Speed limit changes: Short SH3 stretch in Whanganui remains at 50km/h after public consultation

Submitters said the lower limit supported planned residential growth. Photo / Mike Tweed

Plans to raise the speed limit on a 770m stretch of state highway in Whanganui have been scrapped after overwhelming concern from the public.

In January, the Government announced the speed limit along State Highway 3 (SH3)/Great North Road from north of Tirimoana Place to south of Turere Place would automatically return to the pre-December 2020 limit of 70km/h by July 1.

But on Friday it was announced it would remain at 50km/h.

Earlier this year the Government decided to open public consultation after strong community push back.

There were 984 responses, including a 290-person petition, with 85% saying keeping the limit at 50km/h would have positive impacts.

Eleven % said keeping it would have negative impacts.

Whanganui MP Carl Bates said he was not surprised.

“We helped a number of people with their submissions to the NZTA process, and I handed over a petition on behalf of two groups,“ he said.

“I had a good sense of the community’s concern and was able to share that strongly with NZTA.”

He said the Government’s decision to increase speed limits was part of a nationwide programme.

Of the 38 auto reversals announced in January, 16 were subsequently sent to consultation.

“The way the roading regulations work, you can’t go ‘We want to review this piece in Whanganui and this piece in Northland’,” Bates said.

“You set a criteria for the review, and anything that meets that criteria gets captured.

“That’s what happened in this case.”

Eighty-five per cent of submissions said maintaining the 50 km/h speed limit would have positive impacts. Photo / Mike Tweed

According to NZTA, submitters said the road was often busy and congested, the lower limit supported future planned residential growth, and a speed increase would have minimal impact on journey times.

The agency said a 50km/h speed limit would increase journey times by 5.2 seconds.

Residential growth meant there were more people walking and cycling, it said.

“Lower speed limits are known to be safer for pedestrians because the severity of injuries from a collision with a vehicle increases significantly with impact speed.”

Dickens Lane resident Bill Simmons said he “wasn’t particularly worried” about the speed limit staying at 50km/h.

“But, if we continue to populate the city with a highway as the main conduit, it’s going to be a very tedious drive to get from one side of Whanganui to the other,” he said.

“I think if we keep putting urban areas alongside of [the highway], it’s going to be a problem.”

In April, the decision was made to keep a stretch of SH3 north of Blueskin Rd to north of Tirimoana Place at 80km/h (instead of 100km/h) after public consultation.

There were 1000 submissions, with 55% wanting to retain 80km/h.

Simmons was in favour of keeping that limit, as there had been serious crashes at the Rapanui Rd/SH3 intersection.

Bates appreciated that the Government’s auto reversal announcement had “created some angst for our community”.

“Unfortunately, in Whanganui’s case, we were caught up in that process and we had to go through extra steps to ensure the limits remained as they were.”

Thirteen of the 16 stretches of road that went to public consultation will remain at the lower speed limit.

Mike Tweed is a multimedia journalist at the Whanganui Chronicle. Since starting in March 2020, he has dabbled in everything from sport to music. At present his focus is local government, primarily the Whanganui District Council.