface to remind motorists they are approaching a crossing.
The orange is a special anti-skid surface that helps vehicles stop faster if the brakes are suddenly slammed on. Well done, council, I say.
Do motorcycles have to pay-and-display in the city? Does this apply to regular carparks, or just in designated areas? And if they do, where do they put the ticket?
Brendon Scott, Birkdale.
Currently Auckland City Council provides free motorcycle parking in all Park Right buildings across the city. It is also putting in additional free on-street spaces in the Remuera, Parnell and Ponsonby shopping areas.
There are already other on- and off-street spaces for motorbikes. Click here to find out where they are.
And here's the really good bit.
If you can park your motorcycle at the extreme end of a pay-and-display space, you do not have to pay.
You do have to pay if you take up a whole parking space, and you do have to buy a ticket. It seems several motorcyclists have bought a little plastic sleeve to attach to their handlebars and they slip the receipt in there.
During the Queen St upgrade several disabled carparks have disappeared, in particular those outside 371 Queen St. Will they be reinstated, or will more disabled parks be provided somewhere else?
Jillian Compton, Mt Wellington.
These two carparks were removed because they were deemed unsafe by an auditor from CCS Disability Action. The gradient of Queen St is quite steep here, and there was no wheelchair or pram ramp up to the footpath.
To compensate, an extra mobility parking space has been installed just round the corner in Turner St, where there were already two.
David Sheridan Jones, group manager of CBD Projects, says provision for disabled drivers was paramount in the planning of the upgrade, and that can now be found in side streets off Queen St.
Recently the road markings were repainted on Esmonde Rd heading west towards Barrys Point Rd. There is now an additional lane that forms out of the bus lane but goes nowhere. Essentially two lanes on one side of the lights merge into one. Why?
Simon Priddy, North Shore.
Before the Northern Busway was built, buses heading from Takapuna to the central city used the temporary Esmonde Rd bus lane and onramp to the motorway.
Now that the busway is up and running, North Shore City is reviewing the retention of the bus lane, taking into account future traffic growth. If the bus lane is to remain, even in the short term, the final road markings will be repainted in this area.
