New Speed Limits Put the Brakes on Rural Road Users

By HUMPHREYS, Lyn; SUTTON, Michelle & NZPA

THE 100km/h speed limit on some rural roads is to be lowered to 90km/h in an effort to reduce New Zealand’s road toll.

Land Transport New Zealand (LTNZ) has been working with local government on plans to drop the limit on some of the more dangerous roads.

The new approach to speed is expected to begin in Wellington by the end of this year, and, if successful, will spread to 40 other danger spots around the country.

Taranaki roading authorities said yesterday they would wait for trials to be completed before taking any action.

“This council will wait until LTNZ finalises the policy,” said New Plymouth District Council roading assets manager Max Aves.

“We would then look at whether we will put any new speed zones for any road within this district.”

The changes to the Setting Speed Limits Rule under the Land Transport Act would allow local authorities to decide on more appropriate speed limits within their areas, Mr Aves said.

The Stratford and South Taranaki district councils said there were no open roads in the district that required a drop in the speed limit.

Stratford roading manager Vincent Lim said there were several roads where care was required, but none of them met the LTNZ criteria.

“There are a lot of roads that you can’t drive more than 50km/ h,” he said.

“But there’s a lot of criteria before these sites get selected, and I don’t think any sites in South Taranaki are even considered in the pilot stage.”

Stratford council’s road assets manager, Barry Jagersma, said there was no single factor in open road crashes in the district.

“We don’t have many crashes, so I can’t say that there is any specific road that we have a speed-related problem,” he said.

LTNZ spokesman Andy Knackstedt said yesterday that the new speed limit would apply to roads where conditions were not suitable for 100km/h.

“The idea is to set speed limits appropriate for the conditions.”

The first sites were expected to be in place by the end of the year, Mr Knackstedt said.

If successful in reducing speeds and road crashes, the change in speed limit would be applied to other danger spots.

Transport Safety Minister Harry Duynhoven said that if the approach were successful, it would correct the current situation, where the 100km/h speed limit for a four-lane divided motorway applied to a undivided rural road.

“Setting appropriate speed limits for the road will assist motorists who drive too fast for the conditions, but are still under the legal speed limit,” he said.

Acting national road policing manager John Kelly said police were happy to see the limit reduced on some of the more dangerous rural roads.

He said the new approach to speed might also see the limit rise from 50km/h to 60km/h on some roads, if the conditions were appropriate.

“If a road feels like you could drive 100km/h on it, but there is a hidden danger, then we have to set a lower speed limit, so people will slow down.”

Mr Kelly said police did not expect to issue more tickets because of the speed limit reduction.

Plenty of notice of the speed change would be given, and because of the nature of the roads concerned, drivers would naturally reduce speed anyway.

“We are not interested in revenue at all and, in fact, the number of tickets issued around New Zealand is steadily declining. If the speed limit is more appropriate to the road, then there should actually be less tickets.”

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