Waka Kotahi has changed the speed limits on State Highway 10 to ensure the safety of the community.
| Timestamp | Visual information | Audio information |
| 0:00:01 | Safer speeds at SH10 Awanui-Kaingaroa | |
| 0:00:06 | A car drives past on the highway as seen from a driveway. A sign to the left says "Kareponia Marae" | |
| 0:00:09 | Looking out across more of the gravelled driveway, more cars drive quickly past the entrance. | |
| 0:00:11 | The camera pans from left to right across the highway and entrance to Kareponia Marae. The corner of the highway is busy with vehicles. | [Off-camera] "We had seen a number of deaths on that stretch of road" |
| 0:00:16 | Anahera Herbert-Graves, Chief Executive Ngāti Kahu crossfades into screen. She is sitting and talking to the camera. | "Innumberable accidents and near-misses. In 2018 we had the sad incident of one of our tamariki getting hit, and having his leg badly broken. |
| 0:00:31 | The camera follows a group of children through a bus interior as they exit. | [Anahera off-camera] "He got hit just after..." |
| 0:00:32 | The school bus is pulled over onto the gravelly shoulder of the highway. Children walk away from the bus and the highway. A ute travels past the bus heading in the opposite direction. | [Anahera off-camera] "... He hopped-off the bus and was crossing the road." |
| 0:00:35 | The screen fades to black, and fades back in to see the corner of the highway outside Kareponia Marae. | [Anahera off-camera] "And he didn't do anything wrong." |
| 0:00:37 | The same shot continues as a text box appears. It reads "At Kaingaroa and Kareponia, iwi, community, and Waka Kotahi worked together to reduce speed limits. | |
| 0:00:40 | The screen fades to black and fades back in to Anahera, sitting and talking to the camera. | "People are just so used to travelling through that settlement..." |
| 0:00:44 | The camera pans from left to right across a straight section of the highway. In the distance, a truck begins to travel down the corner. | [Anahera off-camera] "...at untenable speeds that they weren't even keeping the rules..." |
| 0:00:49 | A queue of children leaving school begin to climb onto their school bus | [Anaherea off-camera] "... Around passing school buses, for example." |
| 0:00:53 | Anahera sits and talks to the camera. | "Sadly, this year, the younger brother of that boy who got hurt, was hit almost in identical circumstances. And, that fueled all of us to make safety sooner happen sooner." |
| 0:01:07 | Cody Paparoa sits and talks to the camera, a group of people sit in a line on a bench behind him in the background. Cody is speaking Te Reo. | [Translated from Te Reo] "The limit has dropped form 100 to 60km/h. This has been a big call, our whānau have been fighting hard for these changes to this road. Also, thanks to the Crown (Waka Kotahi), who have changed this, and have heard our call. So a big thanks. |
| 0:01:37 | The screen cuts to black, then Kathy Hancock, Principal of Kaingaroa School, appears. She is standing and speaking to the camera. | "Approaching our schools, 60 [km/h] is still far too high. There is a review right now, that piece of work is around looking at schools, marae, looking at all of the areas in Te Tai Tokerau..." |
| 0:01:49 | A bus driver stands at the back of his school bus, arm stretched out to the large text "SLOW DOWN" | [Kathy off-camera] "... And that is really important work, that must be high priority." |
| 0:01:54 | The screen fades to black. | Soft music playing. |
| 0:01:55 | An animated Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency logo appears. | Soft music playing. |
| 0:01:59 | The screen fades to black. | Soft music fades out. |
We are working towards a vision in Aotearoa where no one is killed or seriously injured on our roads. Everyone should get to where they’re going safely whether they’re walking, cycling, driving, motorcycling or using public transport.
In November 2020 we consulted with the public on proposed reductions to speed limits on State Highway 10 between Awanui and Kaingaroa. The speed limit changes came into effect on 22 October 2021.
To further improve safety around Mahimaru marae and Kareponia marae, we worked closely with iwi and hapū partners and the local community to develop safety improvements which featured variable speed limit signs outside each marae. We proposed these to help slow traffic when vehicles are entering or exiting the marae, or when people are walking alongside the highway to the urupā (cemetery).
The variable speed limit uses electronic signs to lower the speed limit to 60km/h for a short period when vehicles are detected at the marae accessway or lowered to 30km/h between Kareponia marae and the urupā when activated by Kareponia marae for tangi.
A testing camera has been positioned outside each marae to check the radar that activates the variable speed limit is in the right place to pick up vehicles turning in and out of the accessways. The testing camera will be removed once testing is complete.
The new variable speed limits for Mahimaru marae and Kareponia marae proposed during consultation are below. These new speed limits took effect on Monday 31 July 2023.
| Location | Existing speed limit (km/h) | New speed limit (km/h) |
| 40m west of Kareponia urupā Access Point to 150m southwest of Kareponia marae Access Point. | 80km/h |
Variable 30km/h when pedestrians are present 80km/h at all other times |
| 150m northeast of Kareponia marae Access Point to 150m southwest of Kareponia marae Access Point. | 80km/h |
Variable 30km/h when pedestrians are present OR Variable 60km/h when a vehicle is turning into or out of the marae 80km/h at all other times |
| 150m northeast of Mahimaru marae Access Point to 150m southwest of Mahimaru marae Access Point. | 80km/h |
Variable 60km/h when a vehicle is turning into or out of the marae 80km/h at all other times |
The following speed limits were proposed during consultation and were set as the permanent speed limits. The permanent speed limits took effect on Friday 22 October 2021.
| Location | Current speed limit (km/h) | New speed limit from 22 October 2021 |
|---|---|---|
| Existing 100km/h area from 455m southwest of Pukewhai Rd to 610m northeast of Duncan Road. | 100 | 80 |
| Existing 100km/h area through Kaingaroa from 610m northeast of Duncan Road to 360m southwest of Duncan Road. | 100 | 60 |
| Existing 100km/h area from 360m southwest of Duncan Road to 1.480km southwest of Pairatahi Road. | 100 | 80 |
| Existing 100km/h area through Kareponia from 1.480km southwest of Pairatahi Road to 1.275km northeast of Godinovich Road. | 100 | 60 |
| Existing 100km/h area from 1.275km northeast of Godinovich Road to 430m west of Kumi Road. | 100 | 80 |
| Extending the existing 50km/h area by 190m east of Awanui, from 430m west of Kumi Road to SH10/SH1 intersection. | 100 | 50 |
Map of permanent speed limits (including new variable speed limits):
On average, one person is killed, and several people are seriously injured in crashes on our roads every day. The ripple effects of these hundreds of deaths and thousands of serious injuries are traumatic for whānau, friends, communities, workplaces - and our whole country.
We want to make your roads safer for everyone who uses them. On State Highway 10 between Awanui and Kaingaroa, the best thing we can do to prevent people from dying or being seriously injured is reduce speed limits, so they are safe and right for the road. Speed increases both the likelihood of crashes and the severity of crashes when they happen. A small reduction in speed can make a big difference, especially when cyclists or pedestrians are involved. Most crashes are caused by a number of factors, but even when speed is not the cause of a crash, it will most likely determine whether anyone is killed, injured, or walks away unharmed from that crash.
CloseWhen determining the proposed speed limits that we consulted on, we reviewed the speeds that people are currently driving on this road, as well as the road itself. The speed limits outlined above were assessed to be the safe and appropriate speeds for the route.
CloseThe latest consultation summary and the submissions are now available.
Close
