More to do for safer roads

Transport Minister Steven Joyce says there is no room for complacency on our roads despite the release today of a Ministry of Transport report showing a record low road toll for the past two quarters.

The road toll at the end of June stood at 139, compared with 199 at the same time last year. The toll for the twelve months to the end of June was 315, which was also the lowest ever recorded for a twelve month period.

Mr Joyce says it’s pleasing to see the road toll coming down so far this year but there’s still plenty to be done to get the toll lower and to ensure it’s sustained.

The Minister has asked transport officials to produce quarterly reports on the road toll to help the government and the public monitor the progress of actions taken through its Safer Journeys road safety strategy and road safety issues more generally.

“The road toll can be high or low in any particular week or weekend. Quarterly reporting will mean we can monitor medium-term trends and look for patterns of improvement as well as problem areas in our efforts to reduce death and injury on New Zealand roads,” says Mr Joyce.

He says all New Zealand drivers need to continue to take responsibility for their actions on the road.

“Despite the improving trend, so far 16 people have died on the roads in the first 20 days of July. That’s still way too many.”

“A range of factors will have contributed to the lower toll in the first half of the year, including higher petrol prices, ongoing safety improvements, enforcement changes and legislative changes,” says Mr Joyce.

Recent improvements have included barrier separations on sections of State highway, developments in vehicle safety, changes in road policing, and legislative changes like the ban on handheld phone use while driving and measures to crack down on illegal street racing and drugged driving.

Findings in the report include:

• Open road deaths have continued to drop and are down 40 percent since the last quarter of 2010.
• Motorcycle deaths, particularly those for riders aged 25 and over, have increased markedly in recent years.
• Young drivers continue to be over-represented in the road toll.

Mr Joyce says the impact of further actions like increasing the driving age from 15 to 16 (commencing 1 August), zero alcohol limits for young drivers and repeat drink drivers, improving motorcycle licensing and work on improving the safety of our roads will appear over time in future reports.

The report is available on the Ministry of Transport website at: www.transport.govt.nz