Mount Maunganui College student Gia Nelson presented a petition at a Tauranga City Council meeting calling for safety measures at three rail crossings in Mount Maunganui.
Mount Maunganui College student Gia Nelson presented a petition at a Tauranga City Council meeting calling for safety measures at three rail crossings in Mount Maunganui.
A Mount Maunganui College student has called for immediate safety measures to be installed at three rail crossings following the tragic death of a student who was hit by a train.
Gia Nelson, 17, presented a petition - signed by more than 600 people - to Tauranga City Council commissioners at a meeting on October 16, supported by her father Riki Nelson.
It comes after 11-year-old Jorja-Ray Smith - a Mount Maunganui Intermediate School student - was hit and killed by a train while biking home from school at the Hewletts Rd rail crossing on July 31.
Jorja-Ray’s mother, Te Paea Smith, has previously called for the installation of barriers for pedestrians and cyclists, “zigzag” railing and a timetable change for trains travelling through the area.
Earlier this month, it was announced a specially designed walkway called a pedestrian maze would be installed along with fencing in the area of the crossing where Jorja-Ray was killed by mid-November.
Gia called for pedestrian barrier arms and “eye-level” signal lights to be installed at the Matapihi Rd, Hewletts Rd and Hull Rd railway crossings.
She said there were three schools in the area of the Hewletts Rd crossing where Jorja-Ray was killed - Omanu Primary, Mount Maunganui Intermediate and Mount Maunganui College.
Gia said the Hull Rd rail crossing was next to the Mount Sports Centre.
“This is a hazard because at times, there are no car parks near the field or courts, which forces parents to park near the track, making it unsafe for kids to be around.”
At the Matapihi crossing, Gia said there were railings but, in her view, it was still “dangerous”.
Gia said the proposed safety measures would “save lives”.
“We call on Tauranga City Council, Waka Kotahi [New Zealand Transport Agency] and KiwiRail to implement these safety measures immediately.”
She called for an independent safety risk assessment for cyclists and pedestrians around school zones in Mount Maunganui and the establishment of a student engagement forum to communicate with the council “so students have a place [where] they can voice their concerns and be heard”.
Riki Nelson, a representative for the Western Bay tangata whenua forum for SmartGrowth, said Gia initially presented her petition to the forum, which “fully endorsed” the kaupapa.
Tauranga City Council commission chairwoman Anne Tolley. Photo / Alex Cairns
Commission chairwoman Anne Tolley said Gia raised “really good points” and the council could “certainly advocate on behalf of the voice of students”.
Tolley said there was “a lot happening in the background” with Waka Kotahi and KiwiRail and the council was pushing to get “immediate” work done while the agencies put a long-term process in place.
She said the suggestion of a student representative group “is a very good one”.
Commissioner Shadrach Rolleston said the council was doing “quite a lot of work” at the Hull Rd intersection, including looking at putting extra car parks in the area.
In response to comments made about the Matapihi crossing, Rolleston said: “We try to direct people and cyclists to do the right thing, and sometimes human behaviour comes into it and we either avoid the barriers or run through the barriers or take things into our own hands. We will do what we can to protect and keep people safe.”
“At the end of the day, people will make their own judgments about whether to stop or not.”
After the meeting, Te Paea Smith said safety improvements at three rail crossings were “definitely what we need” and children “want to be able to bike to school and back”.
Mount Maunganui College principal Alastair Sinton said the school was “very proud” of Gia and she had his ongoing support to “continue advocating for our community’s needs”.
In a statement, KiwiRail chief of operations Siva Sivapakkiam said it worked with Waka Kotahi and councils throughout the country - including Tauranga’s - to find effective solutions to improve safety at nearly 1500 public rail level crossings.
Sivapakkiam said some immediate improvements would soon be underway at Hewletts Rd, with a paved and fenced pedestrian maze and additional fencing to prevent pedestrians crossing at other areas along the track.
A pedestrian maze is a specially designed walkway to slow people down before they walk over the tracks, prompting them to look up and down the track before crossing.
Sivapakkiam said Waka Kotahi, the council and KiwiRail were continuing to work on a long-term plan to further increase safety at level crossings.
Approached for comment, Waka Kotahi pointed to a joint media release with the council and KiwiRail on October 9, which said a subsequent review of the crossing where Jorja-Ray was killed had resulted in a decision by the three agencies to “bring forward” plans to improve safety measures.
