Car parking confusion in Matakana

Frustration over the appearance of dotted yellow lines near Matakana School were voiced at a Matakana Community Group (MCG) meeting on Monday, July 8.

Chair Simon Barclay said the group had asked Auckland Transport (AT) several times if it could provide a central lane to allow traffic to turn right into the school carpark and no parking in the left-hand lane, so other traffic could continue on its way into Matakana.

A dropped kerb at the southern end of the carpark nearest the school was also requested, to allow departing traffic an easy left turn onto Matakana Road.

Two meetings had been held on site since October, with AT telling Barclay it would be in touch over what could be done.

However, on returning from overseas last week, he found that broken yellow lines had been painted along both sides of the road, though no central turning lane, without any update or consultation.

“There are now yellow lines that stretch way back down Matakana Road, and rather surprisingly, into the new subdivision,” he said. “But there are no yellow lines outside the car park.

“The end result is that parents can no longer drop kids off along a stretch of road that was previously used with no problems, but cars can continue to park in the one area that causes congestion and makes turning right into the car park difficult and blocks the through traffic.”

AT told Barclay that the yellow lines would allow traffic to pass vehicles turning right into the carpark and the dropped kerb would need to be applied for by the owner of the carpark land, Logan Campbell, who leases the land to MCG.

Barclay said it was frustrating.

“This is the third lot of people we’ve dealt with in eight months, we’ve had meetings on site with two of them, then somebody else takes over and they have no consultation with anybody,” he said.

“This was, at the outset, a pretty straightforward fix. Instead, a whole new set of problems has arisen.”