Police pleased with holiday drivers

The section of State Highway 2 near Hawke's Bay Airport, Napier, was busy yesterday. Photo / Duncan Brown

As the long weekend began to wind down yesterday afternoon, Hawke's Bay police patrolling the roads were smiling.

"We have been very impressed with the driving," said Senior Sergeant Kris Eckhold of Hawke's Bay, adding she was pretty sure what was behind the better than usual approach to speed limits.

"We have been enforcing the 4km/h margin over speed limits and I think people have become very aware of that."

Since the holiday weekend began last Friday, police had been strictly enforcing the lowered speed threshold and would continue to do so until this morning.

"We have all been very happy with what we've seen.

"People have been driving at the speed limit, particularly on the open roads."

There had been the usual "one or two idiots," Ms Eckhold said, but overall the situation on the roads had been good.

"It comes down to driver behaviour and they have behaved."

Even those stopped for breaching the 4km/h threshold had accepted it.

"Several people we have stopped even apologised."

The open roads with the higher limits of 80km/h and 100km/h had come off better than city limits of 50km/h, where there had been more motorists picked up under the 4km/h rule.

Ms Eckhold said there had been no serious crashes or injuries on the Bay's roads by yesterday.

There had been a few minor incidents, she said.

"We have had dry roads most of the weekend and that has helped."

The holiday road toll stood at three last night.

A 10-year-old girl was killed when she was struck by a motorcycle at Lake Rotoma about 7.50pm on Sunday.

A 75-year-old Tokoroa woman died on Saturday when her car was in collision with a truck on State Highway 1, near Lichfield, and a 54-year-old man died on Friday afternoon, near Dairy Flat, north of Auckland. He also had been in a car which was in collision with a truck.

The holiday period officially ended today at 6am.