Research and publications

This project was undertaken by ViaStrada's Megan Fowler as part of the third professional year of her Bachelor of Engineering university studies. She later presented a paper at the IPENZ 2006 Transportation Conference based on the project findings.

The presentation illustrates the basic concepts of staged pedestrian crossings compared with traditional crossings at signalised intersections, including operational methods and physical requirements.

ViaStrada was commissioned by the NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) to update the cycling-related content of the Manual of Traffic Signs and Markings (MOTSAM). MOTSAM is the guideline that the industry uses for signs and markings. The update was published in August 2008.

The safety of pedestrians crossing multi-lane road intersections is often threatened by filtering turning vehicles. The introduction of staged pedestrian crossings, where the crossing of departure and approach lanes are treated as two separate tasks, can provide more protection to pedestrians by allowing greater control of the traffic. Related changes to the phasing arrangement such as direction-dependant pedestrian crossing timings can also result in the staged pedestrian crossing increasing the intersection efficiency.

ViaStrada was commissioned by the Christchurch City Council to undertake an investigation into the provision of protected right turns at two of the city’s signalised intersections. This has then led to the development of a draft process for treating right turn problems at traffic signals. The project was presented at the 2008 Signals New Zealand User Group conference in Whangarei.

This technical note summarises two "think-pieces" commissioned by the former Land Transport NZ (now the New Zealand Transport Agency) in 2008.

The first is a research paper by McCormick Rankin Cagney that forecasts future oil prices, estimates consequential impacts on travel demand, and identifies "no regrets" interventions that central and local government could implement to reduce the transport system's dependency on oil based transport fuels.

The second is a think-piece by ViaStrada that considers practical ways to get the most out of New Zealand's road transport system.

The safety of pedestrians crossing multi-lane road intersections is often threatened by filtering turning vehicles. The introduction of staged pedestrian crossings, where the crossing of departure and approach lanes are treated as two separate tasks, can provide more protection to pedestrians by allowing greater control of the traffic. Related changes to the phasing arrangement such as direction-dependant pedestrian crossing timings can also result in the staged pedestrian crossing increasing the intersection efficiency.

This technical note discusses the design and modelling of staged pedestrian crossings, as well as addressing common concerns about their implementation.

A difficult problem was reviewed by ViaStrada at the request of a road controlling authority. An urban arterial road with a 50 km/h speed limit intersected a 100 km/h rural arterial at a large (60 m diameter) roundabout with two circulating lanes of traffic. A range of options was considered.

This technical note covers Christchurch City Council's ambitious plans for bus priority, with 26 km of routes on three corridors to be improved. The first focus is on the community engagement approach for the overall project. The second focus is on the role of a controversial trial of bus boarders on a two-lane road on the Queenspark route.

Walking and cycling strategies are useful tools that aid councils in providing for pedestrians and cyclists. A stocktake of all current walking and cycling strategies was undertaken. This revealed that there are now 61 strategies prepared by 55 different councils (out of 85).