'A terrible layout and very dangerous.” And: 'I will avoid it like the plague.” Plus: 'Stupid” and 'Crazy”.
The shoppers have spoken, loudly, on social media. But George Phillips didn't fluff about. He went and delivered an ultimatum straight to the manager of Bethlehem Town Centre itself. 'If nothing changes very soon, we will be going elsewhere to do our shopping.”
George Phillips who is not happy with the Bethlehem Town Centre Carpark.
What's got George, and everyone else, in a tizz is the reconfiguration of the carpark at the town centre.
Peggy Thornton is boycotting the place.
'I was going to drop into Countdown for a couple of things as I normally do on my way home from golf the other day. But I couldn't be bothered negotiating the carpark.
'It's complex, confusing and unnecessary. So I went straight to Fraser Cove.”
What's happened is Bethlehem Town Centre has turned the eastern most entry/exit on Bethlehem Rd into just an entry.
So now there are six entrances but just two exits. Easy to get in, at times a nightmare to get out.
'Our customers are telling us the exits are their biggest concern and we are taking that seriously,” says centre manager Andrew Wadsworth.
However, the current configuration is part of a resource consent and it's not something they can put a bulldozer through and change immediately.
One of the two exits to the Bethlehem Shopping Centre.
But as Peggy explains, leaving the town centre from the supermarket now requires a circuitous trip to the western end of the complex and through a roundabout outside Kmart. 'My point is that a simple shop's been made difficult.”
'Some of these changes suggest it was designed by amateurs,” says George in his email of complaint to BTC management. And separately he told The Weekend Sun the roundabout just wasn't coping.
'It can't handle the volume of traffic. And it doesn't matter from which of the four directions you arrive at the roundabout from, there are pedestrian crossings. People and cars everywhere.
'Come Christmas it will be a nightmare.”
Facebook traffic was as heavy as traffic on the roundabout.
'Poorly constructed,” says one shopper. 'I will avoid [Bethlehem Town Centre] like the plague,” says another. And: 'It's a nightmare – good work whoever!!” And: 'I can't stand that place.”
On Neighbourly another shopper was complaining about the tailbacks at the roundabout. 'This is urgent and all it needs is someone with a can of white paint and a brush.
'Nothing too difficult eh centre management?”
Peggy fired off a ‘not happy' letter to the editor. 'When the roads changed I got lost trying to find a way out. Please, please consider opening up the original exit.”
And in boycotting Bethlehem Town Centre, Peggy was sacrificing her recently-discovered source of beloved stewed apples in a pouch at Countdown.
'I am arthritic. And while I can swing a golf club, I can't chop an apple. It was wonderful to have found someone who would chop and stew some for me.”
In his email to the management, George added the decision to build a solid stone wall at a busy intersection outside Eves Real Estate was a dangerous one.
George took The Weekend Sun on a cook's tour. He was right – the wall totally blocked the view of oncoming traffic from the right.
'I mean HULLO! Pretty basic stuff I would have thought.”
But power to the people because Bethlehem Town Centre management was listening and walls will tumble down. 'I'm also disappointed and concerned by the issues created by the new traffic configuration,” says centre manager Andrew Wadsworth in an email to George.
So the solid stone wall at the intersection will be removed and the Kmart signs on top of the wall relocated.
And what's more, a traffic engineer has been looking at what other changes need to be made. 'His report isn't far away so in a few weeks we should know what can and can't be done.”
'I am hopeful changes will be implemented before we hit Christmas,” says Andrew. That's five months away.
'Appreciate the feedback,” Andrew told George. 'And watch this space.”
'We'll see,” says George.
29 comments
A complete nightmare
Posted on 12-08-2016 07:07 | By Angel74
hate to think how chaotic it will be closer to xmas,the new layout makes no sense and traffic comes to a standstill because all traffic trying to leave must do so at one exit point......how absurd.
Inconvenient and dangerous
Posted on 12-08-2016 08:14 | By claires
Totally agree. We avoid Bethlehem Shopping Centre when possible now. Exit roundabout by Kmart is the worst. Too many zebra crossings right next to roundabout so very rarely free-flowing, especially with the car-park intersections just of the roundabout too. We try to come and go through the smaller entry/exit by the new playground even if we're heading towards Tauranga. Dreading the traffic at Xmas!
.
Posted on 12-08-2016 08:21 | By whatsinaname
The whole design of the car park is shocking. I avoid the place because of the parking and if you have a big car. Well it's almost impossible. The design of traffic flow don't make sense
Common sense v. qualifications
Posted on 12-08-2016 08:25 | By penguin
Once again we see what appears to be a clash between common sense and "qualifications." One does not need to be a traffic engineer to have realised that a stone wall would block vision for drivers. A bit like the expressway off-ramp / Cambridge Road bridge intersection. That was designed by someone with qualifications. So an engineer is going to write a report about the mess at BTC. Who pays for that? If there are solutions to the problem, why were potential problems not seen in the first place? The average Jo Bloggs is likely to have done a better job. So, qualifications plus common sense can work. Remove the common sense and you get the BTC scenario!
REALLY???
Posted on 12-08-2016 08:35 | By Margot Rose
Have experienced this many times as well. Weekends in particular its like a racing circuit. And while you are looking at correcting Bethlehem please look at removing 2 X pedestrian crossings within 100 meters which crosses on the main highway. Surely this could go underground like Bayfair. It's a huge contribution to traffic congestion. Honestly, who endorses this work? What works overseas often doesn't work here.
Yes it is really stupid
Posted on 12-08-2016 08:39 | By Bay Citizen
You have to wind your way through endless car parks and turns to be funnelled through to an exit that takes you as far as possible from where you want to end up. Ridiculous.
Horrific traffic management
Posted on 12-08-2016 08:42 | By sametcalfe
I absolutely hate the new traffic management at Bethlehem Town Centre and I too am boycotting the shopping centre. Plenty of entries but once in there you are trapped. It is horrific and needs all the exits to be reopened. I would hate to think what it would be like in an emergency. I won't be there to find out though. It is easier to shop elsewhere.
Jst Remove
Posted on 12-08-2016 08:59 | By Merlin
Just remove the concrete where the exit was blocked opposite the medical centre that is not to hard one would think.It is not all about Kmart?
Daanz
Posted on 12-08-2016 09:17 | By AP
Totally agree . the new road lay out is a nghtmare and I even found exits signs blocked by parked vehicles.
Really
Posted on 12-08-2016 09:21 | By D.R
You don't have to a qualification to work out 6 into 2 won't go.Brookfield New World is now my supermarket.
Posted on 12-08-2016 09:50 | By namxa
And I thought it was just me
Bollocks!!!
Posted on 12-08-2016 10:35 | By cptn scully
I know a couple of the shopowners in Bethlehem shopping centre and they were told that K.Mart would go in as an anchor shop as long as a road was constructed from Countdown to there front door This is why some perfectly good shops were flattened and a ridiculous roundabout juts out into the 2 lane exit bringing it down to one (Just have a look at all the black tire marks on it!). The other old exit was blocked off for the same reason Make people go past K Mart.If I want to shop in there I will go when I want to not to! Just remove the concrete at the old exit and lets get on with an easy way out.
It's only part of the resource consent
Posted on 12-08-2016 10:58 | By tish
because some overpaid consultant muppet designed and then submitted it that way.
Yip
Posted on 12-08-2016 11:01 | By overit
Its a bloody mess and needs fixing. I avoid the place.
unbelievable
Posted on 12-08-2016 12:39 | By gary browne
The worst traffic & parking configuration ever. Who ever designed this should be sacked for sabotaging what was once a great place to shop....no more, I will never shop there again
no change then
Posted on 12-08-2016 12:45 | By strangekiwi
Wow. People hate it so much but they still go there! it's obvious that Kmart have demanded the passing traffic. so the choice would have been empty shops or dodgy traffic... I'm not saying it's not bad, but I think the prize for worst carpark still goes to the Gate pa shopping centre?
Lack of common sense
Posted on 12-08-2016 13:27 | By bopmum4
It seems pretty clear that the carpark has been adjusted to keep KMart happy, taking all traffic past their store. I'm just surprised there has no one been hit by a car at the crossing yet as well. The whole thing is a joke and as others have said, will be a disaster come Christmas. The company that designed it must have no idea and also the center management that allowed it.
It's even worse for disability parks!
Posted on 12-08-2016 14:22 | By SML
They're right beside the roundabout outside Kmart, and one can wait so long to back out safely with the big tailbacks! Obviously the "designer" never thought about the vans and cars with wheelchairs, and the dangers of having people forcibly stuck in traffic, when needing to get out into the flow - traffic simply doesn't allow reversing from the disability parks... and in holiday times, it's even worse. Simply no point going and shopping in Bethlehem - what a harebrained scheme!
K Mart to blame
Posted on 12-08-2016 16:03 | By The Sage
It is my understanding that this came about so that everyone would drive past KMart and was one of the deals that was agreed to before KMart would sign a lease. Personally I refuse to go around that stupid roundabout and I refuse to go near KMart. I drive out the back entrance no matter what part of the centre I am in. I have seen several accidents on the Bethlehem Road exit and I see the whole thing as being dangerous. It has a negative impact on going there. It's a bit like "The Hotel California," you can check out any time you like but you can never leave.
Thank goodness
Posted on 12-08-2016 17:25 | By commonsense
The roading there is truly appalling I avoid the place if I can. I never go to countdown there. I want to exit the same way I used to down past Patrick's pies and onto Bethlehem road and why can't we exit right onto the main highway from countdown too.
You are all wrong.
Posted on 12-08-2016 22:32 | By jed
Highly paid experts did this so they must be right.
Mr happy
Posted on 13-08-2016 00:22 | By Savvy1
I love this place! Awesome work road engineers on the road layout, I now dont have any excuses to stop there on way home so now i can say to da missus u get the shopping a tga i dont have time hahaha
Boycott Kmart not the centre
Posted on 13-08-2016 08:18 | By The Commentor
Sounds like everyone is boycotting the whole centre, punishing shops who have no fault in this circus. Perhaps sun live could get to the bottom of this with some real reporting and confirm Kmart are the ones selfishly causing the mayhem. Then people can boycott and express displeasure directly at Kmart. Not to mention giving the centre manager a boot up the backside for lying and blaming resource consent. Kmart should get a what's for over their stupid interior layout too in my opinion.
Same designer
Posted on 13-08-2016 10:27 | By The Sage
I would same the same person designed this as for the Gate Pa shopping centre.Ridiculous entries and exits and that same big silly roundabout near Mega Mitre 10. How about putting some large signs up with speed restrictions, while you are at it. Need someone watching outside the car while you back out at Gate pa, even WITH a backing camera.
Wont be the designer?
Posted on 13-08-2016 12:33 | By Crash test dummies
The limitations placed by TCC and NZTA staff on road access in/out points and "guessed" at traffic flows are what this is all about. hence in the end the owners have little say in the layout as the Resource Consent is issued. The same mess is being lined up to hit the CBD full noise with no way in and no way out either.
Roading Problems
Posted on 13-08-2016 17:44 | By mike harman
the trouble in Tauranga is the people in the ivory tower.Most of the so called experts have a bit of paper that says they can wipe their backsides, it does not mean they have any common sense or experience.this only is only gained after many years of hard graft and listening to the people.If you think that the road engineers got it wrong in Bethleham, what about the new under pass from Welcome Bay, thats a real case of no brains and putting the cart before the horse. The people that issue the resource consents need to take a better look at things.
Countdown 13th Ave and around
Posted on 15-08-2016 00:49 | By Captain Hottie
Must have been 1st year engineering students who designed the area around 13th Ave/Cameron/14th Ave. You can get into Countdown on 13th Ave if you know where you're going (as they have switched off the light on the entry sign) but you can't go out that way. I wanted to go to Hell Pizza after doing my shopping. This involves several manoeuvres, one of which was probably illegal (U-turn around 13th Ave lights from Cameron) as the alternatives were to go Cameron, 13th, Devonport, 12th and across four lanes of traffic on Cameron to Hell on 12th. Or go through the narrow Burger Fuel/Dominos car park, come out at 12th and cut across 4 lanes of traffic etc. I could also have walked there but the council have now removed the pedestrian crossing across Cameron at 13th Ave outside the Baptist church...
ilmore engineer mistakes
Posted on 15-08-2016 19:21 | By Nancyone
The same city traffic engineers are designing the new Cycleway on Carmichael Road what a short sighted plan to accommodate this new activity, that was originally planned in the 10year plan to follow the railway track. The Residents of the Retirement Villages plus the many school children pedestrian and hundreds oafrof vehicle movements a day are going to be put in a dangerous situation. Standby bays for turning traffic are being removed to accommodate 2 single cycle ways leaving no room on this undersized piece of road to allow traffic to enter and exit the villages. Added to this another entry for a new release of houses is being added as well as a new school for pupils with disabilities.
Action?
Posted on 17-08-2016 13:08 | By morepork
Why not have a date/time when EVERYBODY boycotts the complex? Bit like a Flash Mob... use the technology to tell all your friends NOT to go there for a certain period of time on a certain date. It's all very well whingeing about how bad it is, but only if there is a perceptible decline in visits will any action ever be taken.
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