Firth Commercial Paving indicates ‘Shared Zones’ for Ashburton CBD

The Canterbury earthquakes, and the damage they caused, changed priorities for many areas of New Zealand and have been a catalyst for change for Ashburton City Council, with significant changes to the town centre forced on the community. Following the earthquakes a considerable number of buildings in the CBD required strengthening and in some cases demolition. But there’s always a silver lining and in this case it came in the form of the Ashburton CBD revitalisation project, which gave Council the opportunity to support investment and encourage the revamp of the township.

In 2017, the 'Our Place' campaign encouraged a conversation between Council and the community about the district's future. Valuable feedback was taken into consideration and a major priority for people was the development of the town centre.​

The Concept

Jasmax Christchurch, were entrusted with the redesign of the town centre with ‘Shared Space Principals’ the driving force for the concept. “Shared zones aim to eliminate the segregation of road users as pedestrians also share the roadway,” explains Rob Lawry, Senior Landscape Architect for Jasmax. “This means no formal footpaths are required and unlike shared paths, which are just for pedestrians and cyclists, shared zones include motor vehicles as well.”

“The concept relies on the removal of typical street elements including line-markings, signage and kerbs, with the addition of extra street furniture and landscaping. This results in an intentional level of ambiguity so that drivers proceed with caution and at slow speeds - the need and comfort of pedestrians is paramount. In this environment people cycling and driving in these shared zones are expected to act like guests, traveling in a way that is consistent with a walking pace and they are legally required to give way to pedestrians.”