Each and every one of the lives lost and people injured on our roads is a devastating tragedy, which has a lasting impact on our communities.
Road to Zero sets out an overarching vision of a New Zealand where no one is killed or seriously injured in road crashes, with a target of 40 percent reduction in deaths and serious injuries by 2030.
Road safety partners Te Manatū Waka Ministry of Transport, Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency and New Zealand Police welcome an independent review that looked into the effectiveness of the investment in road safety activities, and accept the findings and recommendations set out in the review.
Secretary for Transport Peter Mersi said, “The Review found that there has been good progress made across the Road Safety Partnership, but there are opportunities to further enhance the delivery of investments and activity through better reporting, greater accountability, and stronger governance.
“To achieve our vision, we need to make sure we are taking the right actions, investing in the right areas, and have clear line of sight on the positive outcomes we’re working towards.
“Alongside our road safety partners Waka Kotahi and Police, we have agreed specific actions to respond to the findings. I look forward to working with my colleagues on making progress on these.
“We are all committed to delivering the programme, and achieving the objectives of Road to Zero,” Peter Mersi said.
Waka Kotahi Chief Executive Nicole Rosie said, “Waka Kotahi welcomes the findings of the Review and we’re committed to the actions identified, many of which are already underway in close partnership with Te Manatū Waka and Police.
“Road to Zero is based on the belief that no-one deserves to die or be seriously injured on our roads, even when they make mistakes. It’s time that we stopped accepting that a certain amount of death and serious injury is just the price we pay for our mobility. Mistakes on the road are inevitable, but deaths and serious injuries are not,” Nicole Rosie said.
New Zealand Police Commissioner Andrew Coster said, “We recognise where we need to make changes and adjust our systems so our Police officers can most effectively play their part in saving lives and preventing injury on the road.
“Our new Safe Roads Control Strategy ensures our prevention and enforcement activity is focused on what will have the most impact in reducing harm on the road. That means you can expect to see us anywhere, at any time, making sure people are driving safely on the road,” Andrew Coster said.
Road policing and infrastructure improvements are key parts of the overall approach to improving safety. This also includes tackling unsafe speeds, lifting the safety of our vehicle fleet and the behaviour of road users, including drunk driving, wearing seatbelts and avoiding distractions.
“Road to Zero is a large, ambitious plan. It’s critical that we get this right, for the families and communities impacted by road trauma, and for all road users who expect to feel safe and be safe on our roads,” Peter Mersi said.
More information about the Review, including the full response from partners, can be found at: www.transport.govt.nz/zero(external link).
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