A paved and fenced pedestrian maze is planned for a Mount Maugnanui railway crossing following the death of an 11-year-old girl.

Jorja-Ray Smith was fatally hit by a train while crossing the tracks on Hewletts Road on Monday, July 31.

Jorja-Ray was a student a Mount Maunganui Intermediate and has been described as “a happy, well-connected, and well-loved” member of their school.

Following her death, a review of the Hewletts Road railway pedestrian crossing was launched and has seen Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency, KiwiRail and Tauranga City Council bring forward plans to improve safety.

“This was very traumatic for all those involved. We offer our condolences to the whānau on the loss of a much-loved family member, and acknowledge the distressing impact on the school, the wider community, and our staff,” says KiwiRail Chief of Operations Siva Sivapakkiam.

Some immediate improvements will be made to both sides of the crossing with the installation of a paved and fenced pedestrian maze and additional fencing to prevent crossing at other areas along the track.

Design is underway and construction is expected to begin in coming weeks, with completion expected by mid-November 2023.

“We are always looking for ways to work with Waka Kotahi and local councils to improve safety at crossings and the maze is one way of doing this,” says Siva.

A pedestrian maze is a specially designed walkway to slow people down before they walk over the tracks, prompting them to look up and down the track before crossing.

“We are happy to facilitate delivery of the pedestrian maze to improve safety for pedestrians and cyclists using this crossing point,” says Tauranga City Council transport network safety and sustainability manager Ana Sommerville.

While the short-term safety improvements are underway, Waka Kotahi, Tauranga City Council and KiwiRail will continue working on the long-term plan to further increase safety at this railway pedestrian level crossing.

Police at the scene of the fatal train incident in July. Photo: SunLive.

Waka Kotahi Waikato and Bay of Plenty regional relationships director David Speirs says improvements to the crossing are proposed in the wider Connecting Mount Maunganui project where Waka Kotahi is working with council and iwi partners on solutions to boost more travel choices, improve safety, travel time reliability and environmental outcomes.

“These solutions require significant investment and time to implement, so it’s good to see our collective organisations coming together to develop something that will immediately improve safety at the crossing.”

The short-term safety improvements are being jointly funded with KiwiRail funding the design process and Tauranga City Council and Waka Kotahi funding the construction.

Information on the Connecting Mount Maunganui project here.