i use to work at th chocolate factory on the main road, we use to see crashes outside our window at the intersection all the time, well i worked ther for a year and a half and i must have seen atleast 6-8 crashes in the same place. its so dodgy, people need to be more carefull.
peasgood,
Dec 30, 10:51am
When are people up there, going to start to drive carefully ,and take it seriously,instead of being distracted by cellphones etc,and thinking their 5* craptiva or whatever ,is going too save them ,when they head on at closing speed of 200k !what a horrible mess for the emergency services to clean up.
planespotterhvn,
Dec 30, 11:11am
My condolenses to the families. NZ roads are poorly designed with no safety margin for human mistakes. Waikanae Otaihanga Para-para-umu Raumati all have non signalled intersections feeding onto THE Main North South State Highway ONE, directly out of the towns. Sure there are some signalled intersections but most are not.
speedy_11,
Dec 30, 11:40am
Roads dont kill people, bad driving does.
chris_051,
Dec 30, 3:48pm
AND! roads don't kill people, consider how many people use these intersections over the year without incident. It sounds as though the dickhead in the south bound car lost control at the end of the passing lane south of Waikanae, maybe they should scrap those two passing lanes as they serve no purpose in reality.
Interesting to note a family of 5 (3 kids) were in the COMMODORE wagon who escaped with injuries. What would the outcome have been if they were driving some small shit box Corolla or Mazda Demio import like so many families use. For those with families take that into consideration before purchasing your next car, for the sake of 2l/100km it not worth it if the shit hits the fan like yesterday.
trogedon,
Dec 30, 5:33pm
"6-8 crashes" isn't "all the time" over "a year and a half "
lalbagh,
Dec 30, 7:10pm
And when they do close the road and put "diversions" in place they cant even have sufficient nous to mark out the detour route. Crash near our place blocked main road, they diverted traffic off the main road but there were NO signs to direct traffic up rural roads around the site. Had puzzled people going in all directions trying to find the through route, had to put up a sign myself because of their incompetence.Abysmal planning guys. And when I complained, no follow up, no response from emergency services at all.
berg,
Dec 30, 7:23pm
Unfortunately, largely due to the Kapiti council burying their collective heads in the sand, there is no alternitive route round this bottle neck. Had the second bridge across the Waikanae river been built as promised and as us the rate payers have partially funded, there would have been a viable route round the crash scene. As for closing the road, it is a problem yes, but a nessary problem.
romulan7,
Dec 30, 7:56pm
Another one who should put their hands up to assist the emergency services!Marking a detour route is not the responsibility of the emergency services.Heres a place for you to step forward an help in the future http://www.aucklandoperationalsupport.org.nz/
tigra,
Dec 30, 8:09pm
I think you have the location wrong however I understand that the passing lanes are closed over the holiday period because they cause more problems than they solve.
berg,
Dec 30, 8:25pm
Passing lanes were open and clear at the Time. They only cone them off on the predicted "high traffic" days. Also plenty of room between the end of the passing lane and the corner in question.
thejazzpianoma,
Dec 30, 8:36pm
I agree and romulan having a whine about it not being emergency services responsibility is not helping fix the situation. You would think Emergency services would welcome this being looked into even if it just goes some way to removing the risk of nose to tails as the traffic backs up.
This needs to be made the responsibility of someone who is able to get to the scene quickly and who is capable of common sense.
We had the state highway closed for most of an afternoon here a while back when we were moving. There was a farmers flat paddock right by the road, if someone with some common sense and a few hundred dollars discretionary spending had been on hand the traffic could have easily been diverted through the paddock. All that was required was some negotiation with the farmer, dropping the fence and paying for the grass damage and fence to be put back up.
Much cheaper than the combined cost of lost appointments etc
I don't see why we are so adverse to improving our systems and roading in NZ. everyone just wants to be an apologist instead of say O.K how do we do it better then!
thejazzpianoma,
Dec 30, 8:40pm
Since everyone wants volunteers I will happily volunteer as a traffic management officer for this area. Give me a small budget, access to a council truck and some road management signs and I am your man!
ambo11,
Dec 30, 9:03pm
OP, maybe you need to come to work with some of us.and watch while we tend to people heavily trapped in mangled cars, screaming in pain and fear with leg/femur/pelvis fractures heavily caught in dashboards/steering columns/firewalls/pedals etc etc. Watch while we try to stabilize them and get on top of pain while the Firefighters work out the best way to cut the vehicle so it doesn't twist another way, and cause more grief to the patients inside. It can be a long, stressful, noisy and heartwrenchingprocess, and if fatalities occur then the Police need to accurately measure/photograph/interview etc to ascertain the reason for the crash. I've been to accidents where people have been trapped for over an hour (up to two hours) with multiple serious injuries.its simply not something that can be rushed. I can see your point but try to see it from others point of view.where lives of people just like yourself really are on the line.being an hour or so late for you while you wait in your air conditioned comfortable car pales in comparison.
wrong2,
Dec 30, 9:14pm
your in wellington
the whole route into the capital city on NZ is a joke
its amazing that the residents living next to SH1 were not turfed out decades ago so it could be widened
bashfulbro,
Dec 30, 9:14pm
fire brigade ,totally over react, saw a very minor incident on Auckland Motorway, truck had bumped a car in right lane,there were two other lanes free, traffic andkept moving good, while the truckie and car driver swapped details, but then 2 fire engines arrived, and the idiots, promptly park one in each of the free lanes and crated a total traffic jam that took hours to clear. Absolute stupidity,there was no need whatsoever for it,and it`s all too common.
nala2,
Dec 30, 9:15pm
A few years ago the same thing happened in that area, we were held up for over 3 hours (maybe more, can,t remember). As we were from the Wairarapa we were sort of in "no-mans land" as far as which way to proceed, The Police came through every 30 min, "saying not long now" but the real rub was it was Wellington Cup day at Trentham so they let the horse floats (massive trucks) through and we had to watch car loads of grinning jockeys going past obviously enjoying their privileged position. We were still there a long time after they went through.
bmwnz,
Dec 30, 9:22pm
I would like to see convicted dangerous drivers forced to work with road emergency services for some time. Maybe seeing people reduced to meat and the effects on survivors would ram more of a message home than the wet bus ticket slap.
socram,
Dec 30, 9:27pm
The crux of the matter surely is that State Highway 1 is our main arterial route therefore it not only needs to be of a standard that reflects its importance, but it also needs an alternative route. Belt and braces. I undertstand all the above posts but that fact remains that often, traffic management is apalling.
Simple example.Bad crash on the motorway in Auckland, blocking all lanes potentially for hours.So why aren't the on ramps before the incident closed immediately!Last off ramp coned to force people off! It should only take a few minutes to get a barrier erected and if required, the traffic can be turned around and led off under supervision.
Or, do what they do in the UK and put in a contra-flow system.They close one lane of the motorway in the opposite direction with cones and warning signs and there are designated gaps in the central barrier to shift the traffic across.
As #21/#22 says.It is about good proactive management and also planning, something that the powers that be are not good at.
elect70,
Dec 30, 10:01pm
Its not the emergencyservices that causemost delay ,they are gone withinanhour ,its thepolicecrash scene investigators . They close whole road for hours to preserve it as a crime scenethen take photos & measurementsetc from different anglesfor evidence . If it happens on desert rd , turn around ,they close itfor 6 hours or more .
romulan7,
Dec 30, 10:04pm
These people who are still complaining and saying how much better they can handle the situation have no idea what so ever.I do I also know how gut wrenching it is to have someone who you have been struggling to free die on you as you try to remove them and how physically and mentaly it is to do this task. Few times in the past that someone has come up to me while doing the roll of traffic control and complained about the hold up that I have bitten my lip rather than just being unproffesional.
romulan7,
Dec 30, 10:07pm
Yes it is stupidity to block an additional lane to make a safe working enviroment evne with a minor prang as you put it.The law is you slow down to 20kph when passing those Accident signs and be prepared to stop. Several years ago a Firefighter was killed on the Auckland Motorway, every step is now taken to prevent such an occurance now.
kazbanz,
Dec 30, 10:14pm
Guys -we are a country of 4 million people not 40 million etc etc. Hardly fair to compare our roads and emergency services to those in countries with a hugely greater available roading budget. MIND YOU- funny isn't it how we can "afford" 121 gubbimentfullas and all their hangers on. I gotta say I would unhesitatingly go to say 60 fellas in the beehive and have 60 more docs,cops and EMS out there.
romulan7,
Dec 30, 10:14pm
Not what happened with the M5 crash a few months ago!Traffic was diverted off the motorway in both directions the section of motorway closed for over 24 hours!
kazbanz,
Dec 30, 10:16pm
ACTUALLY - the guts of the matter isSOMEONE HAS DIED.a bunch of human beings are doing their best and fastest to clean up that mess and prevent the same thing happening in the future-if possible.
Since the public registrations are closed, you must have an invite from a current member to be able to register and post in this thread.
Have an account? Login here.