Safety work planned for deadly Oak Flats intersection

The Central Avenue-Fisher Street intersection has been the site of two pedestrian fatalities since 2017.

That year a 78-year-old woman died after being hit by a car just after she stepped off a pedestrian ramp to cross the road.

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In late 2019 a man in his 80s was also hit by a car while crossing at the intersection and died.

The intersection has pedestrian refuges on all four legs and a posted 40km/h speed limit due to it being an area of high foot traffic and the closeness of Oak Flats Public School.

The council proposal for the intersection includes pedestrian crossings on all four legs, with the divided median and pedestrian ramp to remain on the southern side of Central Avenue.

The crossings will be raised to physically reduce the speed of vehicles approaching the intersection.

Council had considered installing traffic lights and a pedestrian signal crossing, but felt the raised crossings would reduce vehicle speeds on all approaches at all times.

Moving the crossings to the middle of the block rather than at the corners was also looked at.

"It was not a preferred option due to the number of parking spaces removed to accommodate design and pedestrian desire lines at the location," the spokeswoman said.

The proposed work will also have a negative effect on parking, though there will be one extra accessible parking space created.

"Council aimed to limit the loss of on-street parking, however, the installation of traffic blisters and wombat crossings will result in the loss of three regular parking spaces," a council spokesperson said.

"This is to ensure compliance with pedestrian 'sight distance' requirements, manage vehicular queue lengths, and make way for the upgrades."

The project has been funded through the Federal Road Safety Program and work is expected to start in March 2023

Residents can leave feedback on the proposed design via the Lets Chat Shellharbour website.