I ride that corner every day and find myself sharing the bike lane with a car at least once a week. Monday this week it was a police car.
The other danger corner for me and every other cyclist is around the corner on Waimairi.
https://www.google.co.nz/maps/@-43.510749,172.5710165,3a,75y,336h,90t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sA34IvTcQ-ZwxjzIiWihcuA!2e0!7i13312!8i6656!6m1!1e1

Personally as a driver, I’d be embarrassed and ashamed at my lack of ability if I needed to cut these corners, at any time let alone when there’s a cyclist in the bike lane!

Thanks for checking into it. I completely agree the priority of unimpeded vehicle flow over cycle (or vehicle) safety is wrong in general, and especially at the Kotare Kahu Rd intersection where so, so few vehicles turn right there as you (CP) note.

I agree that when the separators are well placed on a curve they work a treat. The ones on Kahu Rd adjacent to the Boy’s High School tennis courts works a treat, for example. I have read one (admittedly just one) comment on Stuff somewhere by a motorist who hates them because they cause them to have to cross the centre line potentially endangering oncoming traffic now that they are unable to cut the corner. This is a process and its going to take some longer than others to adjust.

I do look forward to seeing some appear on the Kahu Rd. bridge, the lead in to the Creyke-Clyde Rd intersection (going toward the central city from the west) to prevent premature and dangerous cycle lane intrusion by queueing as someone else has noted, at west side of the curve at the intersection of Waimairi Rd and Peer St, the inside of the intersection of the intersection of Annex Rd and Birmingham Dr where the white line and red fill paint has been eroded all the way to the gutter (although this is due a major overhaul in conjunction with the completion of the Curletts Rd overbridge), and… These are just the curves I cycle most regularly I can think of off the top of my head and which see the most routine and egregious cycle lane intrusion in my experience.

I think they ARE great when properly installed and want to see them EVERYWHERE appropriate!

I have asked CCC why there’s only a single post & why it very early on the left curve of the intersection of Kahu Rd. and Kotare St heading towards city (travelling south east). I pointed out the single post isn’t enough as the green is already becoming black. Cars do stay right until they’re past the post then many cut the corner, ignoring the improvement.
Response I got was it’s intentional as they didn’t want to impede traffic flow and block cars by allowing them to move left if there’s a car waiting in middle of road to turn right into Kahu. So traffic flow efficiency rules over safety! 🙁
The priority is incorrect on that left bend. Many many vehicles travel south east towards city but few then turn right into Kahu. It’s wrong in that location.

However overall the improvements are good improvements.
I’m eagerly waiting to see what they do at the Deans bush bridge hump. On paper it is promising. Time will tell.

Actually the Council already has a nice long list of sites, thanks to the previous feedback provided on this website. But you’re welcome to suggest more locations; contact Michael.Ferigo[at]ccc.govt.nz. Hopefully the Council will continue to have a few spare cycleway dollars to keep rolling these out.

@LennyBoy

Ah, I see. Do you know if they’re planning to put more separators along these roads? Is there some way we could go about recommending further separators to the council?

Sorry, any post with more than one web link gets moderated first, to make sure it’s not spam.

My first post appears to be missing unfortunately.

The Kahu Rd bridge (Riccarton bush) is an obvious choice where there should be separators – I was very surprised they didn’t do this with the other work as that was a very obvious choice.

I’d also love to see a lane separator just before the left turning lane splits to try and prevent cars from blocking the cycleway as they wait to enter the left turning lane (as they sit to the left blocking the cycle lane despite being quite far back from the turnoff).

https://www.google.co.nz/maps/@-43.5222555,172.5888017,3a,75y,81.12h,62.06t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1slApuSzZ7P7P7rKwuzSguEw!2e0!7i13312!8i6656

A perfect though unfortunate illustration of the problem. I ride that route as often as I ride anywhere and its a VERY common occurrence along that specific curve – while preparing oneself for the melee that can be going straight through the intersection with Ilam Rd in the face of left turning traffic even though separators are present. Not only are motorists breaking the law by cutting across lanes like this, they are also breaking the first law of the road which says drive to the conditions at all times: as far as I see it, if a driver has to cut a lane like this then they are driving too fast. Anyways, another place to add some separators.

When they are not present even on this generally well divided route such as at the curve cresting the Kahu Rd. bridge (west side adjacent to Putaringamotu/Riccarton Bush) the cycle lane remains fair game as they almost always are everywhere else. They do not appear to be functioning as the “driver educational device” about how to interact with cycle LANES in general (by keeping out of them) they could be. At least not yet.

Similarly, cycle lane separators at intersections do not appear to be working as “driver education devices” either. The road rules may be a little ambiguous about passing on the left and not in a separate lane if no one is turning right, but they are abundantly clear about not crossing a cycle lane in the path of a cyclist if they are going straight through an intersection, even if the cyclist is coming from behind. In my experience driver compliance of this rule is only 20-30% and compliance, therefore, can never be expected. Indication of the intention to turn may only be 50%. Cycle lane separators at intersections do not appear to be making a difference with either of these abysmal statistics. At least not yet.

With MUCH greater ubiquity, appropriate signage (like, “give way to cyclists” – as if “extreme care, cyclists merging” at any number of roadwork sites where usurping the cycle lane as part of a construction zone is way too common appears to make much difference, now that I think about it) and driver education cycle lane separators might just help motorists up their game when sharing the road with cyclists at the most dangerous points on the road in a way getting cyclists completely off the road and onto dedicated cycleways cannot?

Funnily enough, I just realized a google street view photo of that last corner I mentioned from slightly up the road captures the exact problem! The car in the photo illustrates my point perfectly!

https://www.google.co.nz/maps/@-43.5196,172.581881,3a,75y,137.33h,61.36t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sgXN8PmOQaw0WhZPmDGpURw!2e0!7i13312!8i6656