Submissions flood in over proposed increase to Southern Motorway speed limit
Tuesday, 3 September 2024
A proposal to increase the speed limit on Christchurch’s Southern Motorway received more than 750 submissions on the first day people could give their views.
Consultation opened on Tuesday seeking feedback on a plan to increase the speed limit of a 17.7km section between Addington and Rolleston from 100kph to 110kph.
The proposal was announced by Transport Minister Simeon Brown last week.
The section, traversing state highways 1 and 76, was designed to a “high safety standard” that could cope with the speed increase, said James Caygill from NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi (NZTA).
“Safety features greatly reduce the risk of death or serious injury in a crash, like two lanes in each direction, a flexible median barrier between opposing lanes and a smooth alignment that offers good forward visibility.”
It was hoped the increase in speed limit would help people and freight move quickly and safely, he said.
If approved, 6km of side protection barriers from Barrington St to Halswell Junction Rd may be installed to further improve safety, he said.
By 3.30pm on Tuesday, 753 submissions had been filed to the agency, an NZTA spokesperson said.
Prior to consultation opening, Selwyn’s mayor Sam Broughton submitted a letter to the Ministry of Transport on behalf of the district council supporting a speed increase of up to 120kph, citing economic benefit, efficiency, and that it would be safe as motorists were already driving faster than the speed limit.
The letter was in direct contrast to the council’s road safety adviser, Mike Patterson, who argued in a submission to the ministry that the speed limit should remain the same.on behalf of the council advocating for the speed to stay the same
He said the barriers on the highway were “constantly being damaged though drivers colliding with the centre median”.
There have been no fatal crashes and five serious crashes on the section of the highway in question since it opened in December 2020, according to NZTA.
Two of those involved people overtaking, one was due to a loss of control of the vehicle, one was a rear-end crash, and the other was undetermined.
An NZTA spokesperson said crashes that were not serious or did not cause injuries were under-represented in the agency’s statistics.
Caygill said all feedback on the speed limit proposal would be considered alongside the agency’s technical and safety assessments.
Consultation closes on October 1.