Safe speeds - FAQs

Will we ever get people to drive at safer speeds?

Evidence shows we were doing quite well and making reasonable progress until recently so this shows it is possible. However, we want to make sure we don’t lose these gains or else speed-related crashes are likely to increase again. There is a need for continued effort to encourage road users to keep within the posted speed limits and to adjust their speed to reflect changing conditions (eg wet weather).

Action - Improve the cost-effectiveness of enforcement by increasing the use of speed cameras and red light cameras. This would free up Police to focus on higher risk drivers.

How effective are speed cameras?

Evidence shows speed cameras are very effective in reducing mean travel speeds (eg Auditors General’s report (NZ) and many overseas examples). Speed cameras are usually sited where speed has been a significant factor in crashes or where there is an obvious road safety risk.

Speed cameras are cheaper to operate than manual detection methods and are largely automated. This frees up Police resources to focus on higher risk offending.

Is speed enforcement simply revenue gathering?

No. Speed is one of the main causes of road deaths and serious injuries. People who speed put their own lives and other peoples’ in danger. Enforcement acts as a deterrent to speeding.

Action – Investigate the use of point-to-point (section control) speed cameras

How do these work?

A driver’s speed is measured by speed cameras at two points, typically 2-5 kilometres apart. The driver’s average speed is then calculated based on the time it takes to travel between the two cameras. If this average exceeds the speed limit then an infringement notice is generated.

How are these different from the current speed cameras?

They can monitor (and influence) average travel speeds over a longer distance and not just a single point on the road.
Experience in Australia and several European countries found a significant improvement in compliance with speed limits at point-to-point sites and improved traffic flows.

One of the issues with individual speed camera sites is that the public may perceive that a momentary lapse in concentration could lead to a speed infringement. Point-to-point camera systems are generally more accepted as it measures average speed over a length. Overseas research suggests that the best results are achieved through a mixture of speed enforcement measures.

Action – Change the penalty system to deter speeding (higher demerit points and lower fines)

Why are demerit points a stronger deterrent than fines?

This will place repeat offenders’ licenses at risk, rather than just accrue fines. 

Action – Apply demerit points to speed camera infringements

If someone else was driving would the demerit points go to the driver or the vehicle owner?

These issues are yet to be worked through. However, a vehicle owner is ultimately responsible for who they allow to drive their car. It is important to note that the current system for speed camera fines is based on owner liability, and vehicle owners can be exempted from an infringement if they make a statutory declaration with the driver’s details. Other jurisdictions extend this to demerits, and this is an option we could consider as part of this initiative.  

Action – Help people understand the benefits of travelling at safer speeds

How will you do this?

Education and advertising campaigns will be reinvigorated and focused on helping drivers to understand the risks and consequences of speeding.

Action – create more speed zones on high risk rural roads to make roads more self-explaining and help establish the criteria for what roads with different speeds should look like

Do too many speed limits confuse drivers?

They could do and it is for this reason that there are rules around the minimum length that speed limits can cover, and about providing extra signs when the speed limit is other than 50 and 100 km/h.

Our open roads are highly variable in quality but we only have one default speed limit, which is unsuitable for many roads (eg much of our State highway network is single lane undivided rural road). 

Should we do other things as well as changing the speed limit, such as improve the road, make it self-explaining and teach drivers to drive to the conditions?

Yes we need to do other things too (some engineering and raising awareness). However, we must target our resources. It would be unaffordable to significantly improve all our roads, especially roads that carry very little traffic. On these roads we may need to change the speed limit to reflect the existing level of safety on the road. It is too expensive and/or impractical to attempt to make all of our of a very high safety standard.

Is setting speed zones really a role for central government? Shouldn’t it be decided by communities?

Central government, through the NZ Transport Agency, is responsible for speed limits on the State highway network. For all other roads the local council is the road controlling authority and responsible for the setting of speed limits. Communities are and will continue to be a key part of the decision making process, however guidelines and processes are required to ensure some consistency. Central government also ensures consistency which is important so limits are not confusing or inappropriate.

Action - Increase the adoption of lower speed limits in urban areas

Would this slow journey times?

It would be necessary to monitor any possible impact on journey times. However, we want our transport system to provide good access to destinations while making the journey as safe as possible. With good integrated planning it should be possible to achieve both.

There would be less of an impact on journey times in urban areas when average travel speeds are lower and where traffic stops and starts. Evidence suggests that lower speeds can actually mean traffic flows are smoother and more efficient in many cases and travel times are reduced. A high level of safety is also important to maintain reliability – road crashes can cause lengthy delays.

Are many local authorities already lowering speed to 30/40 km/h?

They are, and central government can provide an overview and advice on how to improve both the process for changing limits and the various supporting engineering treatments and publicity that might be needed for a change.

Action – Investigate the requirements to support Intelligent Speed Assistance

What is Intelligent Speed Assistance (ISA)?

ISA is technology that can help manage the speed of a vehicle. There are three forms of ISA:

• advisory, where it tells the driver if they are speeding (eg via alarms or lights)
• voluntary, where the system is linked to the vehicle controls (eg by limiting fuel injection) but the driver can choose when to have the system enabled
• mandatory, where no override is possible (the system automatically makes sure the driver cannot speed).

Action – Improve data on speed-related crashes

Why do we need better data on speed related crashes?

The government’s main tool in studying road crashes is the Crash Analysis System or CAS. CAS is based on Police reporting at crashes and is considered a strong system among those in use internationally. However, we do not currently have a robust and completely accurate way to estimate the impact speeds at which many crashes occur.