Safety

Media Release 18 December 2014

Living Streets Aotearoa welcomes the final report of the Cycling Safety Panel, with a Government commitment to fund $100 million of improvements for cyclists and a focus on safe speeds.

We are keen to see better cyclist facilities on-road to keep the footpaths safe for pedestrians. There were 41 pedestrian deaths on New Zealand roads to November this year and we look forward to the government urgently addressing the human toll of these shocking statistics.

In a bid to get drivers to slow down, 30 school buses in mid-Canterbury have been fitted with illuminated flashing 20km/h signs - the legal speed limit when passing a stationary school bus.

Each year, more than 270 000 pedestrians lose their lives on the world’s roads. Many leave their homes as they would on any given day never to return. Globally, pedestrians constitute 22% of all road traffic fatalities...

Pedestrian safety: a road safety manual for decision-makers and practitioners (2013)

Friday is the most dangerous day for a stroll in the city.

The NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) will begin a trial of variable speed limits outside rural schools in June as part of the agency's ongoing effort to reduce serious crashes and improve safety on rural New Zealand roads.

The NZTA media release (18 May 2012) says five schools in the North Island will initially take part in the trial, with the first step being the introduction of a permanent 80 km/h speed limit at four of the trial schools (with a 100 km/h speed limt remaining at the fifth school).