Latest news with #SettingofSpeedLimitsRule
Scoop
01-07-2025
- Automotive
- Scoop
Children Most At Risk As Government Forces Reversals Of Safe Speeds On 1 July
Press Release – Brake NZ Just as the school holidays get under way, children around the country will be at higher risk on streets in their neighbourhoods as the Setting of Speed Limits Rule (the Rule) introduced by Minister Simeon Brown and implemented by current Minister ofTransport Chris Bishop requires councils to revert to dangerous higher speed limits from 1 July, with variable speeds in place only at school gates at the start and end of the school day. 'Children across the country are at risk from higher speeds when they're walking, biking or scooting around their neighbourhoods. If hit by a vehicle going 50km/h, children have an 80% higher likelihood of being killed or seriously injured than at 30km/h. We also know that 85% of crashes that injure or kill people on streets around schools happen outside of those short periods at the beginning and end of the school day', says Caroline Perry, NZ Director of Brake, the road safety charity, and a spokesperson for the Save our Safe Streets campaign. 'The heightened risk is especially concerning in Auckland, where Auckland Transport has taken an unusually strict interpretation of the Rule that has seen over 1400 mainly quiet residential streets swept up in speed limit reversals. Not only has AT gone far further than other councils in applying the rule, they have rushed the work, resulting in confusing, incomplete, contradictory and dangerous signage,' says Ms Perry. The Save our Safe Streets campaign is an alliance of leading road safety experts and transport advocates. In a briefing paper to Auckland Council's Transport, Resilience and Infrastructure Committee, they have documented AT's flawed approach to the Rule. In particular they note that the rollout of reversals back to unsafe speeds – against the wishes of impacted communities – will result in harm to Aucklanders, wasteful expenditure, unnecessary disruption, higher costs and more extensive traffic management processes, environmental and economic damage, and a less efficient, more congested transport network. Group member Pippa Coom says, 'Instead of doing everything it could to defend its world-class road safety programme from ill-advised reversals, AT has capitulated effectively throwing Aucklanders under the bus at every opportunity. Moreover, the small handful of streets that have retained safe speeds were saved only due to tenacious intervention by residents and advocates – with neither public acknowledgement nor thanks from AT.' 'Throughout, AT has operated in secret. It has not been transparent or proactive in its dealings with Council and the public about its process around the Speed Limit Rule, nor has it communicated the impacts on communities. AT has had plenty of opportunities to limit the perverse and harmful outcomes of the Speed Limit Rule but chose not to, despite increasingly urgent requests from community leaders, advocates, and elected members,' says Ms Coom. Councillor Julie Fairey expressed profound disappointment in the outcome for Auckland. 'AT just were not interested in moving on this, despite being given plenty of opportunities and excuses they could use. Sadly, I think we won't have a full realisation of the liability question until someone is hurt or killed. The advocacy efforts on this have been amazing, huge amounts of research and effort put in, all voluntary, and the stonewalling at senior levels of AT has been heartbreaking'. She has gone on to say, 'I find it particularly cruel that many of the staff who have had to roll this out were those who understand the evidence, championed and implemented safer speeds.' The higher speeds kick in on 1 July, during the school holidays, and the reality of central government overriding evidence and local preference is only just becoming clear to many communities. For example, a stretch of beach north of Auckland is rising from 50km/h to 70km/h against community wishes, while further south, a nonsensical 100km/h will be installed on a dangerous stretch of road through a Lake Taupō campground. Ms Perry adds, 'A few fortunate communities, such as Rakaia and Nelson, will be rightly celebrating their common-sense retention of safe speeds, but this only came after a hard-fought campaign resulted in public consultation on the proposed speed limit increases to these stretches of road.' 'It should be common-sense to always apply the evidence to keep children safe. Everyone benefits when children can move independently, when people are free to walk and cycle without fear of serious injury and death, and when streets are safer for all of us,' says Ms Perry.
Scoop
01-07-2025
- Politics
- Scoop
Children Most At Risk As Government Forces Reversals Of Safe Speeds On 1 July
Just as the school holidays get under way, children around the country will be at higher risk on streets in their neighbourhoods as the Setting of Speed Limits Rule (the Rule) introduced by Minister Simeon Brown and implemented by current Minister of Transport Chris Bishop requires councils to revert to dangerous higher speed limits from 1 July, with variable speeds in place only at school gates at the start and end of the school day. 'Children across the country are at risk from higher speeds when they're walking, biking or scooting around their neighbourhoods. If hit by a vehicle going 50km/h, children have an 80% higher likelihood of being killed or seriously injured than at 30km/h. We also know that 85% of crashes that injure or kill people on streets around schools happen outside of those short periods at the beginning and end of the school day', says Caroline Perry, NZ Director of Brake, the road safety charity, and a spokesperson for the Save our Safe Streets campaign. 'The heightened risk is especially concerning in Auckland, where Auckland Transport has taken an unusually strict interpretation of the Rule that has seen over 1400 mainly quiet residential streets swept up in speed limit reversals. Not only has AT gone far further than other councils in applying the rule, they have rushed the work, resulting in confusing, incomplete, contradictory and dangerous signage,' says Ms Perry. The Save our Safe Streets campaign is an alliance of leading road safety experts and transport advocates. In a briefing paper to Auckland Council's Transport, Resilience and Infrastructure Committee, they have documented AT's flawed approach to the Rule. In particular they note that the rollout of reversals back to unsafe speeds – against the wishes of impacted communities – will result in harm to Aucklanders, wasteful expenditure, unnecessary disruption, higher costs and more extensive traffic management processes, environmental and economic damage, and a less efficient, more congested transport network. Group member Pippa Coom says, 'Instead of doing everything it could to defend its world-class road safety programme from ill-advised reversals, AT has capitulated effectively throwing Aucklanders under the bus at every opportunity. Moreover, the small handful of streets that have retained safe speeds were saved only due to tenacious intervention by residents and advocates – with neither public acknowledgement nor thanks from AT.' 'Throughout, AT has operated in secret. It has not been transparent or proactive in its dealings with Council and the public about its process around the Speed Limit Rule, nor has it communicated the impacts on communities. AT has had plenty of opportunities to limit the perverse and harmful outcomes of the Speed Limit Rule but chose not to, despite increasingly urgent requests from community leaders, advocates, and elected members,' says Ms Coom. Councillor Julie Fairey expressed profound disappointment in the outcome for Auckland. 'AT just were not interested in moving on this, despite being given plenty of opportunities and excuses they could use. Sadly, I think we won't have a full realisation of the liability question until someone is hurt or killed. The advocacy efforts on this have been amazing, huge amounts of research and effort put in, all voluntary, and the stonewalling at senior levels of AT has been heartbreaking'. She has gone on to say, 'I find it particularly cruel that many of the staff who have had to roll this out were those who understand the evidence, championed and implemented safer speeds.' The higher speeds kick in on 1 July, during the school holidays, and the reality of central government overriding evidence and local preference is only just becoming clear to many communities. For example, a stretch of beach north of Auckland is rising from 50km/h to 70km/h against community wishes, while further south, a nonsensical 100km/h will be installed on a dangerous stretch of road through a Lake Taupō campground. Ms Perry adds, 'A few fortunate communities, such as Rakaia and Nelson, will be rightly celebrating their common-sense retention of safe speeds, but this only came after a hard-fought campaign resulted in public consultation on the proposed speed limit increases to these stretches of road.' 'It should be common-sense to always apply the evidence to keep children safe. Everyone benefits when children can move independently, when people are free to walk and cycle without fear of serious injury and death, and when streets are safer for all of us,' says Ms Perry.
Otago Daily Times
25-04-2025
- Politics
- Otago Daily Times
Locals 'ignored' as speed limit reversal questioned
The 80kmh speed limit will revert to 100 on a North Otago/South Canterbury stretch of SH1. A decision to revert a Waitaki speed limit to 100kmh on July 1 has taken the AA North Otago district council by "total surprise". NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi (NZTA) announced on Wednesday it would reverse the 80kmh speed section of State Highway 1 across the Waitaki-South Canterbury border to 100kmh after a consultation process started on January 30. The current 80kmh limit over 2.8km begins just south of Waitaki Bridge Village and ends at the 60kmh restriction on the southern entrance to Glenavy. It was first put into place in September 2020. AA North Otago District council chairman Andrew Steel said yesterday the outcome was a total surprise. "Even though consultation is consultation, we felt that it was a no-brainer it stayed where it was at 80," he said. Mr Steel questioned the NZTA focus on particular feedback — the majority of just over 1200 submissions not representing the affected local community. "Some of the figures don't quite stack up. "The locals, as the figures say, definitely were in favour of it staying at 80. "It looks like their figures have been largely ignored." The latest review was part of the government's Setting of Speed Limits Rule introduced in October 2024. The consultation process sought indications of support for retaining the current 80kmh limit. More than 1200 responses were collected during the formal consultation. Of those, 646 strongly opposed the current lower limit and a further 56 slightly opposed it. Only 480 strongly supported the current 80kmh limit with another 28 slightly supporting it. Another 26 indicated a neutral view. The consultation process also accounted for who was submitting. Those were divided into six categories — local community, businesses, road users, schools, Māori and other. Of the 102 local community responses — those living along or near the section of the current 80kmh section — 83 strongly supported the lower 80kmh limit. Eight out of nine representative school responses also supported it. However, the other four categories ticked "strongly oppose" — including 585 out of 1054 road user responses. Mr Steel said it had contacted Waitaki MP Miles Anderson in the hope of having a meeting to put its case forward to retain the current 80kmh limit.
Otago Daily Times
24-04-2025
- Politics
- Otago Daily Times
Speed limit reversal questioned
A decision to revert a Waitaki speed limit back to 100kmh on July 1 has taken the AA North Otago district council by "total surprise". NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi (NZTA) announced on Wednesday it would reverse the 80kmh speed section of State Highway 1 across the Waitaki-South Canterbury border back to 100kmh after a consultation process started on January 30. The current 80kmh limit over 2.8km begins just south of Waitaki Bridge Village and ends at the 60kmh restriction on the southern entrance to Glenavy. It was first put into place in September 2020. AA North Otago District council chairman Andrew Steel said yesterday the outcome was a total surprise. "Even though consultation is consultation, we felt that it was a no-brainer it stayed where it was at 80," he said. Mr Steel questioned the NZTA focus on particular feedback — the majority of just over 1200 submissions not representing the affected local community. "Some of the figures don't quite stack up. "The locals, as the figures say, definitely were in favour of it staying at 80. "It looks like their figures have been largely ignored." The latest review was part of the government's Setting of Speed Limits Rule introduced in October 2024. The consultation process sought indications of support for retaining the current 80kmh limit. More than 1200 responses were collected during the formal consultation. Of those, 646 strongly opposed the current lower limit and a further 56 slightly opposed it. Only 480 strongly supported the current 80kmh limit with another 28 slightly supporting it. Another 26 indicated a neutral view. The consultation process also accounted for who was submitting. Those were divided into six categories — local community, businesses, road users, schools, Māori and other. Of the 102 local community responses — those living along or near the section of the current 80kmh section — 83 strongly supported the lower 80kmh limit. Eight out of nine representative school responses also supported it. However, the other four categories ticked "strongly oppose" — including 585 out of 1054 road user responses. Mr Steel said it had contacted Waitaki MP Miles Anderson in the hope of having a meeting to put its case forward to retain the current 80kmh limit.
