Reporting cycling and road hazards to AT

Call Centre Woman - Stock PhotoDid you know that Auckland Transport’s call centre logs in, tracks and responds to every public request for action?

Are you impressed to hear that last year there were 6,500 individual public requests, and that 30% were made by cyclists?

AT’s Road Corridor Operations department has a team dedicated to investigate and report what action is needed to resolve each request. It aims to fix problems within 2 months, but it sometimes takes longer – eg, delays often occur before pinch points caused by on-road parking spaces are removed. The reason for this generally is that adjacent landowners are consulted before ‘no stopping’ markings are installed. We hope that cycling safety is given priority over convenience for an adjoining landowner; after all, the bottom line should be allowing safe and efficient use of roads as a public asset.

A couple of months ago we asked AT if the call centre’s tracking and monitoring system could be extended to record, not only how long it takes to investigate and report back to the public, but also how long it takes to complete any related road fixes. This sounds a simple change, but it will need quite a bit of adjustment. Last month the Traffic Op’s manager told us this add-on monitoring is underway and he will report how it’s going after the first quarter. We’re pleased that AT understands how important the call centre is to the public. This means it needs to be accountable and operational, so roads are fit for purpose – for all road users.

Please use the call centre as your ‘go-to’ place for big and small problems – it’s great for getting glass removed from roads and cycle lanes, as well as those lethal pinch points. Feel free also to report faded and tired cycle lane markings and sad, old. green patches. If the ‘fix’ is not up to standard – e.g. if bits of glass are left after a sloppy clean-up – it’s worth making a second call to remind the maintenance teams that we notice their work.

Here’s the call centre process –

  • Ring AT – 355 3553 and ask to make a request for service – or connect to AT’s website – normally you want this form.
  • Make your message concise, clear and polite. Have a street address or other easily recognised feature handy, so the problem area is easily located.
  • Keep a record of the on-line log-in number. This allows you to query progress on your request if nothing seems to happen. Do chase it up in that case, especially if you had no response after a week or two.

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Bike Auckland is the non-profit organisation working to improve things for people on bikes. We’re a people-powered movement for a better region. We speak up for you – and the more of us there are, the stronger our voice!

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