By Peter de Graaf of RNZ
Constant back-and-forth speed limit changes on Northland’s state highways are confusing and potentially costly for motorists, the Automobile Association says.
This week, NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi (NZTA) is reducing the speed limits on five sections of state highway around the region, including a section of State Highway 1 between Kawakawa and Moerewa.
As of Monday, the speed limit just west of Kawakawa is back to 80km/h, little more than a year after it was raised to 100km/h in a Government drive to reverse speed limit reductions brought in under the previous Government. The speed limit had originally been lowered in 2020 after a 30-year campaign by local residents.
Automobile Association (AA) Northland district council chair Tracey Rissetto said her branch had agreed to support the reduction back to 80km/h. That was because of the potential for serious crashes on Kawakawa’s Three Bridges, which were narrow and had limited visibility, and a significant bend just west of the bridges.
“But we are aware that changing the speed again for a small section of SH1 will be confusing for motorists and may cause a few to be out of pocket with the 2024 installation of the speed camera on that stretch of road,” she said.
“What we do ask is that there is consistency in the setting of speed limits. Speed limits are an issue of safety and should not be by political whim. As we’re aware, the transport budget is under stress. The cost of consulting and physically changing signage comes out of this budget,” Rissetto said.
Residents of Taumatamākuku, a settlement between Kawakawa and Moerewa, have welcomed this week’s speed reduction. Taumatamākuku Community Residents Representatives Committee chair Roddy Hapati-Pihema said locals started campaigning for a lower limit 30 years ago, because they were tired of tending to the injured, and sometimes the dead, outside their homes. He said the 2020 speed reduction came about after thorough consultation and a national speed review, so he was “very happy” to see the 80km/h limit restored.
“The thing that really irritates me is that these reversals were imposed by central government and I think a lot of people don’t understand that. We were lucky that as a community there was a way for us to go through consultation and bring it back down again,” he said.
“I certainly understand everyone’s frustration at seeing these limits go up and down, however it’s our duty of care that our roads are kept safe.”
Hapati-Pihema said NZTA planned to upgrade the Taumatamākuku-SH1 intersection, but until then anything that improved safety was welcome. He said he was pleased for residents of Kaingaroa on SH10, whose earlier speed limit reductions had also been reinstated.
NZTA regional relationships director Jason Dawson said reduced speed limits would come into effect at five locations around Northland this week. They were SH1 Kawakawa to Taumatamākuku, with the 100km/h limit dropping to 80km/h; SH12 Ōpononi north (100km/h to 60km/h; SH12 Ōpononi (70km/h to 50km/h); SH10 Kaingaroa north (100km/h to 80km/h); and SH10 Kaingaroa south (100km/h to 80km/h).
The changes followed a speed review and public consultation earlier this year.
Dawson said NZTA considered community feedback alongside safety assessments, technical analysis, costs, benefits and other data, with the Director of Land Transport approving the changes under the 2024 Setting of Speed Limits rule. The new limits would be enforceable as soon as new signs were installed and uncovered.
Dawson said reduced speed limits applied to relatively short sections of highway. They better reflected the road environment and would make journeys safer without adding significantly to travel times, he said.
NZTA’s consultation report shows that of the 589 submissions on the Kawakawa-Moerewa speed limit, 32% supported the reduction and 66% were opposed. However, 54% of submitters used the road but did not live in the area, while 35% lived or worked locally.
The fixed speed camera between Kawakawa and Moerewa was the first one in the Far North when it was installed in 2024. It was also the first speed camera in the country with prominent “safety camera ahead” signs to warn approaching traffic.
Dawson said NZTA would take an “educational approach” at first, including warnings, for motorists exceeding the new speed limit. However, anyone who continued to drive over 80km/h could expect a fine, he said.