POTENTIAL DANGER

Otago Daily Times, Issue 27346, 23 March 1950, Page 10

POTENTIAL DANGER

Short Street Deviation DEPUTATION TO MINISTER Short street, as a main highway, was particularly dangerous, and someone would get killed on it one of these days, stated Mr A. J. Pottinger, one of a deputation from the Green Island Borough Council which waited upon the Minister of Works, Mr Goosman, last night. An endeavour had been made to get the speed limit reduced to below 30 m.p.h., he said, but the Transport Department was not agreeable. Eighty per cent, of the traffic which should take the State highway down from Lookout Point and round the “ s ” bends to Concord and Burnside now used Short street. Other members of the deputation were Mr J. Boomer, the Mayor of Green Island Borough, and Mr F. W. Grey, chairman of the Works Committee. They wanted to get some indication from the Minister whether the main southern outlet would be through this street or adjacent to it through the nearby fields, to pick up the road again later near the store at Burnside. The borough had a town planner operating, and it would simplify the work of the borough if it knew where the road would go. Mr Goosman said that when the survey work was completed on the northern outlet, officers would be available to tackle the southern route, and not until then could an indication be given as to where the road would go. The deputation stated that a subsidy had been granted for the work of sealing .footpaths through the borough, but authority for the borough itself to do the work had been refused on the ground that it did not have a competent staff. Contractors were not available, they said. This the deputation denied. The Minister suggested the matter could be taken up with the district engineer, Mr A. G. Park, and possibly settled quite satisfactorily. Sealing of the highway over its full width, instead of only 24ft, as was proposed, was another matter brought to the notice of the Minister. Tenders in the first place had been too high, but the second tender advertisements only called for a partial width sealing. A strip of 51 chains of the Abbots-ford-North Taieri rodd the deputation desired to be declared a main highway, as it carried a considerable volume of through traffic, and the maintenance of the road was getting beyond the resources of tne borough. All they wanted was a straight yes or no, said Mr Pottinger, and then, they would know just what to do. So far the Highways Board had not answered the question which was put to it in November last.

The Minister suggested these matters be followed up again. He arranged with the borough officials to confer with the district works engineers.