Speed changes include high crash road

Years of campaigning will pay off next week for residents of a Kerikeri road notorious for its high crash rate when speed limits are reduced along Kapiro Road.

Speed limits on Kapiro Road will drop on Monday 16 September from 100km/h to 70km/h from State Highway 10 to 50m west of the roundabout at Landing Road. The changes are part of what will be the final rollout of speed limit reductions implemented along Kerikeri urban periphery roads under the Bay of Islands-Kerikeri Speed Limit Review. The review assessed more than 300 roads covering 321km.

It followed public consultation conducted in 2022 that attracted 253 submissions on proposed speed limit changes – two-thirds of which supported or partially supported new speed limits in the area. The submissions were considered at a formal hearing in March last year.

More than 20 roads in the area will have new speed limits from Monday. These include Stanners Road, Somerville Road, Redcliffs Road, Rangitāne Road, Purerua Road, Ōpito Bay Road, Rangihoua Road, Wharengaere Road, Oihi Road, Te Tii Road, Te Kōwhai Point Road, Kurapari Road, Rowsell Lane, Doves Bay Road, Doonside Road, River Drive, Equestrian Road, Orangewood Road, Keri Downs Road, Orchard Road, Conifer Lane, McCaughan Road.

New speed limits will also be activated over the next few weeks around Whangaroa and rural connecting roads in the north of the catchment area. None of these proposed speed limit changes will be impacted by the government’s proposed reversal of set speed limits.

The government’s recently released draft of the Land Transport Rule, Setting of Speed Limits 2024, is currently at the proposal stage and not yet legislation. The draft rule identifies “blanket” speed restrictions. However, the Bay of Islands-Kerikeri and Whangaroa speed reviews did not take a blanket approach. Each road was assessed individually, and any speed limit changes only been finalised and implemented following public feedback obtained during formal consultation processes.

The council reviews speed limits on district roads under a catchment-based approach as part of its responsibilities as the Road Controlling Authority. These reviews are undertaken in stages, with each road individually assessed to determine the safe and appropriate speed for its use and location. Where changes are confirmed, they are often accompanied by extra road infrastructure so that the speed limit feels right to the average driver.