The $9 million project is set to transform the Town Centre into a cultural, social and business destination.

Mayor Khal Asfour said stage 2 work is expected to be complete by early 2022.

“These changes will make an enormous difference to residents and the community, and once completed, will lead to a safer, more convenient and accessible town centre for all,” Mayor Asfour said.

The project includes:

• Realignment of Canterbury Road, Close Street and Charles Street intersection to facilitate new traffic signals;
• A new slip lane from Canterbury Road to Charles Street (northbound), for safer turning from Canterbury Road onto Charles Street;
• Construction of dedicated right-hand turning lane from Canterbury Road to Charles Street (southbound), a left turning lane from Close Street to Canterbury Road and a right turning lane from Charles Street to Canterbury Road, to allow safer right hand turning from Canterbury Road to Charles Street;
• New streetlights and paved footpaths;
• Undergrounding of overhead power lines; and
• Upgrading Canterbury Road shared path underpass, which forms part of the Cooks River cycleway, this includes lowering and widening the path and installing lights. This will also add convenience and increase foot and bike capacity to the shared path.

“This project is about bringing new energy and excitement into Canterbury,” Mayor Asfour said.

“The intersection upgrades are essential for the safety of vehicles and pedestrians, we constantly see pedestrians running across this intersection, which is both dangerous for vehicles and pedestrians.

“While the shared path underpass upgrade will drastically improve accessibility for pedestrians and cyclists using the Cooks River cycleway.

“The current underpass is less than a metre wide, the new path will be 3.5 metres wide and 2.5 metres high allowing both pedestrians and cyclists to use at the same time.”

To learn more, visit cb.city/CanterburyTC