Ministers Chris Bishop and Mark Mitchell announced new offences and penalties in Rotorua on Sunday, with Rotorua Mayor Tania Tapsell. Video / Kelly Makiha
Rotorua residents welcome the Government’s clampdown on illegal street racing, with vehicles to be destroyed or forfeited.
Transport Minister Chris Bishop and Police Minister Mark Mitchell announced tougher penalties in Rotorua on Sunday alongside Rotorua Mayor Tania Tapsell.
The changes include increased fines and police powers, aiming to deter anti-social road behaviour.
Rotorua residents fed up with “boy racers” and “petrol heads” are welcoming the renewed clampdown on illegal street racers announced by the Government in the city on Sunday.
Drivers who participate in street races and those who fail to tell police who was with them will have their vehicles destroyedor forfeited in the majority of cases under the new legislation.
It overrides previous legislation that meant vehicles were destroyed or forfeited upon the offenders’ third conviction.
Transport Minister Chris Bishop and Police Minister Mark Mitchell made the announcement with Rotorua Mayor Tania Tapsell on Bidois Rd in Rotorua.
The area had previously been used as a “racetrack”, according to worried residents who spoke to the Rotorua Daily Post about the issue in February.
Transport Minister Chris Bishop (from left), Rotorua Mayor Tania Tapsell and Police Minister Mark Mitchell on Bidois Rd, where street racers have previously irked residents. Photo / Kelly Makiha
They asked the Rotorua Lakes Council for better signs and road markings, and speed bumps.
A resident spoken to at the time, who did not want her name published, told the Rotorua Daily Post she was thrilled with the Government’s new plan.
Another resident, who only wanted to be known by his first name, Martin, lives on nearby Old Quarry Rd and said similar issues had plagued his street for a long time.
He said “boy racers” would speed up and down Old Quarry Rd, a 50km/h residential street with a steep slope at one end, at an estimated 100km/h.
He said it was only a matter of time before someone was killed or seriously hurt.
He had rung the police numerous times in his years living on the street, but said it was hard to catch the racers.
The keen hunter said he had seen there were also major issues with “petrol heads” on South Rd in Mamaku, and the black tyre marks and “shredded” tyres could be seen all over the road.
He said the new legislation was a great step.
“It’s about time and it’s excellent.”
Tapsell said she was grateful to the Government for taking action.
“This is not only something affecting Rotorua but [that] communities across the country have had to deal with.
“We want it to stop ... We are grateful to the Government for listening to the call from our community, and from our council as well, and making sure these people will be held to account.”
Bishop said the current penalties were “not strong enough to deter this appalling behaviour”. Police reporting found the frequency of anti-social road events was increasing and “enough is enough”.
“Kiwis are sick of seeing these idiot drivers putting everyone around them at risk, so we’re taking action through a range of much tougher penalties.”
The changes are expected to be introduced in Parliament in the middle of the year and include a presumptive court-ordered sentence of vehicle forfeiture or destruction for those convicted.
The only exceptions would be if the vehicle belonged to someone else or if there were “manifestly unjust” or “extreme or undue hardship” reasons not to forfeit or destroy it.
The current legislation, introduced in 2009 by then Police Minister Judith Collins, allows for cars to be confiscated and destroyed, but only after a third illegal street racing conviction.
Mitchell on Sunday also announced police would be given more powers to manage illegal vehicle gatherings by closing roads or public areas. They will be able to issue infringements to those who fail, without a reasonable excuse, to comply with a direction to leave or not enter a closed area.
The police-issued fine for people intentionally creating excessive noise from within or on a vehicle will be increased from $50 to $300, while the court-ordered fine will jump from $1000 to $3000.
“I wonder whether he is going to do the same thing with the boy racers. It does seem like a bit of a pattern with Mark, that he promises big stuff and doesn’t manage to deliver.”
Kelly Makiha is a senior journalist who has reported for the Rotorua Daily Post for more than 25 years, covering mainly police, court, human interest and social issues.
