Waka Kotahi offered final chance to address concerns around reduced speed on SH5 before judicial review

Hawke's Bay Regional Transport Committee chairman Martin Williams has concerns Waka Kotahi did not follow it's own processes with the SH5 speed reduction. Photo / NZME

Hawke's Bay's Regional Transport committee has given Waka Kotahi a final chance to address concerns about the State Highway 5 speed reduction before seeking a judicial review.

Waka Kotahi's decision to reduce the speed limit of a 76km stretch of State Highway 5 from 100km/h to 80km/h in February was opposed by the RTC.

They expressed concern that Waka Kotahi had failed to consider other options or the economic impact of the decision in its review process, and there are fears that future regional investment will not upgrade the road to make it safe at higher speeds again.

The RTC decided to seek legal advice on whether to pursue a judicial review at its meeting in February.

In a letter sent to Waka Kotahi on May 16, RTC chairman Martin Williams said on the basis of that legal advice he considers the speed limit review process for State Highway 5 to have had "a number of evident material flaws and gaps".

This included what he suggests was an apparent failure to follow some processes set out in the Land Transport Act or the Speed Management Guide 2016.

He said he wanted to give Waka Kotahi a further opportunity to address concerns before any formal decision to proceed with a judicial review, given the strategic significance of the road and the RTC relationship with Waka Kotahi.

Williams asked Waka Kotahi to provide evidence of having ever considered "other measures to achieve travel speeds that are safe and appropriate" outside of permanently reducing the speed limit.

He is also requesting a copy of an "intervention check", an assessment of which intervention is most appropriate for a given road, if one was completed by Waka Kotahi under the Speed Management Guide 2016.

Finally, he wants an assurance that Waka Kotahi has not ruled out exploring investment options that would allow a 100km/h speed limit to be reinstated upon review.

Linda Stewart, Waka Kotahi's director of regional relationships, confirmed she had received the letter last week but did not give a specific timeframe for when a response may come.

"Waka Kotahi is committed to working with our local government partners in Hawke's Bay to ensure everyone who uses our roads can get where they're going safely," she said.

"We all want State Highway 5 between Napier and Taupō to be safer and agree that any deaths and serious injuries on this section of road are unacceptable."