Peachgrove Road improvements

5

3

2

1

1

I support Option 1 – Complete School Zone Safety Upgrade because of my experience as a parent of a young man who attended Hamilton Boys' High School. Over the years, I have become increasingly concerned about the safety of students travelling along Peachgrove Road. Every school day, hundreds of young people are walking, cycling, scootering and catching buses alongside heavy traffic. It is clear that the current road layout is no longer fit for purpose.
Watching students travel to and from school, it is common to see cyclists squeezed between parked cars and moving traffic, students crossing wherever they can rather than at designated crossing points, and congestion created by parents dropping off and picking up children. These are not isolated incidents—they are predictable consequences of a road that is trying to serve too many competing purposes.
I believe Option 1 offers the best long-term solution because it recognises that Peachgrove Road is first and foremost a school corridor. The road should be designed around the safety of the thousands of students who use it every day, rather than around the convenience of on-street parking.
One of the strongest aspects of Option 1 is the removal of most on-street parking. While I understand this will inconvenience some people, parked vehicles reduce visibility for both drivers and pedestrians, make it harder for cyclists to travel safely, and create additional conflict as vehicles pull in and out of parking spaces. Improving sightlines and reducing vehicle movements will make the road safer for everyone.
I am also pleased to see continuous cycling facilities and improvements for pedestrians. Encouraging more students to walk or cycle to school has benefits well beyond road safety. It supports young people's health and independence, reduces congestion around schools, and contributes to a more sustainable city. However, parents are only likely to encourage active travel if they are confident the route is safe.
As a parent, I want my son—and every student travelling to Hamilton Boys' High School and Peachgrove Intermediate—to be able to get to school safely, whether they are walking, cycling, scootering or catching a bus. Road design should reflect the reality that children and teenagers make mistakes, can be distracted, and need infrastructure that helps protect them when those mistakes happen.
I appreciate that there are costs associated with Option 1 and that changes to parking will not please everyone. However, I believe investing in infrastructure that prevents serious injuries is money well spent. We should be designing roads that are safe before a tragedy occurs, not waiting until after one.
For these reasons, I strongly support Option 1 and encourage Hamilton City Council to prioritise the safety of students over maintaining the status quo.

Neutral

Yes

As the parent of an Old Boy who has only just left Hamilton Boys' High School, I strongly support Option 1.
Peachgrove Road is one of the busiest school corridors in Hamilton, with hundreds of students walking, cycling, scootering and catching buses every day. The current layout creates unnecessary risks, particularly at the beginning and end of the school day when traffic is heaviest.
I want all students to be able to travel to and from school safely, and I know many other parents feel the same. While removing on-street parking may be inconvenient for some people, student safety should come first.
A complete upgrade makes far more sense than making small changes now and having to come back later to fix the remaining problems. If we are investing in this road, we should do it properly.
Better crossings, safer cycling facilities and slower vehicle speeds will benefit not only current students but future generations of families using these schools.

No

While Option 2 would improve safety in some places, I don't think it goes far enough.
Students don't only cross at one or two locations—they move throughout the entire school area before and after school. Leaving some intersections unchanged means unnecessary risks remain.
I would rather see Council invest once in a complete solution than spend millions on a partial upgrade that still leaves known safety issues.

No

This option does not reflects how students actually travel around the area.
A single crossing at Wilson Street will certainly help at that location, but it won't address the wider problems of traffic congestion, cycling safety, vehicle speeds and multiple crossing points around the schools.
This feels like the minimum that could be done rather than the solution that is actually needed. If Council is serious about making this a safe school zone, Option 1 is the better investment.

No, these are my own personal views

I am a parent of a student/future student at Hamilton Boys’ High School