The council’s failure to act on Clyde residents’ concerns about speed on a busy road could be deadly, a concerned resident says.
At a Central Otago District Council meeting of the council yesterday, Lynne Stewart, of Clyde, said walking or riding along Earnscleugh Rd was "really, really dangerous".
In December 2019 she, along with local parent Elina Kiuru, the then Clyde Primary School principal, Doug White, and schoolchildren rode from Clyde to the council offices in Alexandra to present a petition with more than 170 signatures that pleaded for sections of Earnscleugh Rd to be reduced from 100kmh to 70kmh and 50kmh.
The speeds needed to be reduced "before there is a fatality," Mrs Stewart said.
She had lived in the area for about 35 years and the road speed had continued to be 100kmh on sections of the road despite there being increasingly more houses in the area, including in the Picnic Creek subdivision.
Cyclists on the Otago Central Rail Trail were also affected by cars driving at high speeds, she said.
"We have frightened cyclists."
There was barely any room along some sections of the road for people walking or biking, she said.
Central Otago Mayor Tim Cadogan said after being presented with the petition he investigated the road with the then roading manager.
"There is no question it is a problem."
One of the problems was people ignoring signs to reduce to 50kmh, and Mr Cadogan said he had spoken to police to see if more checks could be done in the area.
Council roading manager James McCallum said the council was working a proposal to extend the 50kmh section of road to the far side of the Picnic Creek subdivision, as well as extending the transition zone from 100kmh to 50kmh.
