Duynhoven puts his foot down in drive to raise speed limit

10 October 2004 By HELEN BAIN

Speed limits on some open roads could be lifted if new transport safety minister Harry Duynhoven has his way.

He says limits should vary according to conditions, with drivers able to go faster than 100km/h on flat straight roads - and limited to lower speeds on narrow, winding roads.

He said many sections of motorways were built to a high standard and a strictly enforced 110km/h limit "would not be silly". Other roads were clearly substandard for a 100km/h limit.

Duynhoven, a car enthusiast and owner of New Zealand's oldest Porsche, is calling for a new approach to road safety, saying a focus on speed cameras and enforcing speed limits had alienated many motorists.

He said while excessive speed did contribute to the road toll, "we should look at what is appropriate for the circumstances".

"Is it rational for us to have a 100km/h limit on highways that are long, clear, straight roads?" asked Duynhoven. "In the central part of the South Island we have a lot of long roads where you can see forever and there are no traffic entrances or exits. But we also have the same 100km/h limit on all rural roads, no matter how windy or twisty."

Duynhoven has asked the speed management team on road safety to look at how authorities could better manage speed and driver behaviour. Officials are also considering how motorists can be discouraged from using the right-hand lane when they are not overtaking, a problem frustrating many drivers.

The government's "three Es" road safety strategy - targeting enforcement, engineering and education - aimed to lower the road toll to 300 by 2010, but it was not on track to achieve that, Duynhoven said. The road toll last year was 461. So far this year, as this newspaper went to press, it was 333, compared to 355 at the same time last year.

Speed is a contributing factor in just under a third of all fatal crashes in New Zealand, according to the Land Transport Safety Authority. Duynhoven said apprehending speedsters using speed cameras was costing public support. "A big chunk of the public regard the whole exercise as revenue gathering."

Last year police issued 882,694 speeding tickets, a third from speed cameras.

Automobile Association general manager of road policy Stephen Selwood said Duynhoven's comments were a breath of fresh air, and the AA shared his concerns.

"The key to road safety is speed in excess of the conditions, not necessarily speed in excess of the set limit."

Duynhoven said tougher enforcement of truck drivers' behaviour would also be looked at. Other motorists believed their own driving was rigorously enforced, but truck drivers could break the law with impunity.