Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency is proposing new safer speed limits for State Highway 2 between Masterton and Featherston.

Alongside the speed review, Waka Kotahi has also designed new safety infrastructure improvements including new median safety barriers, roundabouts and raised pedestrian crossings

The agency said the proposals aim to prevent serious injuries and death along this section of highway.

The current speed limits on the road are being reviewed in an effort to save lives and prevent serious injuries along this section of highway.

Between January 2010 and December 2019, four people lost their lives and 28 people were seriously injured on SH2 between Masterton and Featherston.

“Everyone using our roads should get to where they’re going safely, whether they’re in a car or a bus, on a motorcycle or a bike, or on foot,” said director of regional relationships Emma Speight.

“Even when speed isn’t the direct cause of a crash, it is always a factor in the severity and can be the difference between a person being killed, seriously injured, or walking away from a crash. Safer speeds can save lives,” she said.

Flexible safety barriers will be installed down the middle of the road to prevent head-on crashes. If a vehicle hits a flexible safety barrier, the steel cables flex, absorbing the impact and slowing down the vehicle and keeping it upright.

Raised pedestrian crossing will improve safety for pedestrians. The design for the SH2 crossings includes improved vehicle ramps that are a gentler gradient for vehicles to drive over.

The new roundabouts at Ngaumutawa Road, Norfolk Road and Wiltons Road will make the key intersections safer by making it easier for motorists to negotiate.

Waka Kotahi is seeking feedback from locals and people who use the road regularly. The consultation period closes at 5pm on Friday 27 August 2021.