Napier speed limit reviews: 30km/h for CBD proposed, anomaly on back-road to Hastings set to be righted

At the Brookfields Bridge it's 80km/h for traffic heading south, and on the other side of the road the Open-road limit (100km/h) for traffic heading north. Photo / Paul Taylor

A Napier to Hastings speed-limit anomaly on a busy but tragic secondary road looks set to be righted as part of a Napier City Council speed review announced on Wednesday.

The stretch of road is on the Napier side of the one-lane Brookfields Bridge, where the speed limit on Sandy Rd and passing the Meeanee Speedway is 100km/h, which compares with the Hastings District Council's 80km/h limit on the other side, Brookfields Rd between the bridge and Pakowhai Rd.

The 5.5km Sandy Rd-Brookfields Rd link is among the 10 per cent worst roads in New Zealand for deaths and serious injury accidents, and possibly the worst outside the highways network, with excessive speed a significant factor.

There were seven fatalities on the road from Pakowhai to Meeanee from 2007 to 2018, including three on Sandy Rd.

The change is one of more than 20 amendment proposals announced by the Napier council in a draft 2021 Speed Limits Bylaw, following initial community consultations in 2018-2019.

But it is seeking submissions on just three, seeing no point in revisiting the Sandy Rd and other mainly rural road proposals in the submissions.

With a July 23 deadline, it is seeking submissions on a proposal for "variable" limits on roads around schools, lowered to 30km/h around start and finish times, on inner-city CBD limits also at 30km/h, and a limit of 60km/h on Redclyffe Transfer Station route Springfield Rd, extending to the city boundary,

On a map the CBD is bounded by Marine Parade, Vautier and Raffles Sts, Munroe St, Dickens St, Clive Sq West and Tennyson St, but would not include Tennyson St.

The schools proposal is mainly about pedestrian safety, with Ministry of Transport research saying that if hit at 45km/h a pedestrian has about a 50 per cent chance of survival, but the chances rise to 90 per cent at the lower limit.

The council believes a lower limit in the CBD will encourage active travel" and allow cyclists to share the road in a low-speed environment.

Councils have had status as Road Controlling Authorities since 2005, when Napier first adopted a speed limits bylaw. Reviews were undertaken in 2009 and 2012, and in the latest process the initially consulted informally in 2018-19, enabling the community to suggest changes as well as comment on a wider range of proposals.

The 18 other proposals not being revisited include reductions from 100km to 80km/h on most of Napier's rural roads, the majority south of the urban area but including two in Bay View. For those now regarded as more urban than rural the proposal is to reduce the limit to 50 km/h.

Council Sustainable Napier Committee chairman Keith Price said data shows motorists can become complacent about sticking to the speed limit and properly observing their surroundings.

"Kids can be unpredictable when it comes to crossing roads, and we do have to bear in mind not all motorists are looking out for others," he said. "If there's any way we can reduce the risk to the youngest members of our community, we should."

A public meeting will be held at the Pettigrew Green Arena on July 7 and a submissions hearing will be held in September, with the 2021 bylaw expected to be adopted in October.

Hard copies of the proposals are available to view at the Customer Service Centre on Hastings St, and Napier and Taradale libraries