NZ Transport Agency holiday media contacts

The holidays are nearly here, but we know that many of our friends in the news gathering business will be at work while the rest of us are at the beach, so the NZ Transport Agency’s media team will be on call to help during the 2018/19 Christmas/New Year break.

During the holidays your primary Transport Agency media contacts will be:

December 22-26 
Darryl Walker – 021 374 334 – darryl.walker@nzta.govt.nz

December 27-29
Jasmine Higginson – 021 507 990 – jasmine.higginson@nzta.govt.nz 

December 30-January 2
Andy Knackstedt – 021 276 3222 – andrew.knackstedt@nzta.govt.nz 

January 3-6
Sarah-Lee Crellin – 021 807 745 – sarah-lee.crellin@nzta.govt.nz 

The Ministry of Transport will be providing daily updates on holiday road crash data throughout the break. The data will be updated by 11am each day, and will be available from the web page below, along with further background and historical crash data for the holiday period.

https://www.transport.govt.nz/mot-resources/road-safety-resources/road-deaths/christmasnew-year-holiday-period-road-deaths/(external link) 

Plan ahead for a safe, enjoyable summer holiday with the help of our interactive holiday journeys map(external link)

The map shows predicted traffic flow across popular journeys over the Christmas and New Year holidays based on travel patterns from previous years.

Just before you hit the road, and while travelling, use the Transport Agency’s Journey Planner website. It’s a great tool to help plan your trip with real time travel information, traffic cameras, and updates on delays, roadworks and road closures. www.journeys.nzta.govt.nz(external link)

If the boss does give you a few days off during the break, or if you’re hitting the road while on the job, please also keep yourself safe and follow our ‘top tips’ below for a safe holiday journey. 

Wishing you a safe and joyous holiday on behalf of the NZ Transport Agency. 

Top tips for safe holiday driving

• Check your car is in good “health” before you head off. Check your tyre pressure and tread, windscreen wipers, indicators and lights.
• Take extra care when travelling in holiday periods because of increased traffic volumes, congestion, tiredness and people driving in unfamiliar environments.
• Drive to the conditions - whether it’s the weather, the road you’re on, the time of day or amount of traffic.
• Avoid fatigue. Take regular breaks to stay alert.
• Keep a safe following distance from vehicles in front so you can stop safely.
• Be patient – overtaking is unlikely to make a significant difference to your journey time due to the amount of traffic expected over the weekend.
•  Allow plenty of time. Remember you are on holiday, so there’s no need to rush.