Sandra Hazlehurst: Has Waka Kotahi listened to the SH5 feedback?

Hastings mayor Sandra Hazlehurst says we need to addresses decades of under-investment in SH5. Photo / NZME

OPINION:

We will find out soon if Waka Kotahi has listened to the submissions of road users, residents and regional leaders on its proposal to drop the speed limit along most of State Highway 5 to 80km/h.

If it has listened we will see it commit to a long-overdue, comprehensive upgrade plan based on evidence and a proper safety audit, and speed restrictions that make sense to the areas that are notorious for crashes, notably Te Pōhue and Te Hāroto.

If it hasn't listened, it will announce that it is going to proceed with its proposal to drop the speed limit to 80km/h over more than 80 per cent of the route – at the same time proving that its public consultation process was nothing more than a tick-box exercise.

I do believe that speed limits need to be reduced at the hot-spots, and know road safety is critical given the five fatal, and numerous serious crashes over the previous three years.

However, its proposed blanket reduction across nearly all of the route is nothing less than a Band-Aid that will lead to frustration and potentially increase the number of crashes.

For more than two years I have been asking Waka Kotahi to do something meaningful about this road, including its safety.

I have been asking for recognition of the strategic importance of this route to Hawke's Bay.

It is our region's main connection to most of the North Island, carrying more than 4000 vehicles a day, 20 per cent being heavy traffic carrying goods into and out of the region.

We need to see a plan that has clear priorities and timeframes that addresses decades of under-investment.

Anything less is simply not good enough.

I hope to see this, and Waka Kotahi honour its own guidelines on public consultation, which set out that reducing speed limits "requires extensive evidence and engagement".

• Sandra Hazlehurst is Hastings mayor.