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More than 140 roads in Rodney will have their speed limits drastically reduced following Auckland Transport’s (AT) approval of a new bylaw last month.
Some roads, such as Big Omaha Wharf Road (Whangateau) and parts of Anderson Road (Matakana) will have their speed limits slashed by more than half. The limits on these roads will drop from 100km/h to 40km/h.
More typical is to see limits drop from 100km/h to 60km/h, such as at Duck Creek Road (Warkworth), Goat Island Road (Leigh), Pakiri River Road (Pakiri) and Grange Street (Warkworth).
Many Rodney roads currently with a limit of 80km/h will drop to 50 or 60km/h
AT says Auckland-wide speed reductions have been introduced in response to an alarming and growing number of deaths and serious injuries (DSI).
Auckland currently has three times the rate of DSI as other parts of New Zealand – on average two people are killed or seriously injured every day.
AT made its decision on which roads to cut speed after considering nearly 12,000 public submissions and reviewing technical reports.
The changes target the highest-risk roads in the region and are expected to prevent more than 85 deaths or serious injuries over the next five years.
The Rodney area is expected to benefit most from the programme, along with Upper Harbour, Orakei, Waitakere, Manukau, Manurewa-Papakura, Waitemata and Franklin.
AT chair Dr Lester Levy says the response to the consultation on the bylaw was clear – Aucklanders want safer roads and streets for all users, especially vulnerable pedestrians, cyclists and motorcyclists.
“The evidence from our own trials and overseas experience shows that drivers who make mistakes at lower speeds have better outcomes,” he says.
“If you value life, reduce your speed.”
AT says that as Auckland has grown, a blanket two-speed limit approach – 50km/h for urban areas and 100km/h for rural roads – no longer suits high-density areas with multiple users, particularly given the many hilly and twisty rural roads throughout the region.
AT will adopt a phased approach to implementing the Safe Speeds Bylaw and further information on when speeds on roads will change will be communicated when planning is finalised.
The speed limit reductions have drawn flak from the Automobile Association (AA), which says AT has not listened enough to public concerns over large-scale changes and compliance with the new limits will likely be poor.
Spokesperson Barney Irvine says the “big-bang” blanket reductions that AT is proposing are too much, too fast.
“The theme that comes through really clearly is that people don’t think the changes make sense. If people don’t see a speed limit as credible, they are unlikely to stick to it; and where compliance is low, you don’t get the safety benefits – all you get is higher numbers of infringements,” he says.
But the changes have been heartily endorsed by Movement – a safe journeys advocacy group. Warkworth-based transport planner and Movement spokesperson Bevan Woodward says the AT decision is a landmark that sets the scene for a new focus on road safety in New Zealand.
“The AA and National Party’s view that we mustn’t slow vehicles down to save lives has been considered and dismissed. The benefit of fast traffic has been outweighed by the benefits of safe traffic,” he says.
