For World Environment Day, Living Streets Aotearoa members are installing pou hikoi or “walking poles” in walkable communities throughout Wellington. The poles are painted black and white like a pedestrian crossing with shoes walking up and onwards! [see http://livingstreets.org.nz/foot_art.htm]
The poles will be up from Queen’s Birthday weekend in time for World Environment Day on the 5th of June.
First Name: Mike
Last Name: Mellor
Street Address: 11 Newport Terrace
Suburb: Seatoun
City: Wellington
Phone: 04 388 8625
Email: mike.mellor@livingstreets.org.nz
Submitted: 2008-04-29 22:03:32
I would like to make an oral submission: Yes
I am making this submission on behalf of an organisation
Organisation Name: Living Streets Aotearoa Inc
Minutes of Meeting held at Wellington City Council Committee Room 1 on 28th April 2008 at 6pm
Present: Celia Wade-Brown, Alexia Pickering, Carol Comber, Marie Brown, Joanne Meaclem, Kim Keene, Miranda Munroe, Susan Cook, Don McDonald, Mike Mellor, Lily Linton, Robert Davies, Liz Thomas, Andy Foster, Liz Robinson, Una McGurk.
Apologies:
1. Welcome and introduction to Living Streets
Wellington’s weather smiled on between 250 and 300 people who took time out from their walk to work to fuel up on hot cross buns and coffee at Frank Kitts Park this morning.
Carol Comber of Living Streets Wellington, who co-ordinated Wellington's Walk 2 Work Day, said "It was fantastic to see so many people enjoying the food and standing in the sunshine chatting to fellow commuters. Today was a wonderful celebration and a real reminder that walking is a great way to get to work."
Free breakfast treats are on offer in Frank Kitts Park between 7 and 9 am on Wednesday March 19th for Wellingtonians who walk all or part of their journey to work.
Walk 2 Work Day event coordinator, Carol Comber, says "Wellington walkers, come along for hot cross buns, fruit, tea and coffee on your way to work. There will be a prize for entering a Walk2Work Story on flyers distributed in the days before the event, at the breakfast, or downloaded from the Living Streets website.
Media release 27th February 2008
People on footpaths deserve the same consideration as people using mobility car parks, says walking advocacy group Living Streets Aotearoa.
Fines for those illegally using mobility car parks are set to rise to $150, while the fine for parking on a footpath remains at $40.
Living Streets Aotearoa President, Celia Wade-Brown says, "Why do we care more about a person with disabilities if they drive than if they are on the footpath?"
While she welcomes the likely increase of the fine for mobility park transgressors up to $150, she urges Transport Minister Annette King to amend the Land Transport (Offences & Penalties) Regulations 1999 to send a clear message about the need to be considerate when parking one's car.
"People in wheelchairs, mobility scooters, walking frames and blind people with canes or guide dogs need clear footpaths too."
"I'm very sympathetic about stopping mobility parks being abused by lazy people. I am also concerned about the number of vehicles parking on the footpath so they obstruct passage for wheelchairs, pushchairs and other pedestrians with limitations on their mobility."
The real cost of a fine for footpath parking continues to erode and isn't much of a disincentive at $40, given the unlikelihood of being ticketed.
Ms Wade-Brown initiated the yellow feet flyers used by Living Streets members to discourage footpath parking in their neighbourhoods.
"Often it's a case of not thinking about the problems other people face - whether it's children walking to school and being faced with vans driving up onto footpaths, or wheelchair users being forced onto the road where there aren't kerb ramps, or blind pedestrians having to negotiate their way around vehicles that may have items protruding dangerously that cannot be detected by a cane."
"People need to think of each others' needs before their own convenience. Sometimes drivers think they are helping other drivers by keeping out of the road carriage on narrow streets - but then the most vulnerable people suffer."
Living Streets member, Alexia Pickering, says, "Last Saturday I was unable to access a footpath leading to my apartment because a van had parked itself lengthwise on the footpath outside. I had to travel along the road in my wheelchair and was helped up onto the footpath by a stranger who came to my assistance."
Ms Wade-Brown, who is also a Wellington City Councillor, encourages Council staff and Parkwise to look after people's best interests and resist caving into lazy drivers' demands. "Places to park will always be limited in a compact walkable city. There's no inalienable right to park on the footpath outside one's own garage!"
She attributes some of the problem to the high car ownership in New Zealand - currently around 627 cars per 1,000 people.
Living Streets Aotearoa is New Zealand
People on footpaths deserve the same consideration as people using mobility car parks, says walking advocacy group Living Streets Aotearoa.
Fines for those illegally using mobility car parks are set to rise to $150, while the fine for parking on a footpath remains at $40.
Living Streets Aotearoa President, Celia Wade-Brown says, "Why do we care more about a person with disabilities if they drive than if they are on the footpath?"
Minutes of Meeting held 25 February 2008
Wellington City Council
Present: Brent Effort, Iona Pannett, Liz Thomas, Celia Wade-Brown, Carol Comber, Lily Linton, Alexia Pickering, Debs Moir
Apologies: Kim Keene, Don McDonald, Mike Mellor
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Living Streets Aotearoa is the New Zealand organisation for people on foot, promoting walking-friendly communities. We are a nationwide organisation with local branches and affiliates throughout New Zealand.
We want more people walking and enjoying public spaces be they young or old, fast or slow, whether walking, sitting, commuting, shopping, between appointments, or out on the streets for exercise, for leisure or for pleasure.
