Pillans Point School welcomes Chapel St safety upgrade

Thanks to the new safety upgrades, children from Pillans Point School can now cross Chapel St safely. Photo / Tauranga City Council

The risk of serious injury to students has reduced following safety feature upgrades to the Chapel St/Maxwells Rd crossing, says Pillans Point School’s principal.

The crossing’s new design allows pedestrians to cross to the median while traffic on one side is stopped before they can cross to the other side, a Tauranga City Council media release said.

Pillans Point School principal Jacq Price said in the release that 20 to 30 schoolchildren regularly used the crossing each day, and the upgrades would reduce the risk of serious injury.

“Requiring cars to come to a complete stop will allow students to cross safely and reduce the near-misses that have occurred in the past.

“The increased safety will encourage more students to walk, bike and scooter to school, providing reassurance to their parents about their children’s safety during the journey to school.”

Price said there had also been an increasing number of red-light runners, so ensuring children’s safety when crossing busy roads was key.

Council senior project manager for transportation Trevor Mills said in the release that the crossing, which spanned three lanes of traffic, had been the site of numerous near-misses in recent years and was used by many schoolchildren.

“The upgrade has improved safety for all road users by enhancing visibility and reducing vehicle speeds at the crossing,” Mills said.

Rain, hail or shine, Pillans Point School students can now cross Chapel St safely. Photo / Tauranga City Council

Karen Hays, the council’s manager of safety and sustainability, said it was reassuring Chapel St was now safer to cross.

“It is still important for people crossing to check before stepping out, even when they get the green signal,” Hays said.

“Through our Travel Safe programme in schools, we teach students how to safely navigate crossing the road. Signalised crossings provide another level of safety for our community.”

Mills said a small section of the connecting pathway on Chapel St was also widened for shared pedestrian and cyclist use as part of the works.

- SunLive