Manchester Street turns may be banned

Press, 16 June 1982, Page 6

Manchester Street turns may be banned

T&’e Christchurch Transport* Board is likely to ask the pity council to introduce measures to stop motorists turning right into Manchester .Street between Armagh Street and Tuam Street. Tfie board is concerned that the build-up in traffic in Manchester Street since the closing of several inner-city streets for, the construction of the shopping mall is causing -its buses undue delays;.' The operations manager, Mr E. H. Saundercock, in a report to the board’s operations committee, said that it would be in everyone’s interest to reduce traffic congestion in Manchester Street between Armagh Street and Tuam Street, particularly in the late-after-noon peak hours.

Board members were concerned about the number of vehicles that now turned right from Worcester Street into Manchester Street, against regulations. The senior . city traffic officer, Mr I. Wz McLauchlan, said that it was an offence to make a right-hand turn at this corner and a motorist was liable to a fine if apprehended.

“We have not had any complaints about traffic turning illegally at this corner but we are willing to talk with the Transport Board to see if it is having any troubles,” Mr McLauchlan said.

The Transport Board will also seek permission from the council to allow it to use the space outside the United Service Hotel as a turnaround area for North Beach buses. At present, inward buses from North Beach turn left but of Worcester Street into Manchester, Street, then right into Hereford 7 Street and finally right into Colombo Street to enter Cathedral Square from the south/

“All three of these turns are difficult for buses during busy times and have become markedly more so since the High Street closing has thrown more traffic into Manchester Street,”- Mr Saundercock said.

When the Square was redesigned in the early 19705, the turning bay outside the United Service Hotel was used by the board’s buses. This continued until 1980.

Since then only tour buses and pedestrians had been allowed on the tiles.

In 1980 council engineers were against the board using this area as a turning point. The board’s general manager, Mr M. G. Taylor, said that warnings from the traffic engineers that buses would break the tiles were “really only a red herring.” Mr T. G. Smith said that the board was being inconvenienced by not being able to use the turning point. “The area .was designed to carry buses and/if thetiles break it is a mistake by the engineers and not our worry,” he said. A maximum of three North Beach buses would use the turning point each hour.. Petrol rise Mr Taylor said that the rise in the price of petrol yesterday was “higher and earlier in the year” than last time, but it was not steep enough to cause any worries with the estimates. The rise is estimated to add another $85,000 to the board’s fuel bill,, taking it to $1.3 million for the year, against an estimated cost of $1.4 million.