The Tackling Unsafe Speeds programme
The Tackling Unsafe Speeds programme is one of 15 actions proposed as part of the initial action plan under the new Road to Zero strategy.
What will change under the Tackling Unsafe Speeds programme
Framework
The programme aims to put in place a new regulatory framework for speed management that improves how councils and Waka Kotahi plan for, consult on and implement speed management changes.
The framework involves the Ministry:
- establishing a Speed Management Committee to certify the draft State Highway Speed Management Plan against process criteria and provide independent advice to Waka Kotahi
- establishing a publicly available Register of Land Transport Records
- regional transport committees developing Regional Speed Management Plans and consulting on those plans
- ensuring Regional and State Highway Speed Management Plans support government priorities outlined in the Road to Zero Strategy and the Government Policy Statement on Land Transport.
Under the framework, Waka Kotahi will:
- in its role as RCA, develop a State Highway Speed Management Plan containing speed management proposals across the entire State highway network
- provide guidance to all RCAs and regional transport committees on recommended safe and appropriate speeds, and how to prepare, consult on and implement Regional Speed Management Plans
- certify Regional Speed Management Plans before they are finalised and published
- in its role as the Registrar of the Register of Land Transport Records, include speed limits in the register, making speed limit changes legal.
RCAs will:
- retain responsibility for setting speed limits for roads they control
- contribute to their Regional Speed Management Plan, which will include speed management proposals for the local road network in the region
- implement speed limit changes as set out in the finalised Regional Speed Management Plans
Schools
The programme aims to lower speed limits around schools to improve safety and enable more children to walk or cycle to school.
While crashes tend to be relatively low around schools, they still occur. Reducing the speed limit encourages drivers to travel at safe speeds past schools, particularly during peak hours in the morning and afternoon.
Safety cameras
The programme aims to adopt a new highly visible, no surprises approach to safety cameras.
New Zealand currently adopts an ‘anywhere, anytime’ enforcement approach to safety cameras where cameras do not have clear signage and motorists do not know where enforcement may take place. New Zealand also has relatively few cameras on the network compared to other jurisdictions. The police currently own and operate the cameras and infringement processing system.
The proposed new approach to safety cameras is similar to that used in Sweden. This involves increasing the number of cameras over time, positioning them on the highest risk parts of the network with clear signage, and ensuring camera placement is incorporated into speed management plans. The intent of this approach is to support and, over time, help drivers to understand that it is easier and better to follow the speed limit.
The programme has no blanket reductions to speed limits
Speed management reviews will focus on high risk roads and roads where communities have expressed strong support for safer speeds. In these areas, RCAs must consider if engineering improvements or speed limit adjustments make the most sense.
Under the Tackling Unsafe Speeds programme there will be no change to default speed limits on the network, although there will be new requirements for safer speed limits outside all schools.
How the new regulatory framework affects New Zealanders
The new framework will primarily affect RCAs and Waka Kotahi, and how they plan, consult on and put speed management changes in place. The aim is to improve the process by removing some of the confusion and encouraging regional collaboration.
The new process will also improve transparency and accountability to the public. Speed management plans will provide the public with better information, allowing people to see and comment on all speed management and infrastructure proposals for the next few years across their whole region.