SH23, SH31 and SH39 West Waikato speed review

Project introduction

We want to make your roads safer for everyone who uses them. There’s been a significant number of crashes on SH23, SH31 and SH39, in the west Waikato. We want to make sure that speeds are safe and appropriate on these roads, so Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency is reviewing the current speed limits.

Project type

Speed review

Project updates

West Waikato speed review engagement summary report

Project updates, 27 April 2021 (PDF)

Share your thoughts on West Waikato state highway speeds

Media release, 23 October 2020

What we know

Between 2009-2018, there were 17 fatalities and 104 people seriously injured as a result of crashes on the highways under consideration in this speed review. While crashes are caused by a number of contributing factors, even when speed isn’t the main cause of the crash, it is most likely to determine whether anyone is killed, injured, or walks away unharmed.
The West Waikato state highway network is used for moving freight between regions, agribusiness, commuting, tourism and local residents. This mix of road users are not always complementary and can lead towards safety issues for everyone using the road.
For many this part of the state highway network is the ‘street’ they live on and the place they call home. Petitions relating to speed limits being too high have been received by Waka Kotahi for some of the towns in this area.
SH31 out to Kawhia is a particularly winding road, with numerous roadside hazards along the route such as large trees and steep drop-offs.
The Waikato and Waipa District Councils have either lowered or are in the process of lowering speed limits on a number of local roads connected to the state highway network. Otorohanga District Council is proposing making similar changes to their local road network and are also engaging with their community at the same time as Waka Kotahi is engaging on speed reviews on the state highways.
Our priority is to make this state highway network safer as soon as possible so that everyone living on and using it can get where they are going safely.

The following table outlines the number of crashes, deaths and serious injuries sustained across the three state highways during the ten-year period (2009-2018).

Along with the devastating effect on families and communities, crashes on this route can cause extensive delays and long detours if there are road closures.

Road	Crashes	Deaths	Serious injuries
SH23	381	4	52
SH31	173	3	22
SH39	328	10	30

Speed limits on these state highways are as high as 100km/h, but the average speeds are much lower as shown in the following table.

Location	Current speed limit (km/h)	Average speed (km/h)
SH23 - Hamilton West (Dinsdale) to Whatawhata	100	82
SH23 - Whatawhata	80	77
SH23 - Whatawhata to Four Brothers Reserve	100	82
SH23 - Four Brothers Reserve to east of Cogswell Road	100	75
SH23 - East of Cogswell Road to Te Uku	100	77
SH23 - Te Uku	80	82
SH23 - Te Uku to 400m east of Greenslade Road	100	85
SH23 - 400m east of Greenslade Road to Manukau Road	100	72
SH31 - Otorohanga to the SH31/SH39 junction	100	80
SH31 - SH31/SH39 junction to Te Kauri Stream bridge	100	80
SH31 - Te Kauri Stream bridge to 2km east of Harbour Road	100	65
SH31 - 2km east of Harbour Road to Kawhia	100	72
SH39 - Te Kowhai to Whatawhata	100	82
SH39 - Whatawhata	70/80	60
SH39 - Whatawhata to Ngahinapouri	100	87
SH39 - Ngahinapouri	70	77
SH39 - Ngahinapouri to Pirongia	100	87
SH39 - Pirongia South	70	62
SH39 - Pirongia South to the SH31/SH39 junction	100	87

Project area

How speed reviews work

More information about speed and the speed review process is available on the Speed Review Programme webpage.

Speed Review Programme

Online services