Reversing speed limit cuts
The government has begun reversing Labour’s blanket speed limit reductions and the new settings will be in place by July 1, says Minister of Transport Chris Bishop.
The Land Transport Rule: Setting of Speed Limits 2024 requires NZTA and local councils to reverse all speed limits lowered since January 2020 on several categories of roads back to their previous limits.
Some 38 sections of the state highway network will automatically revert to their previous higher speed limit, while restoring faster limits for a further 49 stretches of such roads will be subject to public consultation.
The public consultation, being run by the NZTA, opened on January 30 and will run for six weeks.
“The previous government was obsessed with slowing New Zealanders down by imposing illogical and untargeted speed limit reductions on state highways and local roads,” says Bishop.
“National campaigned on reversing the blanket speed limit reductions at the last election, and over 65 per cent of submitters during consultation on the Land Transport Rule: Setting of Speed Limits 2024 agreed.
“Reversing the speed limit reductions where safe to do so is also part of the National-Act coalition agreement.”
He adds the coalition wants to make it easier for people and freight to get from A to B as quickly and efficiently as possible, “which will help drive economic growth and improved productivity”.
The first area affected by the legislation is a section of State Highway 2 between Featherston and Masterton, where the speed limit was reduced in early 2023 but was shifted back to its previous limit on January 30.
As for other sections of state highway included in the rule, Bishop states that NZTA plans to incorporate the automatic speed reversal work alongside planned maintenance and project works.
“In terms of local road changes, councils have until May 1, 2025, to advise NZTA of the specified roads subject to reversal under the new rule,” he continues.
The new law also requires reduced variable speed limits outside schools during pick-up and drop-off times.
By July 1, 2026, local streets outside schools will be required to have a 30kph variable speed limit. Rural roads outside schools will need variable speed limits of 60kph or less.
