Review of Gisborne’s controversial Grey St changes could determine fate of project

Luke Fisher

The hopscotch area alongside Grey St. It has been over 12 months since the street was redesigned and the Gisborne District Council will soon evaluate the effects of the road changes. Photo / Gisborne Herald

Crunch time awaits the controversial Grey St Streets for People project, with the trial concluding at the end of the month.

The Gisborne District Council (GDC) will begin an evaluation of the 12-month trial immediately after it ends on July 31.

Expected to be ready in October, this review will assess the effects of the road changes on a range of criteria using AI camera data, site inspections, and community feedback collected throughout the trial.

These metrics include walking and cycling activity, safety, traffic flow and efficiency, community satisfaction and whether modifications to the project were successful.

GDC journeys infrastructure manager Dave Hadfield told the Gisborne Herald that a decision will then be made on “whether to continue or decommission the whole project or parts of it and how this will be implemented along with the expected costs”.

Any decisions on the future of the trial will be made after October’s local elections.

GDC won funding from the NZ Transport Agency’s Streets for People programme in 2023. The funding covered 90% of the project’s $900,000 cost and could not be spent on anything else.

Changes to the road layout included new speed bumps, crossings, road art, planter boxes, and a dual-direction cycleway, as well as the removal of some parking spaces.

The Kahutia St T-intersection became left-turn-only from either side, but this was reversed in November after a safety audit.

These changes were intended to make the area more safe, vibrant and fun.

On July 3, 2024, about 100 residents showed up to protest the alterations to the street.

About a dozen protesters surrounded the Grey St/Childers Rd roundabout on Wednesday to call for a reversal of Grey St’s Streets for People project. Organiser Trish Aitkins is pictured second from the left. The protests have taken place weekly for a year. Photo / Luke Fisher

Protest organiser Trish Aitkins, who owns nearby business We Train You, told the Gisborne Herald that between six and 30 people have shown up to demonstrate almost every Wednesday since.

She said turnout declined after a council staff member reported being abused at one of the protests in August. She still believes the alleged abuse did not happen.

While she was pleased when the Kahutia St intersection was reinstated, she has maintained that the other changes made the street less safe.

“Taking the straight lines out of it has confused people, and now some people are finding it hard to negotiate the road, especially when it’s wet,” Aitkins said.

“The blocks in the middle of the road are a hazard – I’ve seen kids step out from behind those blocks that you just can’t see until you get there.”

Nearby business owners were affected by the removal of carparks, she said.

Hadfield acknowledged the “diverse” views expressed by the local community.

“We also appreciate the community’s engagement and commitment to shaping a safer and more accessible urban environment for everyone,” he said.

“All feedback and data collected over the full 12 months will be analysed and peer reviewed through August – October.”

People can still submit feedback on the trial at participate.gdc.govt.nz/streets-for-people.

Aitkins said she and other protestors will continue to assemble at midday every Wednesday until the GDC reverses the changes.

“We joke about it quite often and say that if their argument is that it’s going to cost them, we’ll get in there as a working bee and we’ll remove it,” she said.

“It’ll be gone in five minutes.”