Lines drawn over dangerous corner
Nelson City Council won’t be painting yellow lines to deter drivers parking on a residential street corner, despite one man’s concern over possible accidents.
Shelbourne Street resident Mike Murphy said cars were frequently parked on one of the corners, creating a hazard for anyone travelling down the street.
‘‘They cannot see the cars that are often parked behind the marked parking space as they approach.
‘‘And the ones that are parked right at the apex of the corner are an obvious hazard.’’
Murphy said he had asked the council to put a dotted yellow line on the corner to deter people from parking there.
‘‘I have spoken to them on at least two occasions but they say that they will not authorise lines to be painted there because there is a law against parking within 1.5 metres of a corner and they therefore do not need to spend money on having lines painted.
‘‘Interestingly, there are yellow strips painted on the next corner up the street.’’
He said pohutukawa trees blocked the view, making it difficult for people to see what was on the other side.
‘‘My concern is if somebody ran into [an illegally parked] car and that’s going to push it into the one that is legally parked.
‘‘The other day there were two cars parked on the apex of the corner and we saw a truck having to negotiate getting around it.’’
Murphy said children often rode their bikes down the street after school.
‘‘[They’re] a bit distracted and I’m concerned one of them will run into [the car]. I think it’s a bit of a danger.’’
Nelson City Council communications manager Paul Shattock said the council’s policy regarding the use of dotted yellow lines had changed over the years.
Lines that were painted on before the change in policy were maintained but no new lines were added in areas where ‘‘anyone who knows the road code is aware they can’t park’’.
‘‘To clarify the situation on this corner, a white edge line will be added, tapering back from the existing marked parking bay.’’