The intersection of Ilam, Middleton and Riccarton Rds is infamous for being difficult to navigate due to the alignment of the three roads.
Christchurch City Council transport planning and delivery manager Lynette Ellis said the intersection is one of the worst in the city from a safety perspective.
But today, city councillors agreed to make changes to the intersectionm, which will impact how traffic moves through it and the surrounding area.
The changes involve:
- Only allowing left-turning traffic to move between Riccarton Rd and Middleton Rd, which will effectively make the junction of Ilam and Riccarton Rds a T-intersection.
- Altering the layout of the intersection to accommodate dedicated bus lanes.
- Restricting access at the Field Tce/Riccarton Rd intersection to left in, left out traffic.
- Creating a new right-turn only lane from Riccarton Rd into Wharenui Rd.
Riccarton Ward city councillor Catherine Chu was one of three councillors to vote against the changes.
"I can't support this because the majority of the community don't support this, not because it does not address the safety issues, it is because it has not addressed what they wanted to attain in the proposal, so I won't be voting for this," she said.
"I just can't hand to heart say that I have represented my community by voting in favour of this."
The Haswell-Hornby-Riccarton Community Board had concerns the plan would displace the 7000 vehicles per day using Middleton Rd on to local residential streets such as Lochee Rd and Balgay St which are very narrow.
City councillors Yani Johanson and Aaron Keown also voted against the proposal.
City councillor Mike Davidson, who is chairman of the council's urban development and transport committee, said while he could understand the concerns of the community, safety had to come first.
"The intersection of Ilam, Middleton and Riccarton Rds is ranked as the seventh most dangerous intersection in Christchurch and has been the scene of far too many accidents," he said.
