Hamilton Traffic Bylaw review 2021

Closed 23 Sep 2021

Opened 23 Aug 2021

Contact

City Transportation Unit

07 8386699

Feedback updated 21 Mar 2022

We asked

Under the Local Government Act 2002, it is a requirement that our Hamilton Traffic Bylaw be reviewed five years after its introduction. Our bylaw was due for review in 2021 and we proposed minor changes to support recent legislative changes and case law, technology advancements and increased clarity for ease of understanding. Hamiltonians were invited to share their thoughts on these proposed changes during August/September 2021.

You said

Of the 66 responses received, 63% (42 respondents) indicated they wished to retain the current bylaw and make minor amendments, and 37% (24 respondents) chose to retain the current bylaw with no amendments. The most common reasons for participants choosing to retain the current bylaw with minor amendments were the need to be adaptable/flexible as our community and way of transport changes; the need to include different modes of transport moving forward; and the need to have stronger enforcement of the bylaw rules.

We did

We updated our Hamilton Traffic Bylaw according to these proposed changes and the new bylaw was adopted in December 2021. A copy can be found online at hamilton.govt.nz/bylaws.

Published responses

View submitted responses where consent has been given to publish the response.

Overview

Hamilton City Council (the Council) is seeking feedback on the review of the Hamilton Traffic Bylaw 2015, which is being completed to comply with the Local Government Act 2002 (LGA) review requirements.

Why are we doing this?

The current Hamilton Traffic Bylaw was adopted in 2015 and repealed the Hamilton City Traffic Bylaw 2012 (Amended). The Council is required to review the existing bylaw after five years, as per section 158 of the LGA. This provides an opportunity for the Council to check in with our community on how the bylaw is working and consider feedback.

The following diagram illustrates the role that the Bylaw plays in allowing Council to regulate the use of the transport corridor:

              Diagram: role of the traffic bylaw in the operation of the transport corridor

Proposed changes

The Council are proposing minor changes to the current Hamilton Traffic Bylaw 2015 to keep it up to date and ensure that it reflects current best practice and legal requirements.

We are seeking feedback on the review of the bylaw from people who will or may be affected by, or have an interest in, the proposed changes.

In June 2021, Council determined that a bylaw is still the most appropriate means of controlling issues related to traffic in Hamilton City, under section 155(1) of the LGA.

It is important note that the scope of the bylaw review excludes:

  • speed limits - these are addressed in the Speed Limit Bylaw; and
  • all the Hamilton Traffic Bylaw 2015 registers (pages 16- 48 of the bylaw). These registers are referenced as part of the bylaw, rather than forming part of it. The registers are regularly updated via the Hearings and Engagement Committee.

Reasons for the proposal

The purposes of this bylaw are to protect the public from nuisance and protect, promote, and maintain public health and safety. It does this through setting the requirements for parking, establishing standards for activities within the road reserve and general control of vehicular or other traffic.

The bylaw covers Garden Place, transport stations (e.g. Rotokauri Transport Hub) and any road in Hamilton City Council's district including State Highways controlled by Waka Kotahi New Zealand Transport Agency.

The key reasons for the proposed amendments to the current bylaw are:

  • recent and proposed legislative changes and case law, e.g. Accessible Streets Regulatory Package
  • technology advancements; and
  • to increase clarity in the bylaw for ease of interpretation and effective administration.

Options

The Council is consulting on its intention to retain the current bylaw and update with minor amendments. There are two options to consider.

Option description Advantages Disadvantages
Option one - Amend the current bylaw (preferred)
Retain the current bylaw and make minor amendments.
  • Updates based on recent and proposed changes to legislation and case law would ensure that the bylaw reflects current best practice and legal requirements e.g. accommodating the proposed changes to places where e-scooters can legally be ridden.
     
  • Technology advancements are able to be accommodated.
     
  • Changes to increase clarity in the bylaw will improve ease of interpretation and effective administration.
  • Nil.
Option two - Do not amend the bylaw
Retain the current bylaw and do not amend.
  • Nil.
  • Council and the public would need to rely on the bylaw as it is currently written and interpreted for the public.
  • The bylaw will not reflect recent changes to legislation or accommodate changes that are being proposed in the Accessible Streets Regulatory Package.

 

Before making any final decisions, we'd like to have your input. You can give us feedback between 23 August - 23 September 2021. Scroll down to the heading Related, at the bottom of the page, to view proposed bylaw tracked changes document.

Next steps

Staff will collect and analyse all feedback at the close of the submission period.

The analysis of this feedback will be presented to Hearings and Engagement Committee meeting in November 2021. At this meeting submitters who want to speak to their written submission will be able to do so.

The Council will then consider all the views and make a decision on the proposed Hamilton Traffic Bylaw 2015.