By Dan Parker
Wellington City Council is making more changes to improve pedestrian safety in the inner city.
It follows a review which was already underway when the latest victim, a businessman who is a director of the city's bus company, was knocked down by one of his own buses.
At least 55 people have been seriously injured and three killed crossing Wellington's central city streets in the last six years.
“This is the Wellington culture, you don't see this on Queen St in Auckland, there are four lanes and you don't take the risk,” says road policing manager Insp Peter Baird.
Many of those injured have been knocked down by buses, the latest a director of the company that runs the buses, Tim Brown.
Mr Brown is in a stable condition, but the accident three weeks ago happened during a council and police review into pedestrian safety.
“The preliminary investigations suggest the man did not look, which is the whole crux of this whole inquiry - people are stepping out on to the roadway and not looking,” says Mr Baird.
Mr Baird says initial investigations show Mr Brown was caught out by a barrier erected on one side of the road for footpath widening work.
That was supposed to improve pedestrian safety, but it trapped him in the middle of the road.
Metal barriers now stretch the length of Willis St to stop people from crossing in the same place and will remain indefinitely.
“Internationally there is a trend away from barriers but we are not prepared to take a risk again for that section of Willis St,” says operation manager Mike Mendonca.
They will be removed when seats and bike stands replace them.
The council is also looking to remove phone boxes, lower the central city speed limit from 30 to 20km/h and increase the frequency of the green man at crossings.
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