Thousands of Auckland roads affected by Simeon Brown’s speed limit reduction reversal

Many of the 3100 Auckland roads with speed reductions since 2020 look set to be reversed under what Transport Minister Simeon Brown calls “nanny state” regulations to slow motorists down.

On Thursday, Brown announced he is proceeding with an election promise to reverse the previous Labour Government’s blanket speed reductions on state highways and urban roads.

The reductions resulted in speed limits dropping from 100km/h to 80km/h on many state highways, and from 50km/h to 30km/h on many urban roads.

Brown said the new “road rule” would have exceptions outside schools during drop-off and pick-up hours, on main streets in town centres, and in areas with strong evidence to support reduced speed.

Slower speeds will stay in urban centres, like Ponsonby. Photo / Michael Craig

The minister said lower speeds were the number one issue people raised with him as he walked the streets of his Pakuranga electorate in east Auckland.

“Aucklanders have also become increasingly frustrated by the persistent slowdown in their daily commutes through hundreds of speed bumps being put on our roads and want a different approach.

“The new rules will ensure that when speed limits are set, economic impacts, including travel times, and the views of road users and local communities are taken into account, alongside safety,” he said.

AT’s Safe Speed Programme began in 2020 and over three phases, speed limits have been reduced on about 3100 roads.

The first phase in 2020 reduced speed limits on 828km of roads, including the central city, rural and residential areas, and the town centres of Ōtāhuhu, Orewa, Mairangi Bay and Torbay.

Phase two mostly consisted of speed limit changes for rural roads, roads near schools, and Freemans Bay and Ponsonby. Phase three involved 1636 roads in the north and south of the city and included 75 schools and the Takapuna, Devonport and Glen Innes town centres.

Simeon Brown says slower speeds is the number one issue raised with him in his Pakuranga electorate. Photo / Michael Craig

AT group manager transport safety Teresa Burnett said the organisation would not clearly understand the implications for Auckland and the safe speeds introduced on the roads in recent years until the Government releases its draft rule.

“We are looking forward to having more certainty about the Government’s new direction for setting speed limits,” she said, adding the current speed limits remain in place.

Burnett said AT had taken a careful, targeted approach to setting safe speed limits since 2020 based on a Government rule from 2017 that required AT to consider changing speed limits for each road.

“AT’s approach to setting safe speed limits to date has been targeted and focused on making changes to roads with high safety concerns and where communities have supported changes.

“The vast majority of road trauma in Auckland happens on roads AT is responsible for, with 89 per cent of serious road harm occurring on local roads,” she said.

The rollout of lower speeds by AT is part of a road safety plan called Vision Zero where not one death is acceptable. Since it was adopted, the death and serious injury targets set by AT have been a mixed bag, according to figures provided to the Herald under the Local Government Official Information Meetings Act.

Many 30km/h speed limits will go back to 50km/h under the new road rule.

The figures show the targets were met in the first two years, but not the next two years, and it is touch and go in the current 2023-2024 year that ends on June 30.

AT has said on roads where safety interventions had been made, safety outcomes had improved.

Epsom MP and Government Minister David Seymour, who is working with Brown to develop the new road rule as Minister of Regulation, said AT’s argument about lower speeds leading to lower deaths and serious injuries showed how out of touch it is.

If Auckland Transport were serious, he said, there would be no 70km/h speeds.

“The reality is we make trade-offs of risk every day. Auckland Transport’s job is to balance risks in an informed, rigorous and democratic way, not to scare us with blithe and disingenuous fragments of information,” he said.

Epsom MP and Act leader David Seymour said if AT is serious it would ditch 70km/h speeds. Photo / Michael Craig

AT has received support for lowering speeds from the northern region’s medical office of health, Dr Michael Hale, who has described Auckland’s roads as too dangerous, and Fire and Emergency New Zealand (Fenz) regional manager Ron Devlin, who said as a first responder, Fenz sees first-hand the terrible effects of speed on the roads.

Automobile Association senior policy adviser Sarah Geard said there are some roads where lower speeds make sense, but others where they don’t.

She said AA members in Auckland prefer lower speed limits at the start and end of the school day.

“We would be very keen to see AT undertake a review of speed limit changes delivered to date, looking at roads individually and assessing the road safety impact, levels of compliance, and the views of the public,” Geard said.

The new rule is going out for public consultation mid-year and approved by Brown later in the year. AT and other road-controlling authorities will have until the end of 2025 to reverse speeds.

Bernard Orsman is an Auckland-based reporter who has been covering local government and transport since 1998. He joined the Herald in 1990 and worked in the parliamentary press gallery for six years.