Police are enforcing a speed tolerance of just 4km/h this holiday weekend in an effort to keep the road toll down.
Police Acting Senior Sergeant Mark Holmes says last year eight people lost their lives and 23 were seriously injured in car crashes nationally during Labour Weekend.
He asks motorists to drive carefully on Western Bay of Plenty roads and highways, especially heading into the Rugby World Cup Final.
'Speed is often a key factor in many crashes and the TV ads are quite correct in saying, ‘The faster you go, the bigger the mess'.
'Anyone caught speeding can expect to be held accountable.”
Mark says police will be applying the national holiday weekend speed tolerance of 4km/h and asks drivers to plan their journeys and be patient.
'Police will also be looking at those drivers who drive well below the speed limit and who do not pull over and let other motorists past.”
Police will also place a strong focus on drug and alcohol impaired drivers.
'Despite all the advertising and publicity about the dangers of drink driving alcohol impaired drivers were still responsible for eight of the 13 deaths on Western Bay Roads in 2010.
'The booze bus will continue to be a regular feature on our roads as we launch Operation Profile.”
The operation is a concerted effort to rid drink and drug impaired drivers from the roads, says Mark.
'Police will adopt several tactics to hunt down impaired drivers and this included the use of plain cars and the monitoring of vehicles leaving licensed premises.
'It's really simple, if you are intending to drink, arrange other transport or have a sober driver. Don't fall into the trap of thinking ‘I will be right as I have only had a couple'.”
Mark says all drivers can contact police on *555 and report dangerous drivers or those drivers putting others at risk.
'Members of the public are important partners in ensuring we continue to make our roads and highways a safer place.”
13 comments
Fantastic
Posted on 20-10-2011 12:52 | By YakYak
Top marks for the police, especially on slow drivers, there are far to many people who hold up traffic by driving slow and not letting other cars pass and this is a receipe for an accident to occur. I only wish they would inforce the slow driving rule more often
What a Joke!
Posted on 20-10-2011 14:15 | By Tauranga Tazmin
4 km/h? Seriously? Why not just make the speed limit 90 km/h if they want the speed down? that's right, lowering the limit just would not pay as well... What a joke!
Only Look?
Posted on 20-10-2011 14:51 | By tibs
They only said they'd look at slow drivers. Has anyone ever seen them pull a slow driver over? Or do they do, like the rest of us, look from the back of the queue. They say this most long weekends but things never seem to change.
What's good for the goose?
Posted on 20-10-2011 16:14 | By Gee Really
If as I'm travelling along at 54 km/hour, a police car passes me without lights or siren, will I be able to report it for speeding? Don't know if I'm too slow, but it seems to happen to me regularly. I can't wait for the cost of those speed guns to come down, then I can stand on downhill slopes pointing one at cars as they naturally accelerate in accordance with the law of gravity.
Chop logic
Posted on 20-10-2011 17:43 | By pomfart
I love NZ. 4kph tolerence on national holidays, and then it reverts to the 10kph tolerence! So the speed limit is 110kph then? Apart from national holidays when it's 104 kph. what's the point in having speed limits if you then advertise the fact that you will ignore it up to another limit. That then becomes the new, real limit. Laughable.
Update
Posted on 20-10-2011 21:19 | By tibs
Eureka, this afternoon I witnessed a slow driver pulled over just south of the long swamp road. I don't know whether it was because he'd pulled out from the merge lane from Bell Rd and caused three vehicles to slow when he could have stayed in the filter lane and let then pass, or that he got up to 75km/h but then slowed to 60km/h for the Poplar Lane intersection and then eventually got up to 75km/h by the end of the long swamp straight but then dropped to 60km/h for the corner and then set off slowly accelerating to 70km/h by which time the copper had all lights blazing we all pulled left to let him go, apart from the guy in the HEB ute who was the target anyway. He eventually pulled over. Nice work, many thanks to the PC with the goatee!
what is slow?
Posted on 21-10-2011 06:48 | By dave4u
if 105kph is a speeding ticket is 95kph a slow driving ticket what exactly is the slow driving ticket speed please cant have one for the speeders & not one for the slowers an exact # required here please mr cop boss
Easy tax revenue
Posted on 21-10-2011 09:01 | By SpeakUp
There will NEVER EVER be accident free traffic. The safety argument is misused to justify terrorizing the population with a 4 km/h tolerance. Ineptness and inattention are the biggest causes of accidents. Now we are even forced to watch incessantly the speedometer instead of the traffic.
Great point dave4u
Posted on 21-10-2011 09:35 | By Gee Really
A lot of frustration on the roads which then leads to dangerous driving would be eliminated if dodderers travelling slowly were fined if they drove 4 km/h below the speed limit. I look forward to the Police implementing this and think it would do a lot to reduce the road toll. While I'm at it, why the softly softly approach with repeat drink driving offenders? How dare we read of some people with multiple convictions still being able to flout the alcohol limits which are serious.
Slow driving example
Posted on 21-10-2011 11:36 | By YakYak
Slow drving is doing 40k in a 60k zone, 70k in a 100k zone and then not pulling over to let the massive tail back behind you over take.
speeding trucks
Posted on 21-10-2011 14:26 | By kopchai
Just traveled from Waihi to Tauranga and back. Every truck I followed was doing 100kph or more...This is 10ks over the speed allowed. Do they ever get a ticket?? Just remember tickets are voluntary. No speeding equals no ticket.
mr yak yak
Posted on 21-10-2011 16:50 | By dave4u
so if im driving in a 60 I should be able to do 80 before i get one of your tickets or 130 in a 100 zone...fairness is the same over the limit + the same under the limit The quicker you go the quicker you are there & off the road The slower you go the more safer & enjoyable a trip is. lets set it at 20 kph everywhere after all if your young you have the rest of your life to get there If your old it delays the time you get home & die
Radio NZ story about speeding
Posted on 22-10-2011 08:57 | By Gee Really
Interesting to hear a speaker on Radio NZ afternoon program state that 80% of fatal crashes didn't involve speeding. He also said that a big proportion of fatal crashes involved younger males who operated with no respect for the law and on the criminal fringe and tended not to pay their fines anyway. I'd regain respect for the Police if they targeted that particular group and ensured they paid their fines and/or had their cars confiscated. That would prove they were serious about safety and not just revenue from the silent majority.
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