Blenheim truckies slam plan to cut speed limit

Thursday, 17 October 2019

Logging companies in Marlborough say lowering the speed limit on State Highway 6 would add up to 40 minutes to their already tight schedule.

The New Zealand Transport Agency (NZTA) last week announced it was pushing for the 100kmh speed limits on State Highway 6 from Blenheim to Nelson to be reduced to 80kmh.

Several companies met last week to discuss the proposal, agreeing while certain 'built-up' areas should have speed reduced, 80kmh was too slow for the entire highway.

Renwick Transport owners, sisters Jen Hall and Jacky Smith, say reducing the speed limit will make drivers more impatient when following trucks, who, by law, can't go above 90kmh.

**READ MORE:

Renwick Transport owners Jen Hall, left, and her sister Jacky Smith strongly oppose reducing the speed on SH6, and say it will only add to drivers' impatience.

* Slower speeds outside schools, not the whole highway, say principals

* Highway speed limit near Nelson will drop

A new sign on SH6 might replace the 100kmh sign if the NZTA proposal goes forward early next year.

* Lower speed limits made permanent along parts of State Highway 1**

'But if the speed limit is dropped to 80kmh, then our drivers would be less inclined to pull-over to allow the other road users to pass through,' said Smith.

The NZTA say the proposal is not just about saving drivers' lives, it's also about protecting passengers, pedestrians and other road users.

'Dropping the speed to 80kmh encourages dangerous driving, with other road users trying to overtake on corners and windy parts of the road.

'It would also affect our repairs and maintenance cost with numerous gear changes, fuel costs and it'll be a health and safety concern with driver fatigue.'

Renwick Transport has 27 trucks with four doing a daily round trip to Nelson, which Smith said would add 21 extra hours per day and 126 extra hours at the end of their six-day week, just on driver wages alone.

The majority of crashes on SH6 were due to 'impatient drivers trying to overtake on the double yellow lines,' Smith said.

With three near misses near Canvastown School this year alone, principal Monika Prusass is backing the NZTA proposal.

'We are not opposed to changing the speed limit … our drivers have pointed out that areas such as Hira and Awatahi or any built-up areas like schools, it's OK to reduce the speed limits, but not the entire highway,' Hall said.

'Driver education is also important - whether they are driving car or a truck.

'We could invite a representative from NZTA to sit with our drivers and that will give them a good indication of what areas that we can sustain the 100kmh for a car and 90kmh for us [trucks],' Hall said.

Reducing the speed limit in some sections of the road is a good idea, companies say, but not for the entire length of the highway.

System manager of NZTA for top of the South Island, Andrew James, said those who design the roads and those who use them must share responsibility for creating a safer environment.

'As well as making our roads safer by adding median barriers and rumble strips, we're also educating people on the dangers of speeding, drink and drug driving, and the necessity of buckling up.

'Communities know their roads better than anyone,' James said. 'That's why we want to hear from affected communities, and for them to know that their views will be taken into account alongside the assessments carried out by technical experts.

'This isn't just about protecting drivers. These changes are also about protecting passengers, the schoolkids crossing the road, the residents waiting for a bus, the motorcyclists without the same protection as a car, and the many people who walk, run, cycle or scoot on our roads and footpaths.

Renwick Transport driver Ashley Demmocks said any speed reduction would mean other road users will become impatient and try to overtake their big 57-tonne trucks, and this is when they are most vulnerable to crash.

'Leaving the speed limit as it is and driving to the conditions is very important for road safety,' he said.

'There are many areas in the highway that doing 100kmh is impossible, so there isn't any point in dropping the speed limit.

'If the speed limit did drop, either I will be working too much or too less,' he said.

Working less hours mean having to take a big chunk out of their pay, but putting in long hard hours to complete the work, they would be risking their lives due to fatigue.

The maximum the drivers are allowed to drive is 13 hours a day with the two 30-minute breaks in-between shifts, and a couple for smokers' break.

Canvastown School principal Monika Prusass said they had been lobbing NZTA to have the speed limit outside the school reduced to 60kmh during school hours and 80kmh at all other times.

'I drive from Picton or Nelson to Canvastown School and I think it's OK to drive at 100kmh on some areas but the speed needs to be reduced around the school,' she said.

'We have had three near misses and one accident this year already,' she said.

Marlborough Forestry Industry Association executive officer Vern Harris said, 'it would make some trips a bit longer, but control the speed around schools, and leave rest of the highway as it is, and drive to the condition of the road.'

Bryant Earth Works owner, Jason Bryant also disagrees with the idea of slowing down the entire highway.

'Over the last 20-years the roads have been better and the technology in our vehicles have increased dramatically with better breaking and handling systems, there isn't really a point in changing the speed limit.

'There will always be some idiots on the road regardless of the speed limit,' he said.

'It just seems backwards to be slowing everything down, when everything is designed to go faster, easier and safer then before.'