In 2015, speeding was a contributing factor in 93 fatal crashes, 410 serious injury crashes, and 1286 minor injury crashes. These crashes resulted in 101 deaths, 496 serious injuries, and 1831 minor injuries. The Government‘s Speed Management Guide (‘the Guide‘) is at the heart of changes aimed at reducing these numbers. It will target high-risk roads by lowering speed limits to 30kph or 40kph in certain urban and residential areas, or by lowering some rural roads‘ speed limits to 80kph or 60kph.

What is the scope of the proposed changes?
Julie Anne Genter, the Associate Minister of Transport, has pointed out that “we know speed makes the biggest difference to whether or not someone walks away from a crash, but a speed limit reduction makes very little difference overall to travel times”. For many roads, no changes to travel speeds or speed limits will be needed. It is only for those corridors where current travel speeds or speed limits may be too low or too high that changes are being recommended. However, so far the bulk of proposals have been aimed at lowering speed limits rather than raising them.

What does the existing setting of speed limits rule cover?
The Setting of Speed Limits Rule 2003 (‘the Rule‘) sets out the requirements and processes for setting a speed limit. It creates a default speed limit of 100kph for rural or open roads and 50kph for urban roads. It also has very prescriptive signage requirements, particularly in rural areas, for notifying road users when the open road speed limit is not the default. It requires a speed limit sign not only at every point where a speed limit changes, but also at intervals of 2 to 3km where the speed limit is not 100kph. It reflects speed-setting methodology developed in the 1960s, which is no longer fit for purpose.

How is the speed management guide different?
The guide modernises the approach to speed management. The proposed changes as part of the amendment to the rule are:
• to replace the existing speed setting guidance with the Speed Management Guide;
• to enable the setting of a 110kph speed limit on roads that are safe and appropriate to do so; and
• to allow for a more flexible outcomes-based approach for speed limit signs by enabling road controlling authorities to find more appropriate or different lower-cost solutions than repeat reminder signs by having a broader range of options for signalling open road non-default speed limits.

Some alternatives to placing reminder signage at regular
intervals when posting non-default speed limits include:
• optimal placement of speed limit signs;
• marking the speed limit on the road;
• a combination of speed limit signs, place name signs and other road markings, such as side islands or plantings;
• road markings placed at an angle to the edge and centrelines which lead to vibration or noise within a vehicle; and
• enhanced road markings.

What is the process for setting a 110kph speed limit?
The NZ Transport Agency will be responsible for approving potential 110kph roads. Approval will be considered for roads that have been shown to be designed, constructed, maintained, and operated to the necessary standards to safely support an increased speed limit. Some of the most heavily used sections of the national road network meet the criteria for an increase to a 110kph speed limit and these sections are:
Auckland Motorway Network:
• Tunnel to Lonely Track section of the Northern Motorway (SH1)
• Upper Harbour Motorway (SH18)
• Takanini to Bombay section of the Southern Motorway (SH1)
Waikato Expressway:
• Cambridge, Rangiriri, Ohinewai, Ngaruawahia and Te Rapa sections (SH1)
• Longswamp section of the Waikato Expressway (SH1)
• Huntly and Hamilton sections of the Waikato Expressway (SH1)
• Tauranga Eastern Link (SH2)

If the rule is amended to permit a 110kph speed limit, then a bylaw approval process will begin and the NZTA will progressively introduce 110kph roads, with the Tauranga Eastern Link and the Cambridge section of the Waikato Expressway being early deliverables.