Latest news with #roadSafety
RNZ News
15 hours ago
- Politics
- RNZ News
Marae along dangerous stretch of of SH1 call for return of lower speed limit following death
Descendants of Wehi Wehi and Tūkorehe Marae protest the decision to raise the speed limit on State Highway 1 between Ōtaki and Levin from 80km/h to 100km/h in early June 2025. Photo: Supplied/Te Reo o Te Uru Two Marae along a dangerous stretch of State Highway 1 are calling for the return of the 80 kph speed limit after a fatal crash on Tuesday . Wehi Wehi and Tūkorehe Marae both sit on SH1 south of Levin, between Ōhau and Manakau. Emergency services were called to a fatal two-vehicle crash near Manakau on Tuesday. The road was closed for nearly four hours with Tūkorehe Marae opening its doors and providing water to waiting drivers. Changes to the speed limit on the stretch of highway came into affect on 1 July 2025, increasing from 80 kph to 100 kph. Alicia Miratana is a descendent of Ngāti Wehiwehi and lives in Manakau, she said two decades ago Ngāti Wehiwehi fought to have the double lanes outside the Marae removed, they were replaced with traffic islands but Miratana said speed was still the issue. "That stretch of road between Manakau, Kuku, Ōhau right up to Levin has been acknowledged that it is one of the most dangerous parts of State Highway 1 throughout New Zealand. There have been so many accidents, so many casualties along that stretch of road." Wehi Wehi Marae sits right beside the highway and Miratama said it had a big impact on how the Marae operates. "We have our kaumātua that no longer walk to the Marae it is just too unsafe for them, we don't allow our tamariki to walk home from the Marae it is not for them. But the biggest fear we have for Ngāti Wehiwehi is that we have a Kōhanga Reo on our Marae." The road was just too unpredictable to have tamariki walking along it, she said. It also caused worry when the Marae hosted any kind of hui. "Our pae taumata are constantly running out there, that is one of our tikanga to go and make sure that our manuhiri that are standing at the waharoa are safe. But is it really safe? "It's gotten to the point now that we've had to seriously think about how do we look after our manuhiri, they're contending with cars that are going at 100 kilometers an hour on the road and we have to make sure that their safety comes first before our karanga has even gone out." Three kilometres up the road from Wehi Wehi was Tūkorehe Marae. Ngāti Tukorehe Tribal Committee chairperson Pikitia Heke said pleas to keep the stretch of highway at the 80 kph speed limit had "fallen on deaf ears". At the beginning of June descendants of Tūkorehe and Wehi Wehi Marae protested the speed increase with what Heke called a "katiakitanga demonstration." "When the speed limit went down to 80 we didn't have any fatalities on our road. There wasn't any significant crashes on our road and then - as soon as it went up - there's been two crashes today that I know of," Heke said. Heke said she drove by the aftermath of one crash shortly before hearing of a second that closed the road on Tuesday. When there was a crash and the traffic backed up they were lucky the Marae was right there and they could open up the toilets and provide water to stuck motorists, she said. "We can't offer much but we try." She said the iwi had approached local ministers and MPs about reducing the speed limit but to no avail. "It's dangerous. There's a lot of sharp turns, over-bridges. When you go over the over-bridges in both Kuku and in Manakau you can't see because they're on hills and they're turning at the same time. So there's no real clear vision. Unless you know where you're going - or know the road - it's unsafe really." A banner from Ngāti Wehiwehi opposing increasing the speed limit on State Highway 1 between Ōtaki and Levin from 80km/h to 100km/h. Photo: Supplied/Alicia Miratana Miratana said this was not the first time people living along that stretch of highway had helped out drivers in trouble. "I live pretty much in the danger zone on State Highway 1, and for many years now me and my family and all my extended family have been the ones to go over to make sure they are all right." Adding to the danger was the fact the land around SH1 south of Levin included a lot of agricultural land. "So you've also got things tractors that come out of that road onto State Highway 1, you have trucks that come out onto State Highway 1. How many deaths does this government want? If they do not listen to us there are going to be more accidents, more deaths on this road if they don't reduce the speed," Miratana said. The iwi were worried it was only a matter of time before there was another crash, she said. RNZ approached the NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) for comment. Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
BBC News
18 hours ago
- Automotive
- BBC News
A40 crash: woman dies as police call for witnesses
A woman died in a two-car crash on a rural road, police have female driver died at the scene of the crash, on the A40 at Broad Oak between Carmarthen and Llandeilo in Carmarthenshire, where officers were called at 08:00 BST on Wednesday, Dyfed-Powys Police said. The force asked for witnesses to the collision, which involved a red Renault Clio and Blue Audi Q5. The people in the Audi were taken to hospital with non-life-threatening injuries, police added.
Malay Mail
a day ago
- Malay Mail
JPJ nets 1,194 offenders in July seat belt blitz on buses
KLANG, July 23 — The Road Transport Department (JPJ) has issued a total of 1,194 summonses to bus drivers and passengers nationwide under the Special Operation on Seat Belt Usage which began on July 1. JPJ Director-General Datuk Aedy Fadly Ramli said of the total, 1,108 summonses were issued to passengers, followed by 62 to drivers, and 24 cases involved the failure to install seat belts. He said among the reasons given to avoid being fined were that they were unaware seat belt usage was mandatory and that enforcement had already been gazetted. 'This excuse is unacceptable, as checks revealed that most bus operators and drivers have either made announcements or displayed notices reminding passengers to wear seat belts,' he said at a press conference after visiting the Pioneer Coachbuilder Sdn Bhd bus body manufacturing plant in Telok Gong here today. Aedy Fadly added that tourists or non-citizens would also not be exempted from action under existing provisions if found not wearing seat belts while on buses. However, he noted that overall compliance with seat belt usage on express and tour buses has shown improvement, thanks to proactive steps taken by bus operators to remind passengers. 'Overall, we are seeing an increase in compliance, and passengers are beginning to better understand the importance of wearing seat belts,' he said. — Bernama
CTV News
a day ago
- Automotive
- CTV News
Province shifts Hwy. 11 passing lane project into high gear
The province is moving ahead with a new passing lane pilot project on Highway 11 between North Bay and Temiskaming Shores. Hwy. 11 to expand to three lanes near North Bay The Ontario government is moving ahead with a new passing lane pilot project on Highway 11 between North Bay and Temiskaming Shores. The three-lane highway has a centre passing lane that changes direction every few kilometres. The idea is to make highway travels safer for northern Ontario drivers. The province announced Friday morning it awarded a contract to AECOM Canada Ltd. to begin the environmental assessment and design work on the 2+1 highway, as it's known. 'We know it's a model that works,' said Mark Wilson, a member of the 'Going The Extra Mile Safety' group (GEMS). 'It suits really well for northern Ontario and the traffic volumes that we have here.' The design is a continually alternating three-lane highway with a barrier between the opposing lanes. The GEMS group has been pushing for the project for a number of years. In December 2021, Ontario Transportation Minister Caroline Mulroney said completing the roadway will cost between $1 million and $3 million per kilometre. CTV News contacted the Ministry of Transportation for a comment on the project's status. A spokesman said no one was available. 'We're making great progress on our plan to build Ontario as we continue to work closely with communities and safety advocates to build a safer transportation network,' Mulroney said in a news release. Statistics show the 2+1 roads have reduced fatalities between 55 and 80 per cent while also improving travel times. The province identified two 15-kilometre stretches of the highway for the proposed project: between Sand Dam Road to Ellesmere Road and between Highway 64 to Jumping Caribou Lake Road. The locations were selected based on a site selection criteria report from the MTO, which included representation from the GEMS group. 'It needs to be part of a network and needs to be another model that we can use in Ontario between smaller two-lane rural highways,' said Wilson. The idea comes from Sweden. The country had about 3,000 kilometres of 2+1 roads as of early 2022 and it continues to build more. In 2021, Mulroney told reporters that once the design phase is complete, it will take between three to four years to build. 'We're really pleased and happy to see it move forward,' said Wilson. Once completed, Highway 11 will be the first 2+1 highway pilot project in North America.
BBC News
a day ago
- BBC News
Family appeal over death of teenager hit by car near Hurlford
The family of a 14-year-old boy who died after being hit by a car in East Ayrshire have paid tribute to him and urged witnesses to come McLuckie was struck by a Vauxhall Corsa on the A76 near Hurlford at about 17:10 on 16 had been crossing the bridge over the Cessnock Water when he was hit, and died at the family described Aiden as "the most loyal, loving, kind and caring wee guy you could ever meet". In a statement, they added: "We will be left with a massive hole in our family that will never be filled. We honestly don't know how we will continue on without you in our lives."Rest in peace our beautiful boy, gone far too soon."As a family we are urging anyone who was near or around the scene around the time this tragic incident happened to please come forward with any information or dash cam footage even the smallest detail could matter."Police Scotland said the male driver of the car and his two passengers were checked over by paramedics at the Brian Simpson said: "Our thoughts remain with Aiden's family and we remain in regular contact with them as our investigation continues."We are continuing to appeal for information and in the course of our investigation we have established that there may have been more vehicles in the area at the time than we initially thought."I would urge anyone who may have been on the A76 in the area around the time of the crash to review any dashcam footage from between 17:00 and 17:10 and contact us if they believe they have any information which could help."
