Napier, Hastings councils weigh pros and cons of road speeds

A problem area where Napier's Marine Parade meets State Highway 51 at the intersection with Ellison St. Is it a highway or a scenic route? Should it be 100km/h or 80km/h? Photo / Warren Buckland

Proposals to lower beachfront highway speed limits south of Napier are likely to be well supported, according to Regional Transport Committee chairman Martin Williams.

But he expects the opposite response to a similar proposal for 83km of the Napier-Taupo highway, with suggestions national state highways manager Waka Kotahi New Zealand Transport Agency is taking the "cheap" option, bereft of resources to carry out major roadworks to remove black spots on the crucial link.

Williams was commenting on Tuesday's NZTA announcement of a month-long public consultation on proposals to lower speed limits from 100km/h to 80km/h on State Highway 51 (formerly SH2) from Waipatu to Napier and SH5 from Eskdale to the Rangitaiki Plains.

Williams said regional leaders were briefed by NZTA last week.

He said with the roads between Napier and Hastings it's important to decide the difference in purposes between the Hawke's Bay Expressway, the major strategic traffic route, and the beachfront route, formerly the key route but now more closely identified as a scenic route.

It includes the 3km between Ellison St, at the southern end of the Marine Parade entrance to Napier, and the SH51 intersection with Awatoto Rd that has had five fatalities from road crashes since September 2018, an average of one every six months.

He said the role of the beachfront road as a scenic route might not warrant the expenditure required of a primary route such as the expressway, and he was unaware of recent discussion other than informally on the merits of other options for SH51, which proceeds through Napier in Ellison St and Georges Dr.

Napier City Council staff said its transportation team will be preparing a joint submission with the Hastings District Council and the Hawke's Bay Regional Council colleagues on both the SH51 and SH5 proposals.

Williams said that at the briefing, councils had asked for the factual details behind the proposals, and in relation to danger spots, but there were none.

The Napier council staff said the highways, particularly SH5, are critical links for Napier and the council urges the community to provide feedback on the proposals to the agency.

Submissions close on May 9.