Transit endorses lanes colour code

By SCOTT MacLEOD

Green is a pleasant colour, but car and truck drivers will have to steer clear of it on our roads.

Transit New Zealand has endorsed green as the standard for the special bus and cycle lanes throughout Auckland.

The roading authority is now looking to adopt the colour nationwide.

A national stamp of approval for green will be a good thing for Auckland and Hamilton, where the colour is already used for specialist lanes. It will be less useful for Christchurch, which has been using red.

Transit's traffic operations engineer in Auckland, Derrick Hitchins, said the coloured bus lanes decision was made after visits to Edinburgh, Glasgow, Sydney and Brisbane.

In bulk, the special green chip will cost 20 to 30 per cent more than standard chip.

A Transit document said trials in Auckland showed that green surfacing in bus-only lanes brought an immediate cut in the amount of other traffic using them illegally.

Mr Hitchins said the colour red was being reserved for emergency areas on motorways, but Christchurch would not be forced into immediately changing its use of the colour.

Transit has been working on the Auckland lanes in a joint venture with local councils. Green paint is being tried on lanes in Symonds St, Fanshawe St, Tristram Ave and near the Westgate shopping centre.

The move comes as the Auckland City Council opened new cycle and bus lanes in Great North Rd, promising faster, more reliable bus services and safer cycling by separating those commuters from others.

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