A woman is dead after a crash north of Queenstown this afternoon, taking the holiday road toll to six.

New Zealand's road toll was running last night at its second lowest since 1960, although the police still want drivers to take extra care over New Year.

Singer Pete Doherty has been arrested in court moments after being spared a jail term for admitting driving home drunk from a gig.

Police have identified a motorcyclist who was killed after a police chase last night ended in a high-speed crash.

A family travelling from Tauranga to Rotorua were followed at speed by a man who repeatedly tried to block, then ram, their vehicle.

Following a south Auckland booze blitz which nabbed 81 alleged drink-drivers on Saturday night, nzherald.co.nz today followed those and other offenders through the courts.

A mother with three pre-school children in her car produced a breath alcohol reading more than two and a half times the legal limit.

"The number of women [caught] was just amazing. Years ago, it was just men who were dumb enough to drink drive," a road policing manager says.

The grieving family of a teenager killed in a high-speed, head-on crash say they will never get over his death.

A teenager whose night of drinking ended with the death of his best friend in a road crash has been jailed for five years.

A 35-year-old mother-of-three woken by a loud bang found an alleged drink driver slurring his words after crashing into her daughter's bedroom.

Did the police really have to tell Air NZ about a flight attendant who failed a breath test? Employment lawyer Greg Cain discusses.