Safety of railway crossing at Belverdere Road, Carterton
Patrick Dunford made this Official Information request to Carterton District Council
Response to this request is long overdue. By law Carterton District Council should have responded by now (details and exceptions). The requester can complain to the Ombudsman.
From: Patrick Dunford
Dear Carterton District Council,
Kiwirail has begun to approach Carterton residents with proposals to close one or more level crossings within the Carterton township.
A cursory examination of aerial images of all the crossings suggests that the crossing at Belverdere Road fails to meet current safety standards in that there is insufficient stacking distance for traffic travelling east to stop clear of the crossing and the adjacent intersection with Broadway. This could easily be addressed by blocking off Broadway before it reaches the intersection.
In view of these incontrovertible facts and the necessity of some level crossings in the Wairarapa to be made safer, what if any steps has Carterton District Council undertaken to acknowledge and address the safety problem at the Belverdere Road level crossing?
Yours faithfully,
Patrick Dunford
From: LGOIMA Requests
Carterton District Council
Kia ora Patrick
LGOIMA request 2023-29
Thank you for your email request of 11 May 2023 requesting the following
information:
“Kiwirail has begun to approach Carterton residents with proposals to
close one or more level crossings within the Carterton township.
A cursory examination of aerial images of all the crossings suggests that
the crossing at Belverdere Road fails to meet current safety standards in
that there is insufficient stacking distance for traffic travelling east
to stop clear of the crossing and the adjacent intersection with Broadway.
This could easily be addressed by blocking off Broadway before it reaches
the intersection.
In view of these incontrovertible facts and the necessity of some level
crossings in the Wairarapa to be made safer, what if any steps has
Carterton District Council undertaken to acknowledge and address the
safety problem at the Belverdere Road level crossing?”
Your request is being handled under the provisions of the Local Government
Official Information and Meeting Act (1987). You can expect a reply no
later than 9 June 2023, which is 20 working days from the date we received
your request
Ngâ mihi
LGOIMA Requests| CARTERTON DISTRICT COUNCIL
Email: [1][email address]
Phone: (06) 3794030 | PO Box 9 Carterton 5743 | 28 Holloway Street
Carterton 5713 | Website: [2]www.cdc.govt.nz
show quoted sections
From: LGOIMA Requests
Carterton District Council
Kia ora Patrick
LGOIMA request 2023-29
Thank you for your email request of 11 May 2023 requesting the following
information:
“Kiwirail has begun to approach Carterton residents with proposals to
close one or more level crossings within the Carterton township.
A cursory examination of aerial images of all the crossings suggests that
the crossing at Belverdere Road fails to meet current safety standards in
that there is insufficient stacking distance for traffic travelling east
to stop clear of the crossing and the adjacent intersection with Broadway.
This could easily be addressed by blocking off Broadway before it reaches
the intersection.
In view of these incontrovertible facts and the necessity of some level
crossings in the Wairarapa to be made safer, what if any steps has
Carterton District Council undertaken to acknowledge and address the
safety problem at the Belverdere Road level crossing?”
Your request has been considered under the Local Government Official
Information and Meeting Act 1987 (the Act).
In response to your request, the rail level crossings are managed by
KiwiRail as they are the asset owner. Carterton District Council does not
maintain or improve any level rail crossings.
KiwiRail are planning safety improvements at the Belvedere Level Crossing,
however, you should contact KiwiRail directly for more information.
KiwiRail is asking anyone with interests, concerns, or ideas, to contact
them at: [1][email address].
For further information about the work taking place on the Wairarapa Line,
refer to the KiwiRail’s website which can be viewed here: [2]Wairarapa
Line | KiwiRail
Ngâ mihi
LGOIMA Requests| CARTERTON DISTRICT COUNCIL
Email: [3][email address]
Phone: (06) 3794030 | PO Box 9 Carterton 5743 | 28 Holloway Street
Carterton 5713 | Website: [4]www.cdc.govt.nz
From: LGOIMA Requests
Sent: Friday, 12 May 2023 4:18 pm
To: [FOI #22763 email]
Subject: Acknowledgement: LGOIMA 2023-29 Safety of railway crossing at
Belverdere Road, Carterton
Kia ora Patrick
LGOIMA request 2023-29
Thank you for your email request of 11 May 2023 requesting the following
information:
“Kiwirail has begun to approach Carterton residents with proposals to
close one or more level crossings within the Carterton township.
A cursory examination of aerial images of all the crossings suggests that
the crossing at Belverdere Road fails to meet current safety standards in
that there is insufficient stacking distance for traffic travelling east
to stop clear of the crossing and the adjacent intersection with Broadway.
This could easily be addressed by blocking off Broadway before it reaches
the intersection.
In view of these incontrovertible facts and the necessity of some level
crossings in the Wairarapa to be made safer, what if any steps has
Carterton District Council undertaken to acknowledge and address the
safety problem at the Belverdere Road level crossing?”
Your request is being handled under the provisions of the Local Government
Official Information and Meeting Act (1987). You can expect a reply no
later than 9 June 2023, which is 20 working days from the date we received
your request
Ngâ mihi
LGOIMA Requests| CARTERTON DISTRICT COUNCIL
Email: [5][email address]
Phone: (06) 3794030 | PO Box 9 Carterton 5743 | 28 Holloway Street
Carterton 5713 | Website: [6]www.cdc.govt.nz
show quoted sections
From: Patrick Dunford
Dear LGOIMA Requests,
Thankyou for your reply, however it contains wrong information and fails to address the points raised or the responsibility of the Carterton District for significant aspects of level crossing safety in Carterton District.
The safety of this level crossing is a combination both road and rail aspects, As Kiwirail cannot be responsible for fixing the road, this responsibility falls onto the roading authority, which is Carterton District Council.
Short stacking is recognised by multiple safety agencies as a serious safety problem in the case of level crossings and these crossings are rated as the most dangerous around New Zealand.
The only reasonable safety fix for short stacking problems is for the roading authority to improve the road design, this could be done by closing an intersection or relocating the intersection further away from the railway track. These measures are not within the ability of Kiwirail to perform. There is no reasonable measure that Kiwirail by itself could perform in order to address these matters.
In view of the above I invite you to reconsider your position and the above answer.
Yours sincerely,
Patrick Dunford
From: LGOIMA Requests
Carterton District Council
Kia ora Patrick,
This email is to acknowledge the receipt of your email of 14 May 2023.
We hope to provide you with a response in due course.
Ngâ mihi
LGOIMA Requests| CARTERTON DISTRICT COUNCIL
Email: [email address]
Phone: (06) 3794030 | PO Box 9 Carterton 5743 | 28 Holloway Street Carterton 5713 | Website: www.cdc.govt.nz
show quoted sections
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