Link Pathway Surface Trial Results Are In!
The Link Pathway Surface Trial closed on 2 July after nearly three weeks of voting and with a total of 168 responses. Dave Clibbery, Senior Manager Operations said, “We received an excellent level of response from the community. We would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone who took the time to express their views.”
The surface trial had six surfaces that the community were asked to rank from their favourite to their least favourite. The views expressed through the votes and comments were quite diverse and did not result in a straightforward ‘winner’.
Clibbery explained, “The surfaces with the greatest number of favourite votes were limestone chip and grey crusher dust. However, the same surfaces were also the ones that received the greatest number of least favourite votes - with an even larger number of people voting them as their least favourite (worst) than voted them as their favourite.”
“The polarisation between these different views was quite extreme – nearly everyone who voted either strongly liked or strongly disliked these materials, with almost no views in between.”
In the comments, supporters of limestone chip and crusher dust said that they fitted well into the environment - whilst their opponents were concerned that loose surfaces were not suitable for all users and would require significant ongoing maintenance.
The responses to the lighter coloured concrete surfaces (silver gray, latte and soapstone) were almost the complete opposite to those for the loose surfaces. Only very small numbers of people either strongly liked or disliked them, suggesting that these were considered at best just adequate options with no real opinion either way.
The other remaining option, charcoal coloured concrete, drew a much more balanced response than all the other materials. It had a significant number of responses in all of the categories from best to worst, but with positive comments outnumbering negative ones.
The concern expressed by a large number of respondents about the loose surfaces potentially not being suitable for all users was a matter that was given significant weight in the analysis of results, since a key objective in the government’s funding of the Link Pathway is to provide something that is accessible to all.
Clibbery summed up the result, “After careful evaluation of the votes and the associated comments it has been concluded that the most appropriate material for most of the sections of the Link Pathway is charcoal coloured concrete, but with narrow borders of limestone chip placed on either side of the concrete paths in recognition of the view that the appearance of this material integrates extremely well with the local environment.”
Council will now move quickly to invite tenders for construction of the main sections of the pathway using this surface. A key aim is to tread lightly in developing the pathway to be sensitive to the local natural environment and cultural heritage of the area.
Next steps for the project include future community consultation on street furniture, public art and points of interest along the route, and seeking the statutory approvals for development of the pathway from Torquay Street to Point Kean.
If you would like more information on the Link Pathway and want to keep up to date with future progress then follow KDC’s Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/KaikouraDistrictCouncil or visit the webpage