City Council staff, councillors and Transit New Zealand officials will outline the recent traffic consultant’s report on the Northern Roading Options Scoping Study (NROSS) and listen to people’s opinions about the ideas being considered.

CCC Senior Transport Planner Stuart Woods stresses that no decisions have yet been made about the future of roading in north Christchurch.

“The Council is still to debate its options and is likely to make a decision in April about what to do next,” he says. “The important thing at this stage is to make the information about the study available to interested groups and individuals.”

The traffic consultant’s report, released in November last year, examines the 1600 submissions made by the public about the draft roading strategy (NROSS) released for consultation by the City Council, Transit NZ, Environment Canterbury and the Waimakariri and Hurunui district councils. The report includes further traffic modelling analysis to see what would happen if the strategy was changed in various ways to deal with concerns raised by the public.

The report says there is a clear case for extending the northern motorway south as an expressway to and across QE II Drive to Cranford Street. And it favours upgrading the capacity of Cranford Street, Hills Road, Northcote Road and part of QE II Drive, and creating a new link to extend Hills Road to QE II Drive. It recommends the western Belfast by-pass, which was discussed earlier, not be considered further in the next 20 years, based on current city growth and development.

The traffic consultant’s report suggests more discussion with the public and more detailed analysis are needed about extending both Grants Road (to Cranford Street) and Rutland Street (to Grassmere Street). About Rutland Street, the report says attention should be paid to potential social and environmental effects. There were more than 600 submissions last year against this part of the NROSS strategy.

The consultant’s report is not light reading. The two volumes run to about 150 pages of writing and many more diagrams. The recent work is outlined in the second volume, about 40 pages, excluding the many diagrams and the public submission analysis. For those interested in reading it or the executive summary, the report is available from the CCC Civic Offices in Tuam Street or on the Council website, at www.ccc.govt.nz/NorthernRoadingStudy/Reports/

• A venue for the 12 March information meeting has still to be confirmed. Council staff are keen to know how many people are interested in coming and ask that those wanting to attend call Communication Coordinator Tracey Edginton on 941 6424 or email her at (tracey.edginton @ccc.govt.nz) tracey.edginton @ccc.govt.nz