A huge moment for student safety.
That’s how Ashburton Christian School principal Tim Kuipers reacted to the news his school is finally getting a footpath.
“Safety is the number one thing, and because of a footpath more parents will be confident to send their students walking and biking rather than drop them off,” Kuipers said.
Out of its $4.19 million of Three Waters Better-Off funding, the Ashburton District Council has $900,000 for new footpaths.
This will see an additional 2262m of footpath and the associated kerb and channel, at seven locations as well as a footbridge on Allens Road in Ashburton.
One of the new footpaths is a 482m stretch along Albert Street, from Trevors Road to the Ashburton Christian School.
The school sits just outside the Ashburton town boundary and currently students walking to school have to use the grass verge or the riskier road edge.
“In the last three years I’ve had about five calls of concern about incidents on the road, Kuipers said.
“It’s particularly difficult in the wet of winter for students.”
With a roll of 258 and growing, Kuipers said they have around 50 walking or biking to school, but sees that number drastically increasing with a footpath improving access and safety.
“I don’t know by how much, but it will certainly increase.”
An increase in leg-powered transport – walking, biking and scooters – will also reduce the number of cars heading to and from the school each day, he said.
Since the school opened in 2009 the footpath has been on the council’s radar, and Kuipers said the school has put in three requests in the past five years for one to be installed.
It was raised at the board meeting on Tuesday night and he was preparing another appeal only to learn of the council’s decision.
Councillor Russell Ellis said he was pleased to see the footpath to the school included with “the development that is going on now at the side of town”.
“The safety of those kids and not having to walk on the road when the grass is wet, I think this one is overdue,” Ellis said.
Deputy mayor Liz McMillan said the almost 700m footpath along Line Road in Methven would be well received by the Methven Community Board “because it’s something they had wanted to see for quite a few years”.
The footbridge on Allens Road will provide a safe link between the existing footpath and a scheduled 520m extension in the 2023-24 work programme.
There are no footpaths for Rakaia or Hinds in Better-Off funding, but roading manager Mark Chamberlain said there is plenty in the forward work programme.
In 2023/24 there are 208m of new footpath in Rakaia and 250m in Mt Somers, while there are around 760m of new footpath in Hinds and 419 in Rakaia earmarked for 2024/25.

• By Jonathan Leask