Chris Patel and Karma Vitasovich where debris was sent flying after a road accident outside the Kopuarahi School. Photo / Alison Smith
Chris Patel and Karma Vitasovich where debris was sent flying after a road accident outside the Kopuarahi School. Photo / Alison Smith
In both directions looking out from the playground of Kopuarahi School are reminders to the staff, students and families of the fragile line between life and death.
On two occasions the school community has lived through the trauma of car accidents - one fatal - on their doorstep.
The school is therefore celebrating the installation of a guard rail on its fence line.
Kopuarahi School — which is more than 100 years old — would like to see the speed limit reduced on the state highway past its boundary fence.
"The guard rail has made a huge difference to that but if you walk out by the fence you would see [the speeds of drivers], and this is a quiet day," says principal Chris Patel.
Chris says it is obvious to those at Kopuarahi School when events are being held on the Coromandel — and when announcements are made on the Covid-19 lockdown levels in Auckland.
"If Auckland is going into lockdown alert level 3 you would know about it. I wouldn't have to listen to any news broadcasts to know when there's an alert level change in Auckland. The traffic past here is horrendous.
The road has been a health and safety concern to the staff, students and their families.
"They [motorists] forget that life goes on beyond them, and these are our little kids," says Chris.
In late 2016, board of trustees chairwoman Karma Vitasovich began actively lobbying to do something about it.
She wrote to the NZ Transport Agency in December 2016 requesting that it be considered seriously as a safety issue.
"It was quite frustrating to see the email chain," says Chris.
She credits Karma's "gentle but persistent" lobbying over the years: "Then I took it up."
An accident outside the school where a man lost his life was "sobering" for the community.
"It was a Saturday evening, 7pm. Karma lives in the school house here and her children were there. [The accident] took out our powerlines, so bits of powerlines pinged into our school grounds, children would've been impacted.
"Seeing the Westpac helicopter land on the road, the car was so crushed you could almost not see there was a car here."
Chris says if it was a school day the children would have had to be taken to the library so they couldn't see out of the windows.
The school may have been closed on the day of the accident but it was still affected.
"Watching the kids after that, we witnessed the family coming to pay their respects. We'd be making them a cup of tea, meeting [the victim's] daughters and his wife. Our kids also went through that."
Waka Kotahi NZTA director regional relationships David Speirs said processes and consultation had to take place before they were able to proceed with the barrier installation.
"This is one of a number of important safety projects around the country, and we need to prioritise the timing of our projects so we can make the biggest difference in reducing deaths and serious injuries," he said.
In 2018 a woman crashed into the carpark of the school, coming to a stop by the school letterbox.
"What we would really like is a speed limit," says Chris.
As principal, she has a message on behalf of the 22 children.
"The school was built when the road was a metal road. It shouldn't have to be that the school closes because there's now a busy road. We as New Zealanders have to be kinder and a bit less in a hurry. And this school should be able to serve its community."
Kopuarahi School youngsters on their front play area. Photo / Alison Smith
NZTA says it is currently identifying roads where safer speed limits could make a big difference in preventing deaths and serious injuries.
"State Highway 25, from the State Highway 25/State Highway 2 intersection near Mangatarata, to Kōpū has been identified as one of them," said David Speirs.
He said a technical assessment on the current speed limits for this road has been completed.
"The technical assessment considers crash history, average vehicle speeds, volume of vehicles on the road and development of surrounding areas. It helps us to determine if changing the speed limit 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.
"After the technical assessment is completed, and if it determines that the current speed limits are not appropriate, further steps need to be completed before changing any speed limits, including engagement and consultation with the community."
As part of this, the agency will work closely with local government, road safety partners and the community, saying local knowledge is vital to its speed review process.
In April 2018 NZTA consulted on proposals to put Intersection Speed Zones (ISZ) at 10 high-risk state highway intersections around the country, including at nearby SH25/Hauraki Rd intersection.
ISZs use electronic signs that reduce the speed limit, usually from 100km/h to 60km/h or 70km/h if a vehicle is turning into or out of a side road.
At the same time the Road Transport Association noted it had raised concerns with NZTA on behalf of Kopuarahi School about a barrier.
More than 40 submitters said a roundabout would be more effective or that ISZs would be ignored by drivers.
