Road Safety Week: Will Auckland Transport Be Heroes Or Villains??
In the same week that Auckland Transport has quietly moved ahead with plans to strip safe speed zones from over 150 schools from 14 May, Auckland Transport is asking Aucklanders to shout out to their road safety heroes for Road Safety Week 2025.
'In the same week they announce higher speeds around 150 schools across the city, it is disturbing to see AT highlight how the burden of safety falls on parents and kids,' says Jon Turner, Puketāpapa Local Board member and City Vision ward councillor candidate for Albert-Eden-Puketāpapa ward.
'It is outright hypocrisy for AT to say one thing on socials to launch Road Safety Week, when at the same time behind the scenes they're making Aucklanders less safe and refusing to listen to multiple voices calling for a re-assessment of the huge scale of the reversals about to go ahead. Right when we most need AT to stand by the evidence, stand up for Aucklanders, and push for a common-sense approach to a harmful and badly written speed rule, they've crumbled,' says Mr Turner.
'Other cities have found a way to do the right thing and retain their safe speed zones where there is public support. The new Minister of Transport is open to discussion. We know safe speeds work, and dozens of Albert-Eden residents have told me what safe speeds mean to them,' says Albert-Eden Local Board member Christina Robertson.
'AT has argued that the speed rule forces them to undertake a blanket reversal of over 1500 safe speeds, but we know this isn't the case. Hamilton and Dunedin took a very similar approach when setting safe speeds, so why isn't AT taking their lead in defending Auckland streets? I've examined AT's assessments of all the safer speeds implemented in my local board area since 2020, and found over 60 streets that clearly do not meet the criteria of the speed rule, but are still losing safe speeds. Aucklanders deserve answers–why is AT going further than the speed rule requires?' says Dr Robertson.
'AT reported last week that Auckland is 'seeing a return to higher levels of deaths and serious injuries (DSI)'. I have repeatedly asked AT, including at the Transport, Resilience and Infrastructure Committee last week, to make safety a priority and to reassess their approach to the Speed Rule to avoid unnecessary harm,' says Albert-Eden-Puketāpapa ward councillor Julie Fairey.
'We know bringing down speeds makes a big contribution to increasing road safety. Putting speeds up, especially when other councils have shown there are options available under the Speed Rule that AT could use to reduce this harm, is not heroic; it's villainous,' says Ms Fairey.
City Vision calls on Auckland Transport and the Minister of Transport to find a common-sense solution to avoid the huge cost to strip safe speeds from the communities that asked for them.
Notes:
Evaluation of AT's Safe Speeds programme shows significant reductions in deaths and serious injuries (DSIs) compared to the expected numbers if safe speeds had not been implemented.
Public support for safe speeds is wide- ranging for example:
January-March 2024, a Verian survey for NZTA Waka Kotahi showed that 7/10 New Zealanders support lowering speeds around schools to improve road safety.
June 2024, a Verian survey for AT showed more people support speed reductions than oppose them across Auckland, and support had increased since 2023.
After being informed about the decrease in deaths and serious injuries on roads where speed limits have been reduced, support for the speed limit reductions rose to 61% and opposition fell.
There is strong support across the Albert-Eden Local Board Area for the Phase 2 consultations on safe speeds ranged from 70% in Mt Eden/ Sandringham/ Balmoral to 93% in Mt Albert, with 76% support in Point Chevalier near Pasadena Intermediate and 83% support in Waterview.
78% of school leaders in Auckland support permanent safe speed zones around schools.
About City Vision:
City Vision is an alliance of Labour, Greens and community independents working together for progressive change in Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland. Since 1998, City Vision has championed policies that support a liveable, safe, connected, healthy, economically and environmentally sustainable city for all Aucklanders. City Vision stands local board candidates in the Waitematā, Puketāpapa and Albert-Eden Local Board areas.
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