Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency 'concerned' by police’s lack of performance on road safety
Monday, 27 December 2021
The Transport Agency says it is “concerned” by the performance of police as part of its Road Safety Partnership.
It comes as police say they have witnessed a tragic start to the holiday period, with 18 road deaths in 11 days.
Assistant Commissioner Bruce O’Brien said he believed the crashes were caused by speed, poor decision-making, distractions and no restraints.
“This has been an incredibly tragic start to the holiday period on our roads and a number of families will never be the same,” he said.
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The deadly holiday period comes as the national Road Safety Partnership, featuring the Transport Agency, police, and the Ministry of Transport, prepares to roll out the next part of its 10-year “Road to Zero” safety strategy.
The plan seeks to reduce the number of road deaths by 40 per cent by 2030, and eliminate road casualties by 2050.
One of the key pillars of the strategy is police itself, and questions have been raised about whether the organisation is fulfilling its role.
The police annual report shows many road policing targets, such as seatbelt checks or breath testing at road side checkpoints, are not being met.
“We are really concerned about it,” Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency chair Sir Brian Roche said in a select committee meeting earlier this month.
“We respect the fact that the police have a number of priorities. But they have, in our view, a contractual commitment that they are required to deliver against,” Roche said.
“It’s one that the current Commissioner of Police is committed to resolving.”
NZTA Road to Zero portfolio manager Tara MacMillan echoed Roche’s comments.
“Police have an absolutely critical role to play,” she said.
“The police understand that. Road policing and road safety is one of their top three strategic priorities. Our relationship with police is the strongest it’s ever been, we’re starting to get good momentum and buy in.”
She was confident the police were on the right page. “We haven’t hidden from the fact that they’re not currently at the right level, and nor have they. That’s a key focus into next year.”
In a survey conducted by the Transport Agency, half of drivers polled said they believed the chance of being caught not wearing a seatbelt was small.
MacMillan said the figure had remained about the same over past surveys.
It highlighted the importance of greater visibility from police on the road, but MacMillan said it was not the only issue.
The survey also found 81 per cent of drivers thought New Zealand’s roads were safe, and 9 per cent believed there was little chance of an accident after drinking alcohol.
“What we’re seeing is a general sense of resignation when it comes to road safety, deaths and serious injuries,” MacMillan said.
In February a new campaign would aim to tackle complacency head on, she said.
A large suite of measures would be taken to make roads safer, including speed limit reductions on high-risk roads.
A significant increase in speed cameras had been signalled for some time, and that included the ownership of the camera network moving from police to the NZTA.
MacMillan said the camera network would likely migrate over to the agency in 2023.
There were currently about 50 fixed safety cameras around the country, but that would increase to more than 150.
While safety measures are constantly improving, police remain a key cog in the road safety operation.
O’Brien said police couldn’t always be visible.
“We can’t be everywhere, and ultimately drivers have the responsibility to keep their passengers, other road users, and themselves safe this holiday period,” he said.
The official Christmas and New Year’s holiday period ends at 6am on January 5.