A final call about whether state highway routes through central Dunedin stay one-way could be made early next year.
More work is being done to refine both the one-way and two-way options for State Highway 1 through the core of the city and Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency has signalled its decision will come in the first quarter of 2023.
That places it after this year’s local body elections, which might yet prove to be a factor.
The agency’s board last year backed a programme of works that included retaining the one-way system, prompting the city council to support a two-way option as the basis for future discussion, after a 7-5 vote.
Dunedin Mayor Aaron Hawkins has said rethinking SH1 through the city centre would deliver more benefits than the status quo, or tweaking the status quo.
Some change to the transport network became inevitable after the Government decided in 2019 that the new Dunedin Hospital should be built in the city centre, between the pair of busy SH1 routes.
Work has since started on a package aimed at offsetting traffic disruption associated with the build, but a final call about retaining the SH1 one-way system is pending.
In the letter from Sir Brian, written in June to Mr Hawkins and former Southern District Health Board chairman Pete Hodgson, two pieces of work needed to refine the options were highlighted.
"The first is to confirm the functionality and refine the cost estimates for both options, and the second is to investigate the urban design improvements that could be made to both options to improve the attractiveness, safety and access requirements," Sir Brian said.
"Both pieces of work will be completed in the second half of 2022."
Advantages previously identified for keeping the one-way system included more reliable journey times for drivers on key transport routes.
It has also been backed heavily in surveys and informal polls.
Advantages cited for changing to a two-way model included providing an enhanced environment for pedestrians, and making walking and cycling more attractive.
This was promoted as an opportunity to promote transformational change, reconfiguring the heart of the city.
Sir Brian said a discussion in May had been "helpful in identifying and reinforcing the significant impact the use of the state highway has in the central city" and how it could affect the new hospital and wider health precinct.
The meeting also highlighted the challenge of moving people and freight within and across the city efficiently while also making it more viable for people to use alternative transport methods to cars, he said.
Working together would be critical for achieving objectives and decision makers would need to be mindful of the needs and wishes of the Dunedin public and regional community, as well as the freight industry and other groups, he said.
Proposed changes to the transport network should be "integrated with the form and function envisaged for the central city", including SH1, SH88, and the harbour arterial route.
Work is to be carried out next year to make the harbour arterial route a more viable bypass of the central city.
