DCC hazards register progressing

Dunedin city council staff are to report back to councillors on progress on the installation of a hazards register on the council's website.

People, particularly cyclists, will be able to notify the council through the hazards register of dangers they encounter on the city's roads.

The recommendation was passed during the presentation of the New Zealand Transport Agency (NZTA) road safety report 2006-10 to the council infrastructure services committee this week. Cr Jinty MacTavish moved to add the recommendation to one to note the report.

Senior traffic engineer Ron Minnema said it was a part of the work staff were progressing, but Cr MacTavish said she wanted a specific recommendation added so the public would be kept aware of its progress.

Such a register was important because responses to risk areas for vehicles and pedestrians generally centred around accident and injury reports, where cyclists often under-reported incidents, she said.

A register would alert council of risk areas and respond appropriately.

Mr Minnema said staff received many reports from cyclists by telephone anyway and having that centralised would actually reduce staff's workload.

Councillors noted the NZTA's report, which showed trends in crashes and casualties in Dunedin.

The report said that while the overall downward trend in crash numbers and casualties continued, and was reducing faster than the rest of New Zealand, Dunedin continued to have higher crash and casualty rates than its peer local authorities.

In 2010, traffic crashes in Dunedin, including on State Highways, cost the community $112.02 million, down from $126.51 million in 2009.

Urban crashes made up about three-quarters of the cost.

Dunedin had the highest relative crash risk at urban intersections of any local authority in the country, and significantly more pedestrians aged 15 to 30 were injured in Dunedin than the rest of New Zealand, as were significantly more motorcyclists aged between 20 and 30.

The report also provided a brief overview of current and proposed road safety interventions by the council and its road safety partners.

 

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