Confusing road layout - Esmonde Rd (Auck)

[swbarnett]

A bit of background for those that aren't familiar with Esmonde Rd. As is passes Fred Thomas Dr (the new one that passes the bus station parallel to Barry's Point Rd) there are three lanes. The centre one then splits into two and two lanes head for the motorway in a southerly direction and two head west of the motorway.

This morning on my way to work I pulled up at the lights on Fred Thomas Dr to turn right into Esmonde rd with the intention of entering the motorway travelling south. I was in the right lane with one car in front of me and a cop directly to my left. When the lights changed the cop stayed beside me and entered the centre lane on Esmoned Rd. - the one I was planning on using. I was forced to take evasive action and pull in behind them.

The convention that I've observed over countless rush hours is that the two lanes coming out of Fred Thomas Dr. enter the left tow lanes - those headed south towards the motorway.

I don't really blame the cop for being in the wrong lane, nor do I feel that I should've kept to the right lane. Does anyone have any insight on the legal position where two lanes become three with no markings to indicate who should go where? Or should the council have painted dotted lines to guide the traffic?

[rwh]

In general, when you turn right, you're supposed to turn into the nearest lane. I think it's reasonable that if there's more than one lane of traffic, you should count across from the right - so if you're in the rightmost lane entering the intersection, you should be in the rightmost lane leaving it. Second from the right ends up second from the right, and so on.

And if your next step is to turn left, I'd suggest making sure you're in a leftish position to start with.

That's without seeing more of the intersection in question than I can make out from google maps, but it shouldn't matter much unless it's a really odd intersection.

Richard

[swbarnett]

In general, when you turn right, you're supposed to turn into the nearest lane. I think it's reasonable that if there's more than one lane of traffic, you should count across from the right - so if you're in the rightmost lane entering the intersection, you should be in the rightmost lane leaving it. Second from the right ends up second from the right, and so on.
...

You're exactly right. Which is why I don't think the cop did anything wrong.

I've been talking this over at home and given the context of the intersection in question we've come to the conclusion that the council definitely need to add some guide lines to override the usual thing of keeping to the right hand lanes. The predominant flow of traffic at rush hour is to the two left lanes - about 99% or more.

[rwh]

Off topic, but I'm confused by the next bit now - after you've made your right turn, it appears you have 2 choices for getting onto the motorway - either off to the left early, or stay on a bit and go over the first bit of flyover. Either way you end up in the same place ... I assume there's some reason to it? (this is all still from looking at google maps)

Richard

[swbarnett]

Off topic, but I'm confused by the next bit now - after you've made your right turn, it appears you have 2 choices for getting onto the motorway - either off to the left early, or stay on a bit and go over the first bit of flyover. Either way you end up in the same place ... I assume there's some reason to it? (this is all still from looking at google maps)

Richard

I just had a look at Google maps and I see your confusion. There are indeed two motorway on-ramps there ending up in the same place - the most southerly one is a bus lane. The road that goes under the flyover you mention is the northern busway. The construction site to the north of it is the Akoranga bus station (now completed).

[swbarnett]

When I drove through this intersection this morning I noticed for the first time that there is indeed a line guiding the left lane out of Fred Thomas Dr. into the left lane of Esmonde Rd. Basically, I was right when I shook my head at the cop - they changed lanes illegally and nearly took me out. The only reason they didn't was that I'm in the habit of first using the right lane and then changing lanes to the centre one and then on to the motorway.

[Divot]

The North bound off ramp at Tristram Ave turning left is the same.Even thou there is gide line painted car drivers always try to knock you off,

[sAsLEX]

I love the kink mid way across the barrys point intersection, fuckin retarded road design that one!

[jrandom]

Living in Devonport and riding to and from the city every day, I feel your pain. Then again, I feel that copper's pain too. Choosing the correct lane as you head away from the lights toward the on-ramps can be quite confusing.

Perhaps the rozzer's mind was on other things; he could well have been rattled by bad behaviour from a few motorcyclists in the area recently.

[jrandom]

I love the kink mid way across the barrys point intersection, fuckin retarded road design that one!

Yep, I've been nearly taken out right there by randomly swerving cars several times.

And those huge intersections seem to put people off a bit - I was stopped, alone, at the red lights just before the Barrys Point Rd intersection, heading toward Lake Rd, when a car locked up its wheels and screamed past in a cloud of smoke, swerving around me and missing me by a whisker - he hadn't noticed the red lights. Took him a good 10 metres into the intersection to come to a halt.

I shudder to think of the consequences if he'd actually collected me. I had Jody on the back.

I pulled up beside the car at the (fortunate) red light as we went to turn onto Lake Rd, and gave the feckless youth behind the wheel a good earful. He looked quite scared.