This story first appeared in the June issue of AutoTalk – CLICK HERE to download the magazine FREE
April 2019 was the deadliest month on New Zealand roads in 10 years – 45 people killed.
It’s tragic and it brings into focus the need for widespread change across various aspects of our transport system.
The answer to halting the increase in road deaths does not, as some may hope, exist within a single silver-bullet solution.
Rather it resides in a broad range of measures that will tackle different parts of a pretty complex problem.
Unfortunately, while this Government is making useful progress in some areas of road safety policy, its own ideology is getting in the way of others.
Beginning with the positives, it is pleasing that after much delay the Government is finally taking tentative steps to address the drugged driving problem through the release of a public consultation document.
There were 71 people killed on New Zealand roads last year by drivers with drugs in their system, which is around one-fifth of the entire road toll.Despite the Green Party’s obvious discomfort, it was no longer tenable for the Government to ignore this issue.
The Road Transport Forum (RTF) is firmly of the belief that drugged driving needs to be treated like drunk driving with proper testing for impairment and strict enforcement.We want to see the Government introduce random testing, as we do for alcohol, and bring in more scientific methods such as saliva or blood testing.
There are challenges to overcome, of course, as current drug testing technology can only identify the presence of drugs, which is not the same as impairment.A further complication is the possibility of legalisation of recreational cannabis next year.
However, if the Government is truly aiming for safety to be its top priority, it must find a way to identify drug-affected drivers.
RTF is also supportive of NZTA’s new proactive monitoring regime aimed at identifying class 2-5 drivers who consistently compromise road safety and break the law.Drivers with poor records and little regard for safety could, under the new regime, face bans of up to 10 years.
Around 800 drivers have already been identified, most of whom are unlikely to be employed in our industry, who have at least three disqualifications, suspensions or criminal convictions.
RTF supports this policy because it is designed with safety in mind.However, for it to be truly effective what is required is a system that consistently collects infringements and safety breaches by drivers and reports them as they happen.Employers and other responsible parties can then take steps to mitigate the risks to road users and the company.
Unfortunately, far less progress is being made by this Government to rectify our deteriorating and shrinking road network.
The state of our roads is of major concern to the industry not only because poor and congested roads impact on our productivity and hasten the wear and tear on vehicles, but they also affect the safety of road users, including professional drivers.
The reality is that New Zealand’s roading infrastructure has failed to keep up with a growing economy and a greater number of road users.Stephen Selwood of Infrastructure New Zealand addressed this situation recently, very succinctly making the point that if we want to lower the road toll then we must look at the volume of traffic on our roads.
Over a billion additional kilometres were travelled on our roads in 2017 than in 2016, according to Selwood, and we are driving over 13% more than we did a decade ago.However, in the same 10-year period, the length of actual roading available increased by only 2%.
Selwood went on to explain that more vehicle kilometres travelled on roughly the same amount of road results in more accidents.In fact, studies have found a 1% increase in vehicle kilometres travelled is associated with a 2.5% increase in crashes.
It is true that funding has been committed to improving around 900km of regional roads.However, that is a drop in the bucket as to what is needed and does not actually create more road space.The fact is that the overall money for roading has significantly reduced under this Government.
Whether we like it or not, and I know the Government doesn’t want to hear this, but if we are to make private and commercial vehicle travel safer, we need more and better-quality roads.Encouraging walking and cycling is positive.
The majority of Kiwis, however, don’t live in central Auckland or Wellington and rely on our roads to get to work, go to the supermarket and drop the kids off at school; the lack of action on road building is frustrating.
If Government is serious about decreasing the road toll, policymakers must lose their ideological opposition to new roads and invest in a network that keeps pace with our growing economy.That along with measures to make sure that those who shouldn’t be driving don’t, will go a long way to making our roads safer for all road users.
