Transport FAQs

Frequently asked questions

Click on the headings below to find out more about Hamilton traffic and roads

• Central city parking survey
• 40kmh school speed zones
• Builders and developers
• Fencing
• Flooding
• Footpaths
• Graffiti
• Parking
• Signs
• State Highways
• Street lights
• Traffic
• Vehicle crossings
• Verges
• Work on the Road

40km/h variable speed zones have arrived at 18 Hamilton primary and intermediate schools, highlighting another dimension to Council's road safety initiatives as school returns for term one. Council adopted the 40km/h variable speed zone programme around schools under its Speed Limit Bylaw in January 2008, having satisfied the national guidelines and requirements of Land Transport New Zealand (LTNZ). The impetus behind this new traffic calming practice is to provide a safer road environment outside Hamilton schools, reinforce driver expectations as to the likely presence of children in the area and encourage safe, active travel to school.

Council is committed to encouraging school children to walk and cycle to school as an alternative to being driven and the adoption of the 40km/h variable speed limit in local school zones aims to achieve a safer journey to school for students. Council intends for all Hamilton schools to have the 40km/h zones and will be working to convince Land Transport New Zealand that the safety improvements delivered by the lower speeds are needed by all schools. As Hamilton's road network continues to reach capacity at peak times, the criteria on which the 18 launch schools were selected needs to reflect the changing face and needs of Hamilton's road network and subsequent road safety issues around schools.

The 40km/h variable speed limit programme has been trialled with strong success in New Zealand's major city centres. Council is partnering with police to enforce this practice at the 18 selected Hamilton schools. While there will be a short period for drivers to adjust police will enforce the speed limit zones without hesitation. The message will be clear that 40km/h means exactly that.

In conjunction with the 40km/h variable speed zones programme eight schools in the programme are also participating in Council's school travel programme which seeks to minimise congestion around school gates through road safety education and increasing sustainable travel behaviour, e.g., walking, cycling, carpooling, etc. Every term the Back to School awareness programme reminds motorists to look out and think for children going back to school and reminds those dropping and picking kids up to do it safely and the multi road agency Give a Damn campaign will focus for six weeks on vulnerable road users, including pedestrians, cyclists and 40km/h zones.

Builders and developers

I'm building a new house. Do I have to pay a footpath bond?

Council does not collect bonds for this . The footpath and berm adjacent to the site is not part of your site. Although some encroachment onto the footpath may be an unavoidable part of the construction process you must ensure that the footpath is safe and usable by pedestrians, particularly mothers with pushchairs, wheelchairs and mobility scooters. You must also ensure that vehicles crossing the footpath/berm to access the site do not damage the footpath. In the past sand pads have been used to 'protect' the footpath but these cause problems during rain when sand gets washed into catchpits and are also difficult for pedestrians to cross over. Other ways of protecting the kerb and footpath are preferable. If the final location of the driveway is known one option is to do the initial preparation for the vehicle crossing early and use that for site access. You will be required to replace any footpath cracked or broken during the building works and to reinstate the grass berm to an easily maintained state.

I am putting in a new crossing for my building and the bus stop/parking meter/no stopping lines outside need to be shifted. Who does this?

If you will be making changes to the entrances to a site that will impact on parking bays, no stopping restrictions, bus stops or other restrictions you will need to contact the Transportation Unit to arrange for any changes that will be needed. Because these are legal restrictions the changes need to be approved by Council. You will need to allow at least 2 months for staff to investigate and report on the problems, for the proposal to be submitted to a Council meeting, and for the changes to be implemented. Council contractors will do any work needed.

 Fencing

My property backs onto a road or my property is beside a walkway. Will Council pay half the cost of a fence?

Generally no. Road boundaries are not included in the Fencing Act and Council does not contribute towards road fences. The Council policy can be found here.  Under certain circumstances as outlined in the policy Council may contribute toward walkway fences. If you would like to apply for such a contribution apply in writing to the Transportation Manager setting out the details of your circumstances in as much detail as possible, also include details of the proposed fence.

• Fencing policy

Flooding

The street outside my place floods in heavy rain. Please fix it.

If there is flooding there now please ring the Council any time and a contractor will be sent to clear the drains and make sure the water gets away. If the flooding is, or might, encroach into private property or is a danger to traffic please let the operator know and the work will be given a high priority. If the problem is an ongoing one please contact the Transportation Unit who will arrange for further investigation and any improvements or remedial work.

Footpaths

I tripped over on the footpath, what is Council going to do about it?

If you can identify a particular trip hazard please ring or email and an inspector will assess the fault and arrange for any repairs to be carried out.

The footpaths in our area are rough and untidy. When are they going to be fixed?

Council has a programme to resurface or rebuild about 20 km of footpaths each year. To enquire about particular streets please ring or email.

The power/gas/water/phone people came and dug up the footpath and/or verge outside my place and haven't fixed it properly. How do I get it fixed?

All work such as this is logged in Council's database, contact the Transportation Unit who will find out who did the work and arrange for it to be corrected.

I have a mobility scooter and find it difficult to cross the road and/or there are no kerb crossings. How do I get this looked into?

Council is aware of the problems faced by users of mobility scooters and wheel chairs when getting around our City. However it is not possible to fix all the problems in the short term. If you have specific sites that are causing you difficulty on a regular basis please contact the Transportation Unit with the details and an inspector will investigate.

Graffiti

There is a lot of graffiti on the fence across the road from my place. Who can I contact to get it removed?

While graffiti is normally the responsibility of property owners Council will remove graffiti from locations visible from the road in order to maintain a tidy streetscape for residents and visitors. Contact Council and a contractor will be assigned to remove or paint over the graffiti. If the graffiti is obscene or particularly offensive please let us know and the work will be given a high priority. If you can help identify any culprits please contact your community constable with information.

Parking

There is a burned out car on the side of the road, who is going to get rid of it?

Please contact the Council Parking Unit with the details. There is a statutory process that they must follow before the vehicle can be declared abandoned and removed. If the vehicle is causing a danger please be sure to give details of this.

Cars park in my street and block my entranceway, how can I stop this?

Contact the Transportation Unit (details top of page) for advice. There are a number of options ranging from painting 'hold bars' to keep vehicles clear of the driveway to more formal parking restrictions.

Signs

The sign outside my place was damaged/stolen. Please get it fixed.

Contact Council with details of the location of the missing or damaged sign. (Except for signs on State Highways) Signs such as Give Way or Stop will be replaced within 2 days, other signs will take longer as they may have to be specially made.

I have been told that the sign for our lane is private and Council will not fix it. Why not?

Signs marking private lanes or right of ways belong to the property owners and council does not maintain them. These signs can be distinguished as they have blue lettering on a white background (The reverse of a standard street name sign). We can arrange for a Council contractor to repair/replace the sign but all costs will be charged to the property owners.

My School/Church/Organisation wants to have a sign on the main road for our hall/premises. How do we go about this?

The Council policy on amenity signs can be found below. If you wish to proceed the application form can be found below .

• Street & directional signage policy
• Street signage application form

State Highways

My property fronts onto a State Highway, who is in charge of this?

State Highways 1 (Ngaruawahia to Cambridge), 3 (Hamilton to Te Awamutu), 23 (Hamilton to Raglan), and 26 (Hamilton to Morrinsville) run through the city. They are under the control of Transit NZ who are responsible for all maintenance and operational aspects of the roadway. However Council is still responsible for the amenity aspects of the State Highways. This includes the footpaths, landscaping and litter control. Transit NZ has a consultant who is responsible for the day to day management of the State Highway. Enquiries should be directed to MWH NZ Ltd in the first instance. (Phone 839 0241)

Street lights

The street light in my street is not going. How do I get it fixed?

Contact Council and we will arrange for a contractor to repair it. Please give a good description of the location of the light, such as a street address, and a description of the problem because the contractor will repair it during the day when the lights are not going and will not be able to see what is wrong.
If the light is on a State Highway contact Transit NZ's consultant MWH New Zealand Ltd: 07 839 0241.

The cables that supply the street lights are owned and maintained by WEL Networks and queries about cables should be directed to WEL: 07 838 1399.

The lighting in our street is very dull. How do we get it improved?

Council has a programme to upgrade street lighting in older parts of the City to the latest standards. Please contact the Transportation office to enquire when your street is scheduled for work.

The street light outside my house shines into the bedroom at night. It is very annoying. Is there anything you can do to prevent this?

It may be possible to modify the light fitting to reduce the amount of light 'spill' onto private property. Please contact the Transportation for assistance.

The street light down our right of way is not working. How do I get it fixed?

Lights in private lanes or right of ways are owned by the properties down the lane. Power and repair charges are the responsibility of the property owners.You will need to contact an electrical contractor for assistance.

Traffic

I am sick of the hoons speeding down my street. What is Council going to do about it?

Part of the problem is that some of Hamilton's arterial roads are getting congested and people are seeking other ways around the trouble spots. By definition these people are in a hurry and therefore are inclined to speed. Council has recognised that this is a big issue for Hamilton and has begun the ACCESS Hamilton project to address some of these issues.  Another way to reduce this problem is to introduce traffic calming devices on the residential streets to discourage through traffic. These devices have benefits and also disadvantages and are not appropriate in all situations. More detail on the types of treatments that can be used and how to get them put into your street can be found here.

• Access Hamilton
 

Vehicle crossings

My car scrapes when I go over my vehicle crossing. What can be done about it?

Ring or email the Transportation Unit and an inspector will call to assess your problem and decide on any work that is needed. This type of problem can be difficult to solve but some improvements may be possible.

My crossing is too narrow and needs to be widened/I want to shift my crossing to a different place. How do I get this done?

While the Council will maintain your crossing, any improvements to it are the property owner's responsibility. So that Council can be sure that the crossing is correctly sited and constructed you will need to fill in an application form and pay the required fee. If the widening or relocation is part of a building project then this application may be included in the building application. The forms can be obtained from the Building Enquiries Counter on the Ground Floor. The District Plan has rules governing the location and width of crossings that must be followed. If your proposal falls outside what is permitted by the District Plan you may be able to apply for a Resource Consent for a variation. Contact Planning Guidance Unit for help with this. Once your application is approved you can arrange for a contractor to do the work to Council's standards.

• District Plan
• Planning Guidance Unit
• Development Manual

There is a Street light/tree/sign/bus shelter/catchpit where I need to put my crossing. Who will move it for me and who pays?

It may be possible to shift some of these items but design considerations may not allow other items to be moved. Contact the Transportation Unit for advice, all costs will be charged to the property owner.

The crossing/kerb and channel outside my house is broken. Can it be fixed please?

Contact the Transportation Unit and an inspector will assess the problem and arrange for appropriate repairs.

I'm putting in a new crossing for my house, but the driveway is too steep and I need to alter the footpath. Who can I ask about this?

Generally no alteration to the line or level of the footpath is allowed. Your driveway and garage floor level should be designed to tie into the existing verge levels at the boundary.

Verges

The verge is on Council property, why do I have to mow it?

It is correct that grass berms and verges are on Council owned land. However for many years the Council has requested that residents mow the grass berms outside their homes and businesses. The official Council Policy can be viewed here . This is to help engender pride in the appearance of their properties and to save everyone money. Whilst Council could engage contractors to mow every verge in the City the cost would have to be passed back to the residents either by an increase in rates or cutting other services.

• Verges and mowing policy

Am I allowed to plant the verge outside my property to either reduce mowing or for beautification?

In some situations Council will allow residents to plant the berm with conditions, including that the resident takes full responsibility for ongoing maintenance and either ensures that subsequent owners take over that responsibility or that the verge is returned to grass when the property is sold.  Written applications to plant berms should be sent to the Transportation Unit.

• Planting verges and reserves

Contact

 
 
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Council public car parks are located at:

This Christmas, parking at the Knox Street car park is FREE for the first three hours* between 9am-3pm, from Monday 15 December to Christmas Eve.

Make Christmas shopping easy! Hop on Hamilton’s FREE central city shuttle bus to your favourite shopping spot. The shuttle leaves Knox Street car park every 10 minutes.

Other Christmas shopping parking options:

• Park for free at metered parks every weekend **
• Take advantage of other car park buildings in the city offering special deals
• Avoid driving into the city and take a bus or bike.

*  First three hours free. If your time exceeds three hours a charge for the full length of stay will apply.

** Time limits do still apply and will be enforced.

Per hour $1.00
Maximum per day $5.00
In before 7.45am, maximum is $4.00

Per hour $1.00
Maximum per day $5.00
In before 7.45am, maximum is $4.00

Per hour $2.00
Maximum per day $4.00
Maximum stay 3 hours

Per hour $1.50
Maximum stay 1 hour

Per hour $1.50
Maximum per day $7.50
Early Bird (before 9.00am) $4.50 maximum
Late Night (after 6.30pm) $3.00 maximum

Kent Street, Frankton

Free car park 2 hour time limit

Parking enforcement

On-Street meters

On-Street meters open from 7am to 6pm.

Electronic tickets

In June 2005, Hamilton City Council started using electronic devices to issue parking tickets. The appearance of the ticket is substantially different but still contains the same information regarding the offence and the rights of the driver of the vehicle. The ticket is waterproof and is not affected by weather conditions.

Ticket payment

Payment can be made in person at the cashiers at Hamilton City Council by cash, cheque or by web payment.

You have 28 days to pay your fine and then a reminder notice will be sent.

If the fine is not paid within a further 28 days, the fine will then be passed to the court to collect. At this stage additional cost of $30 is added and this can increase by $100 if not paid within 28 days to the court.

If the driver of the vehicle wishes to make an explanation this can be made to our office within 28 days of receiving the notice.

Abandoned vehicles

If a vehicle is suspected to be abandoned, the Hamilton City Council Parking Unit should be notified.

Council will send out a parking officer, who will take the details of the vehicle and leave a notice on the windscreen advising that the owner has 7 days to remove the vehicle. If after 7 days, the vehicle remains, it will be towed from the area.

To report a suspected abandoned vehicle or to enquire about a towed vehicle contact:

Hamilton City Council Parking Enforcement
07 838 6587

After Hours
07 838 6699

Contact

 
 
 
 
 
 
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Transportation Unit
Level 5, Council Offices
Garden Place
Hamilton City Council
Private Bag 3010
Hamilton 3240
Phone: 838 6868
Fax: 838 6440

• Email