The construction of new generation safety cameras on sections of six roads in Auckland – including Shamrock Park – will begin in October, Waka Kotahi and Auckland Transport [AT] have confirmed.
These safety cameras can calculate the average speed that a vehicle travels across a length of road between two cameras. Commonly used internationally, Waka Kotahi says research shows that average speed safety cameras are more effective than single location cameras, and can reduce the number of people who are killed or seriously injured on roads by more than 50 per cent.
The use of average speed cameras in New Zealand has been enabled by the recent passing of the Land Transport (Road Safety) Amendment Act into legislation.
Waka Kotahi head of regulatory strategic programmes Tara Macmillan says in addition to being more effective at lowering speeds and reducing crashes, the new cameras also allow drivers to adjust their travel speeds to avoid being fined.
“When operating in average speed mode, drivers are only ticketed if their average travel speed over the entire distance between the two cameras is over the limit – they can’t be ‘pinged’ by a single camera. All of the new safety cameras will be clearly sign-posted – giving people a reminder to check their speed and slow down if needed,” says Macmillan.
“No matter what causes a crash, speed is always factor in its severity. By encouraging people to drive at safe speeds, these new safety cameras will help to reduce the number of people being killed and seriously injured on our roads.”
Stacey van der Putten, executive general manager at AT, says that it’s great AT and Waka Kotahi can now install these new cameras.
“Safe speeds are vital in protecting everyone who uses our roads. These cameras will play an important part in encouraging safe travel speeds and safer driver behaviour.
“Ultimately, it’s another piece of the road safety puzzle coming together that can help us reduce the number of people being killed and seriously injured on Auckland roads.”
The safety cameras will be installed on sections of six roads in Auckland with a high crash risk due to road layout and current travel speeds:
- Matakana Road in Warkworth
- Kahikatea Flat Road in Dairy Flat
- East Coast Road in Redvale
- Whitford Road in Shamrock Park
- Glenbrook Road in Karaka
- Glenbrook Road in Glenbrook
Site construction for camera installation on Matakana Road will get underway this month, with testing beginning in December. These cameras will operate in test mode for about three months, before being switched to enforcement mode in mid-2024.
