A horror rental van crash that killed three Hong Kong tourists last week has reignited calls for overseas visitors to take driving tests before getting behind the wheel.
Driver Wing Fai Chan, 60, and two female rear-seat passengers - Kwai Tei Chong, 61, and Yin Wan Ng, 56 - diedafter their hired vehicle collided with a truck and trailer unit on State Highway 6 near Luggate, in the Wanaka area.
The New Zealand Transport Agency is working with the Ministry of Transport, police, councils, the Automobile Association and the tourism sector to target hotspots. They are making sure rest areas and scenic spots popular for photographs are safe to negotiate and include clear road signage.
NZTA has also developed steering wheel tags, distributed to Rental Vehicle Association members, which remind drivers of safe speeds, safe overtaking, keeping left, wearing seatbelts and the dangers of driver fatigue.
Road safety campaigner Clive Matthew-Wilson has labelled the strategy a failure, saying recent arrivals should be required to pass an interactive driving test before renting a vehicle.
It is not uncommon for calls to action to follow a spate of accidents. Generally, this includes calls for tougher laws. I'm unsure a law change or interactive driving tests will solve this problem but more needs to be done.
The NZTA is taking the right approach in working with other groups to increase road safety awareness among tourists.
This approach might take time but, hopefully, it will help stop such tragedies occurring.
