Deaths at ‘Stop’ sign could have been avoided
I CAN no longer stay silent.
Your frontpage coverage (ODT, 6.10.21) of the dual loss of life at the intersection of Church and Huntly Rds in September 2019 enrages me, and was so avoidable had our navelgazing city council not disposed of its rural representation.
Prior to 2007, I fought to have the Dunedin City Council retain about $1 million in a dedicated account entitled ‘‘seal extension’’ with the intention to incrementally seal unsealed roads. This practice had endured since 1989.
Each of the community boards competed for these funds, and each had a priority list of which the sealing of Church Rd, Outram, had come to the top of the Mosgiel/Taieri Board's priority list.
Due to flooddamaged records I cannot say with certainty, but it was probably in the summer of 2005 that I and the then roading manager were inspecting that road and its intersection with Huntly Rd, preparatory to calling for ‘‘sealing’’ tenders when we noted that the ‘‘Stop’’ signs appeared to be undersized.
Worse — one was partially enveloped by the foliage of a neighbouring property's hedge while the other was completely obscured by the vegetation that bounded the opposite property.
Though I faithfully kept records, they were inundated by the flood of April 26, 2006, but I'd be very surprised if these findings were not recorded with the DCC by the roading officer who attended me.
The elected representative who succeeded me was not a supporter of roadseal extension and voted against the funding of this account. Thus, two people have unnecessarily died for the want of a modest funding approval of that account, maybe a funding commensurate with the cost of painting dots on the surface of the George St paving. Maurice Prendergast
Mosgiel
[DCC general manager infrastructure and development Simon Drew replies:
‘‘We have previously advised the
ODT that further improvements to this intersection are planned. Some changes have already been carried out.
‘‘These improvements are part of a wider programme of work to upgrade rural intersections across the district.’’]
THERE have been a few articles lately about the size and positioning of compulsory ‘‘Stop’’ signs.
Tragic though an accident is, the question that should be asked is, how often did the driver take that route and, therefore, would have known about the sign?
Also, there is ‘‘Stop’’ painted on the road, and a yellow line for visual reference.
One just needs to observe at signs in Cromwell and Wanaka, to take some local examples, to witness about half of the drivers going through them at between 5 and 40kmh.
In their minds they probably believed they had stopped.
This includes motorcyclists and cyclists too, who are more vulnerable, but also complain about cardriver behaviour while perpetrating it themselves.
It’s clear to see if they have stopped — putting a foot down proves that. Gerry Spencer
Wanaka