A group of Te Puke stakeholders are putting Western Bay of Plenty District Council on notice to allow a three-day parking trial revamp as an alternative to changing the town's speed limits.

The Te Puke Economic Development believes by revising parking, local lanes and through lanes in the town centre this will mitigate any issues around efficiency and road safety should speed limits remain the same.

Te Puke Economic Development is proposing a trial to help slow traffic along Jellicoe Street, making it easier to park and provide easier access for pedestrians to cross the road. Photo: File.

The plea comes after council held a day-long public hearing last week on the variety of speed limit changes and new names proposed for State Highway 2 between Domain Road and Paengaroa.

During this, Te Puke EDG managing director Mark Boyle submitted a 1035-strong petition against changing the speed limits and future needs for SH2.

At the time, he said any change would seriously affect the efficiency of transportation through the district, while current speed limits are safe and it is important that sensible travel times are maintained.

In the last year Te Puke EDG has developed a proposal for revised parking, local lanes and through lanes – an idea they have floated with council.

The trial will see the four lane system remain, with a slight modification to the angle of the parking and some modification to lane widths resulting in a one-and-a-half wide local one allowing motorists to reverse out and merge into a local lane.

The re-design of Jellicoe Street would slow traffic, making it easier to park and provide easier access for pedestrians to cross the road.

'It's not just some scatter brain thing,” explains Mark. 'We want this to be considered as a better alternative for the stretch of road in the town centre only.

'It's all about improving the functionality of the town centre and the mobility of the town centre. It's about making it easier to navigate your way around and about improving the presence that Te Puke has.”

Mark says the group has 'put it on notice to council” and the trial would be run for two-to-three days with no major disruptions to vehicle thoroughfare.

He imagines an agreement will be reached in the next two months about when and where the trial can run helping illustrate any pitfalls – coinciding with the handover of the roads back to council.

'They [council] have told us that they have taken onboard everything that we have said and are deliberating on the submissions ahead of April 22,” he adds.

Council's transportation operations manager Alex Finn says council is aware the revocation process provides a unique opportunity to reconfigure and improve Jellicoe Street for pedestrians, road users and the many businesses central to meeting the needs of residents and the many visitors to the town.

He says at this stage council is not a position to confirm when a trial may occur, however it's certainly being factored into other work that will be consulted on with the community before more detailed design work is underway.