We are proposing safer speed limits on part of State Highway 5 and on State Highway 51.

Thank you for sharing your ideas and insights

We would like to thank everyone who made a submission on the proposed speed limit changes on State Highway 5 and 51 in Hawke’s Bay.

The consultation closed on 6 June 2021. We had a total of 2,749 individual submissions. Of these, 310 people provided submissions for SH51 and 1,791 people provided submissions for SH5. There were also 648 further submissions that were classified as ‘general’ and the feedback can apply to both corridors.

The feedback has gathered important local knowledge and more information on how people use the roads and their concerns. Key themes that are coming through include views on the current speed limits, driver behaviour, traffic volumes, driver training, signage, and enforcement.

All feedback received helps determine if a speed limit change is the best thing to do to improve road safety, where new speed limits might begin or end, and if any other safety improvements might be needed.

To make the most informed decision, we need to carefully consider the information we have received alongside our safety assessments. After we have completed this, we will share the outcome and our next steps.

Should our final decision be to proceed with speed limit changes on the parts of the State Highways consulted on, we would expect to introduce any changes by the end of this year. The community will be informed well in advance if any speed changes are to be introduced.

We also sought engagement-level feedback on two other sections of SH5 - Esk Valley to the SH5 turn-off, and from Tāupo to the Rangitaiki Straights. The information received from this will help to inform any future consultation on these sections.

What other safety improvements are happening on SH5?

Improving safety on New Zealand roads is a priority for Waka Kotahi. Road to Zero, New Zealand’s road safety strategy, sets us on a path to achieve Vision Zero, a New Zealand where no one is killed or seriously injured on our roads. We want everyone who uses our roads to get to where they’re going safely. Safe speed limits and infrastructure improvements will save lives and reduce the number of people seriously injured on New Zealand’s roads.

To achieve Vision Zero, we need to create a safe transport system that recognises humans make mistakes. However, with appropriate design, these mistakes do not need to cost us our lives. The method requires a mix of solutions that combine to keep people safe, including setting safe speed limits and undertaking safety improvements.

Following a review of the SH5 corridor, we expect to do more safety improvements subject to funding. The project may include median barriers, side barriers, wide centrelines, and intersection improvements. These will complement the current speed proposal and other smaller-scale improvements. We are still in the early stages of this project, and the next steps will be to complete the feasibility and design work before staged construction. We will engage with stakeholders through this process.

This year, Waka Kotahi has delivered $2.5 million for safety improvements for SH5. These improvements included side barriers, road markings, and rumble lines, and an improved entrance for the Tarawera Café. 

The Hawke’s Bay state highway network also has approved funding of a further $16 million. The programme is being delivered across the 2020-21 financial year and includes an enhanced maintenance package of $4 million for works on SH5.

 
Waka Kotahi is also advocating for a long-term view to be taken with SH5. We have requested funding through the Regional Land Transport Fund for a Business Case that will have a wider perspective than safety improvements, including efficiency and resilience, with work intended to sit alongside any safety improvements delivered from the Road to Zero Speed and Infrastructure programme.

At the end of August, the final NLTP projects will be announced. This will provide clarity for many projects across SH5 and SH51.

SH51 also has further safety improvements that are awaiting funding approval. These improvements include infrastructure between Ellison Street and the Tutaekuri River bridge, including the Awatoto. If approved for funding, these safety improvements will happen over the next two NLTP periods.

Speed Review Information

For more information on the SH5 and SH51 HB Speed Reviews please visit our website.