NZ Herald
  • Home
  • Latest news
  • Herald NOW
  • Video
  • New Zealand
  • Sport
  • World
  • Business
  • Entertainment
  • Podcasts
  • Quizzes
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
  • Viva
  • Weather

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • New Zealand
    • All New Zealand
    • Crime
    • Politics
    • Education
    • Open Justice
    • Scam Update
  • Herald NOW
  • On The Up
  • World
    • All World
    • Australia
    • Asia
    • UK
    • United States
    • Middle East
    • Europe
    • Pacific
  • Business
    • All Business
    • MarketsSharesCurrencyCommoditiesStock TakesCrypto
    • Markets with Madison
    • Media Insider
    • Business analysis
    • Personal financeKiwiSaverInterest ratesTaxInvestment
    • EconomyInflationGDPOfficial cash rateEmployment
    • Small business
    • Business reportsMood of the BoardroomProject AucklandSustainable business and financeCapital markets reportAgribusiness reportInfrastructure reportDynamic business
    • Deloitte Top 200 Awards
    • CompaniesAged CareAgribusinessAirlinesBanking and financeConstructionEnergyFreight and logisticsHealthcareManufacturingMedia and MarketingRetailTelecommunicationsTourism
  • Opinion
    • All Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Editorials
    • Business analysis
    • Premium opinion
    • Letters to the editor
  • Politics
  • Sport
    • All Sport
    • OlympicsParalympics
    • RugbySuper RugbyNPCAll BlacksBlack FernsRugby sevensSchool rugby
    • CricketBlack CapsWhite Ferns
    • Racing
    • NetballSilver Ferns
    • LeagueWarriorsNRL
    • FootballWellington PhoenixAuckland FCAll WhitesFootball FernsEnglish Premier League
    • GolfNZ Open
    • MotorsportFormula 1
    • Boxing
    • UFC
    • BasketballNBABreakersTall BlacksTall Ferns
    • Tennis
    • Cycling
    • Athletics
    • SailingAmerica's CupSailGP
    • Rowing
  • Lifestyle
    • All Lifestyle
    • Viva - Food, fashion & beauty
    • Society Insider
    • Royals
    • Sex & relationships
    • Food & drinkRecipesRecipe collectionsRestaurant reviewsRestaurant bookings
    • Health & wellbeing
    • Fashion & beauty
    • Pets & animals
    • The Selection - Shop the trendsShop fashionShop beautyShop entertainmentShop giftsShop home & living
    • Milford's Investing Place
  • Entertainment
    • All Entertainment
    • TV
    • MoviesMovie reviews
    • MusicMusic reviews
    • BooksBook reviews
    • Culture
    • ReviewsBook reviewsMovie reviewsMusic reviewsRestaurant reviews
  • Travel
    • All Travel
    • News
    • New ZealandNorthlandAucklandWellingtonCanterburyOtago / QueenstownNelson-TasmanBest NZ beaches
    • International travelAustraliaPacific IslandsEuropeUKUSAAfricaAsia
    • Rail holidays
    • Cruise holidays
    • Ski holidays
    • Luxury travel
    • Adventure travel
  • Kāhu Māori news
  • Environment
    • All Environment
    • Our Green Future
  • Talanoa Pacific news
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Property Insider
    • Interest rates tracker
    • Residential property listings
    • Commercial property listings
  • Health
  • Technology
    • All Technology
    • AI
    • Social media
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
    • Opinion
    • Audio & podcasts
  • Weather forecasts
    • All Weather forecasts
    • Kaitaia
    • Whangārei
    • Dargaville
    • Auckland
    • Thames
    • Tauranga
    • Hamilton
    • Whakatāne
    • Rotorua
    • Tokoroa
    • Te Kuiti
    • Taumaranui
    • Taupō
    • Gisborne
    • New Plymouth
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Dannevirke
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Levin
    • Paraparaumu
    • Masterton
    • Wellington
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Blenheim
    • Westport
    • Reefton
    • Kaikōura
    • Greymouth
    • Hokitika
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
    • Wānaka
    • Oamaru
    • Queenstown
    • Dunedin
    • Gore
    • Invercargill
  • Meet the journalists
  • Promotions & competitions
  • OneRoof property listings
  • Driven car news

Puzzles & Quizzes

  • Puzzles
    • All Puzzles
    • Sudoku
    • Code Cracker
    • Crosswords
    • Cryptic crossword
    • Wordsearch
  • Quizzes
    • All Quizzes
    • Morning quiz
    • Afternoon quiz
    • Sports quiz

Regions

  • Northland
    • All Northland
    • Far North
    • Kaitaia
    • Kerikeri
    • Kaikohe
    • Bay of Islands
    • Whangarei
    • Dargaville
    • Kaipara
    • Mangawhai
  • Auckland
  • Waikato
    • All Waikato
    • Hamilton
    • Coromandel & Hauraki
    • Matamata & Piako
    • Cambridge
    • Te Awamutu
    • Tokoroa & South Waikato
    • Taupō & Tūrangi
  • Bay of Plenty
    • All Bay of Plenty
    • Katikati
    • Tauranga
    • Mount Maunganui
    • Pāpāmoa
    • Te Puke
    • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua
  • Hawke's Bay
    • All Hawke's Bay
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Havelock North
    • Central Hawke's Bay
    • Wairoa
  • Taranaki
    • All Taranaki
    • Stratford
    • New Plymouth
    • Hāwera
  • Manawatū - Whanganui
    • All Manawatū - Whanganui
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Manawatū
    • Tararua
    • Horowhenua
  • Wellington
    • All Wellington
    • Kapiti
    • Wairarapa
    • Upper Hutt
    • Lower Hutt
  • Nelson & Tasman
    • All Nelson & Tasman
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Tasman
  • Marlborough
  • West Coast
  • Canterbury
    • All Canterbury
    • Kaikōura
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
  • Otago
    • All Otago
    • Oamaru
    • Dunedin
    • Balclutha
    • Alexandra
    • Queenstown
    • Wanaka
  • Southland
    • All Southland
    • Invercargill
    • Gore
    • Stewart Island
  • Gisborne

Media

  • Video
    • All Video
    • NZ news video
    • Herald NOW
    • Business news video
    • Politics news video
    • Sport video
    • World news video
    • Lifestyle video
    • Entertainment video
    • Travel video
    • Markets with Madison
    • Kea Kids news
  • Podcasts
    • All Podcasts
    • The Front Page
    • On the Tiles
    • Ask me Anything
    • The Little Things
  • Cartoons
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / New Zealand

Plea to drive safely as road toll heads to 9-year high

Bernard Orsman
By Bernard Orsman
Auckland Reporter·NZ Herald·
25 Dec, 2018 04:00 PM5 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

The summer holiday official road toll period started at 4pm.

New Zealand becomes a great holiday pinball machine today when motorists get in their cars and head to the beach.

As the number of people slain in roads accidents heads towards the highest in nine years, holidaymakers are being urged to take extra care on the country's unforgiving roads.

Yesterday, one man died after a ute crashed into the Whanganui River. That meant by last night, 373 people had died on New Zealand roads - the same awful toll as at December 25 last year and six fewer people than last year's total of 378 road deaths.

At its present rate, this year's toll will be the fifth consecutive year it has risen, and the highest overall toll since 2009. Speed played a part in nearly 30 per cent of road deaths.

Today, the Herald begins a series on safety improvements to some of the most treacherous stretches of highways in New Zealand. We tell the stories of families who have needlessly lost loved ones and survivors of horrific accidents.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

People like Valerie May, who celebrated her 90th birthday this month. The Te Puke resident would probably not made the milestone if a new median strip at SH1 on the Brynderwyns in Northland had not prevented a car she was in from crossing into the path of oncoming traffic.

And Tina Jenneen, a mother of four who was rescued screaming amid a jumble of crushed steel and inflated airbags in a head-on crash on SH2 between Tauranga and Waihi where 42 people have been killed since 2000.

The Herald is launching an interactive project showing when fatal and serious injuries occur during the Christmas holiday period called "Our most fatal morning".

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Using data from the NZ Transport Agency, the project shows more people die and are seriously injured on our roads between midnight and 6am on New Year's Day than on any other day of the year. Since 2000, 12 people were killed and 33 suffered serious injuries after New Year celebrations.

This is nearly twice the next worse morning for deaths and serious injuries on the our roads, Waitangi Day morning, on February 6.

NZTA safety director Harry Wilson said no modern country should accept the level of trauma on our roads that led to 380 deaths and could leave a loved family member tetraplegic or paraplegic.

He says a white line down the middle of the road is no protection, which is why motorists will begin to notice new safety improvements, such as median and side barriers, rumble strips, wider shoulders and intersection speed zones on the country's highways.

Discover more

New Zealand

The 'Killing Fields' of Dome Valley to be made safer

25 Dec 04:00 PM
New Zealand

Safer highway ahead for Christchurch residents

27 Dec 04:00 PM
New Zealand

Median barrier saves couple from head-on accident

27 Dec 04:00 PM
New Zealand

Holiday congestion for Auckland and Wellington

25 Dec 01:05 AM

These are electronic signs that detect when cars are turning into or out of a side road and signal a lower speed limit. When this happens, a sign will flash, reducing the speed on the highway.

The measures are part of a Government injection of $1.4 billion to make 870km of state highways and a similar amount of local roads safer. Once complete in three years, the improvements are expected to prevent 160 deaths and serious injuries every year.

Associate Transport Minister Julie Anne Genter, who has responsibility for road safety, said motorists would notice a "step change" away from the previous Government's focus on a few short sections of urban motorways to targeted safety improvements on high-volume, high-risk roads.

She said New Zealanders could also expect to see more appropriate speeds on roads and changes to speed camera policy.

"The purpose of the cameras is not to raise revenue, it's to ensure people are driving at safer speeds because that will save lives and reduce serious injuries," Genter said.

The Government's approach to road safety has been criticised by Opposition transport spokesman Paul Goldsmith, who said a line of sticks separating traffic with nowhere to pass and lower speeds were poor substitutes for the four-lane highways National was building.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

The Automobile Association is a big supporter of the Government's "reinvigorated" approach to road safety. Principal adviser Barney Irvine said the types of measures being proposed made good sense and would make a meaningful difference.

"But looking at the wider highway network, there are big concerns for us about the lack of firm plans for new roads. No amount of safety retro-fitting will get existing roads up to a standard of safety that a new road would deliver," he said.

Auckland road policing manager Inspector Scott Webb has confirmed officers will focus this summer on the stretches of highway they believe will have the greatest impact on reducing deaths.

After the reduction of 111 road policing staff across New Zealand in 2016, NZTA has boosted funding to get roading police numbers back up towards 1070.

Webb said the police had four messages for motorists this summer: wear seat belts; don't drink or take drugs; don't get distracted, particularly by using a cellphone; and keep your speed down.

Save

    Share this article

Latest from New Zealand

Herald NOW

Updates on the Stewart Island death

Herald NOW

Stocks slide as Trump Reveals tariffs

New Zealand|politics

Labour leader Chris Hipkins Live on Herald Now

From early mornings to easy living

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from New Zealand

Updates on the Stewart Island death

Updates on the Stewart Island death

Mike Thorpe NZ Herald Senior Reporter gives an update on the Stewart Island death

Stocks slide as Trump Reveals tariffs

Stocks slide as Trump Reveals tariffs

Labour leader Chris Hipkins Live on Herald Now

Labour leader Chris Hipkins Live on Herald Now

Takapuna Golf Course: Auckland Council confirms controversial flood prevention plan

Takapuna Golf Course: Auckland Council confirms controversial flood prevention plan

Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky
sponsored

Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky

NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • NZ Herald e-editions
  • Daily puzzles & quizzes
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Subscribe to the NZ Herald newspaper
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP