MEDIA RELEASE
Tuesday 15 September 2015

Call for Wellingtonians to slow down

With excessive speed contributing to 20 percent of all fatal and serious injury crashes on New Zealand roads, Wellington City Council and NZ Police are reminding people to stick to the limit.

Billboards and bus stops throughout Wellington City will promote the message “your speed affects other, slow down” – part of a national speed campaign developed by NZTA. The message “mistakes happen, your speed decides the outcome” will also appear on billboards throughout the Wellington region.

The NZ Police Wellington District Road Policing team will continue to focus on speed enforcement during this period.

Inspector Mike Wright says while most road users recognise the risks of driving at speed and support police enforcement of the speed limits, they don’t always recognise speeding in their own driving.

“They might drive faster than the posted speed limit but ‘it’s only a little bit over’, such as 57km/h in a 50km/h area. They may not see this as speeding but the consequences can be serious.”

Councillor Andy Foster, Transport and Urban Development Committee Chair, says that people driving too fast continues to be a public health and road safety issue.

“Between 2010 and 2014 there were 514 reported crashes on Wellington City roads. This resulted in 132 injuries and 2 people dying.

“Keeping to the speed limit makes roads safer for all road users, whether you’re in a car or on a motorbike, and it makes the road safer for people walking or riding a bike. Vehicles travelling at lower speeds have a shorter stopping distance – a few more metres can make all the difference.

“If we create an environment where more people feel it is safe to walk or ride bikes then there is less congestion on our roads – so all road users benefit.”

More details:
See nzta.govt.nz/safety/driving-safely/speed/speed-ads/numbers and wellington.govt.nz/services/parking-and-roads/road-safety

• 46% of at-fault drivers (speed related crashes) in Wellington are aged between 20-29
• 72% of at-fault drivers (speed related crashes) in Wellington are male

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