KEY POINTS:
Traffic on Queen St is one step away from being permanently slowed to 30km/h.
Auckland City Council's transport committee yesterday approved the lowering of the speed limit on Auckland's busiest street to improve safety for pedestrians and cyclists.
Those groups represent 59 per cent of injuries from crashes on Queen St.
The move must now be approved by the full council at its August 28 meeting.
Karen Hay, manager of road safety for Auckland City Council, said in a report that speeds needed to be formally aligned with the "highly pedestrianised" nature of Queen St.
The speed-limit reduction would cut back top speeds - 2 per cent of cars reached 70km/h - but would not mean longer travel times or more vehicle emissions or affect business or passenger transport.
After consultation with the public, 76 per cent supported the proposal.
The Automobile Association was the only one of five key stakeholders consulted that rejected it. It said traffic was already travelling about that speed and the reduction was unnecessary.
Studies done in 2003 and 2004 showed that the mean vehicle speed on Queen St was 31km/h.
AA spokesman Simon Lambourne said the decision to change the speed limit was based on old data, and the AA wanted the council to wait until it could see the effects of recent road engineering work.
Mr Lambourne said there was potential for confusion among motorists and the council should be cautious about using different speed limits in different areas.
"The greater the number of speed zones with differing limits, the greater the potential for confusion," Mr Lambourne said. "We support changes to speed zones when it is deemed necessary using reliable data."
30 KM/H LIMIT
Who supported it?
* Automobile Association & NO
* Auckland Regional Transport Authority & YES
* Northern Regional Road Transport Authority & YES
* New Zealand Police & YES
* New Zealand Transport Agency & YES
* Public: YES 76 per cent, NO 24 per cent
