Airlie Beach’s central business district may be set for a pedestrian crossing shake-up.
Whilst works are being undertaken on the coastal town’s Main Street*, Whitsunday Regional Council have begun seeking comment on pedestrian vs vehicle priority.
Results from council’s ‘Pedestrian Priority Investigation’ will inform future decision making on nine pedestrian crossings in town.
Currently, crossings on Airlie Beach Main Street function as pedestrians giving way to vehicles, allowing traffic to flow easily, but having impact on pedestrian movement.
To “find the right balance” for pedestrians and vehicles, council are seeking comments on three options: installing pedestrian zebra crossings; changing to a shared crossing area; or remaining the same with pedestrians giving way.
Council’s Director of Infrastructure Adam Hagy said that with the transient nature of Airlie Beach and the reliance on visual cues, crossing the street can be confusing for some tourists.
“[We need] to consider how we prioritise pedestrian and vehicle movement in Airlie Beach Main Street to find the right balance,” Mr Hagy said.
“We do however need to conduct a comprehensive analysis to ensure additional pedestrian priority options don’t impact traffic flows, particularly around intersections.
“We also need to take into consideration the Australian Standards which were updated in 2021.”
Pedestrian zebra crossings would see current crossings changed to designated areas where vehicles must stop for pedestrians, marked by zebra crossings. The detractors being slower vehicle movement through the street and carparks, but increased safety for foot traffic.
Shared crossing areas would act as a middle ground between the current set-up and zebra crossings, seeing crossings adjusted so that vehicles and pedestrians “share the road”, navigating via eye contact and body language.
The deficit being a minimum width of 20 metres for these areas, which would result in works to cut back landscaping and street parking to meet those requirements.
To undertake the survey, open now until 28 October, visit Council’s YourSayWhitsunday website here: https://bit.ly/3SOAXyS
*Read Airlie Beach Main Street Closures Next Week on page 3 of this newspaper
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