Waka Kotahi wants everyone who uses our roads in Northland and north Auckland to get where they’re going safely. To save lives and prevent serious injuries, we are reviewing speed limits in the region.
Consultation on speed reviewsConsultation on Te Tai Tokerau (Northland) and Tāmaki Makaurau (north Auckland) speed reviews closed on Tuesday 14 June 2022. A summary of feedback and our decision on any permanent speed limit changes will be provided in early 2023. Re-consultation on some sections of the 11 state highway corridors under the new Interim State Highway Speed Management Plan closed on Monday 12 December 2022. We’re considering feedback from this consultation alongside existing information to finalise the interim plan, and will share an update in early 2023. |
Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency is working toward Vision Zero – an Aotearoa where no one is killed or seriously injured on our roads. We are reviewing speed limits on state highways in Northland and north Auckland – and across New Zealand – to help ensure that everyone gets where they’re going safely, whether they’re walking, cycling, driving, motorcycling or using public transport.
Over the past ten years, 172 people were killed and 750 people suffered serious injuries in crashes on the roads included in this review (as reported in the Crash Analysis System). These are whānau, friends and workmates.
We need to create a safe transport system that recognises humans make mistakes and is designed so that these mistakes do not need to cost us our lives. A safe system requires a mix of solutions that all combine to keep people safe. Reviewing speed limits is one solution that will have an immediate impact.
Even when speed doesn’t cause a crash, it’s what will most likely determine whether anyone is killed, injured, or walks away unharmed from that crash.
We want everyone who uses our roads to get to where they’re going safely. To save lives and prevent serious injuries, we can set safer speed limits.
In May and June 2022, we consulted on new proposed speed limits at schools and townships on 11 corridors of state highway. This included working with iwi/hapū on signage for marae.
The 11 corridors we consulted on were:
Speed limits on the open road sections of the corridors in the programme are still being considered.
Our consultation proposals were informed by the public engagement process carried out in 2021, and our technical reviews.
When making a technical assessment, we look at crash data, how the road is used, and its physical features.
Some of the factors we consider are:
|
Speed review process |
|
|---|---|
| Speed review starts | A technical assessment of the road is carried out to find out about crash history, average vehicle speeds, volume of vehicles and development of surrounding areas. This helps to determine what safe and appropriate speeds should be. |
| Engagement | We talk to local communities and stakeholders to understand how the road is being used, find out any safety concerns and get feedback on current speeds. |
|
Formal consultation
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Changing a speed limit is a legal process, so this stage involves sharing a detailed proposal with people and asking for any additional information that might have an impact on the final decision. We also talk with iwi, hapū and council partners during this phase of the process. |
| Notification of speed limit change |
We are currently at this stage. Feedback is considered, a final decision is published on our website, and the public is notified. |
| New speed limit implemented | New speed limit signs are installed on the road. |
Learn more about speed management and how we decide on speed limits
In 2021, we sought feedback and local knowledge on these 11 corridors. The public engagement process closed on Monday 14 June 2021 and allowed us to gain an understanding of how people use the roads and any concerns local road users have.
During the engagement period, we talked with iwi and hapū partners, local government, communities, industry groups, schools and marae, and received 1,162 individual submissions.
Through this process we learned about the spots (such as outside schools and marae) and stretches where speed is a concern for communities, places where development has occurred and speed limits are no longer appropriate, and areas where road use patterns have changed (for example, where there are more logging trucks on the roads).
Thank you to everyone who shared their views.
We have reviewed all the feedback and a summary of engagement is available below. This outlines the steps we took and what we heard.
Summary of the engagement process and the feedback we received [PDF, 2.2 MB]
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