Judicial review mooted to prevent speed limit reduction on Napier-Taupō Rd

Wednesday, 22 December 2021

Between 2010 and 2019, 16 people were killed and 75 were seriously injured in crashes on SH5 between Taupō and Napier. Since December 2019, nine further people have been killed in six fatal crashes, and all but one of these occurred between Rangitaiki and Esk Valley. (File photo)

A woman living on the Napier-Taupō Road is considering seeking a judicial review in a bid to prevent Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency’s proposed reduced speed limit for the road coming into effect.

From February, the speed limit will be 80 kmh between Rangitaiki to Esk Valley .

Among those who opposed new limit was Kiri Goodspeed, who felt Waka Kotahi had pre-determined its decision.

'We saw the proposed speed limits as something we were being consulted on, that our feedback would be listened to, but it now feels very much like it was not,' she said.

The new speed limits for the Napier-Taupō Road come into effect in February. (File photo)

A truck driver captures a dangerous driver on the Napier-Taupo road on the night of August 20, 2020.

* Reduced speed limits introduced for State Highway 51 between Napier and Hastings

* Orange pulp strewn 2km along notorious Napier-Taupō Road

There have been no fatalities on the Napier-Taupō Road in the past year. (File photo)

'Those of us living here can see there is an obvious safety benefit in reducing speed on the road in some areas, for the safety of our communities and motorists. But a blanket reduction to 80kmh along the entire road was just too much.'

She pointed out that in the past year there have been no fatalities on the road, which she said was evidence the current speed limits were safe.

“We all know what the real issue is - the road needs to be improved and properly maintained.'

Waka Kotahi considered 1800 submissions before making its decision, which was announced on Friday. More than half of the submissions did not support the proposed speed change, and a third wanted some speed changes if there were other road safety improvements.

When asked for a more exact breakdown of submissions, Waka Kotahi director of regional relationships Linda Stewart did not answer the question.

But she said the submissions did not identify any issues that the agency had not already considered.  

Stewart said Waka Kotahi had “clear evidence to show that the current speed limit is not safe for this road, even for the best drivers”.

She said the agency did consider whether different sections shoule have different speed limits, but said there was no part of the road where 100 kmh was safe and appropriate.

“We know we are doing the right thing for the community. We have listened to the community and understand the need and desire to also make infrastructure changes that will complement the speed limit change,” she said.