Whakatāne District Council, along with all councils across the country, is undertaking a major review of speed limits, starting with our schools and kura.

Council’s Local Road Speed Review is part of a nationwide effort led by Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency to reduce deaths and serious injuries on our roads by 40 percent over the next 10 years.

As part of this programme, the Government has introduced legislation that sets out new rules for speed limits around schools that Council must follow.

Council Manager Transportation Martin Taylor said lowering speeds around schools and kura will reduce the risk of injury to our tamariki and encourage more active modes of transport like walking, cycling, and scootering.

“With lower speed limits, these activities become much safer and should encourage more children to be active and reduce congestion at school gates,” he said.

“We also know this is something most of our local schools have been crying out for, and this new rule introduced by Government makes it easier for us to respond to their concerns.”

Council is currently collecting feedback from all schools and kura in the district and once that has been completed it will be going out to the wider public to hear from them too.

“While we are concentrating on schools first, we will be looking at our roading network as a whole,” said Mr Taylor.

“So, we’ll also be looking at urban areas, marae, cemeteries and urupa, high-risk rural roads and areas where there is strong community demand for change.

“Where needed, we’ll look at supporting these speed changes with infrastructure like speed bumps, chicanes, traffic islands and signage. This will be supported by more enforcement from Police and new fixed and mobile speed cameras being deployed by Waka Kotahi over the next few years.”

Public consultation on speeds around rural school is expected towards the end of the year while speed limits around schools in more complex urban areas will be consulted early in 2023. 

Consultation on further speed limit changes across the wider network of the districts rural and urban roads will begin later in 2023.

Once the community has had its say, any speed changes around schools and kura should be finalised by early 2023, all other changes will take place over the next five to ten years.