The Orakei Bay Village retail development (OBV) has brought welcome new life and energy to the Orakei Peninsula. However, as reported earlier, OBV has also brought unwelcome traffic challenges – especially at peak hour. Congestion in OBV’s car parks has been problematic, and movements in and out of OBV parking areas have tended to disrupt already slow-moving Orakei Road traffic. And when traffic flows speed up, pedestrians run the gauntlet as they cross from Orakei Basin Walkway to OBV, with no more than a mid-road refuge for safety.
The East and Bays Courier reports that OBV’s car-park congestion may ease from June, when short term metered parking is to be introduced. But the traffic issues on Orakei Road remain unresolved.
And OBV is not yet fully tenanted. What’s more, the developer continues to press for an eight-level apartment building on this site which – visual impact aside – will surely exacerbate the problem.
What’s needed is a traffic and pedestrian crossing solution for this development. Does Auckland Transport have the answer – and if so, when will it be implemented?