Media statement | 26 June 2007

Safe and efficient roads Land Transport NZ's focus for Gisborne and Hawke's Bay

A safer and more efficient road network to cope with the demands of forestry, tourism and an increasing population is the focus for Gisborne and Hawke’s Bay in the 2007/08 National Land Transport Programme (NLTP).

Land Transport NZ today announced $2.4 billion in transport spending for New Zealand in 2007/08, including more than $95 million allocated for investment in Gisborne and Hawke’s Bay’s land transport network. This figure includes $55.7 million for maintaining state highways and local roads, an increase of $1.4 million over 2006/07.

Land Transport NZ Acting Chair Paul Fitzharris says the agency and its partners are committed to making Gisborne and Hawke’s Bay’s major routes safer and more efficient.

Most priority work under regional development in Gisborne will be completed by the end of 2007/08. This includes pavement strengthening, and widening and sealing of most major access routes to production forests in the region.

Projects completed in the past year include:

• curve realignment and passing lanes on SH 2 south of Hastings
• eight road upgrading projects for forest access in the Gisborne district
• two stages of the Napier cycleway project.

Funding has been committed for the continuation of major projects, including:

• the Meeanee Road interchange on the Hawkes Bay expressway, which opens later this year
• a seal extension in the Gisborne district from regional development funds
• two more stages of the Napier cycleway project.

Projects which may be funded during the year include:

• forestry road upgrade projects in the Gisborne district
• investigation of the Matahoura Gorge realignment on SH 2 between Napier and Wairoa, the Hawkes Bay expressway southern extension and the Waipukurau overbridge realignment.

Mr Fitzharris said a new element  in this year’s NLTP is the inclusion for the first time of community focused land transport activities. This change means the planning and funding of these activities can now be integrated with the delivery of travel behaviour change projects, road safety, engineering and other NLTP activities.

The Road Safety to 2010 Strategy goal for the Gisborne region is that, by 2010, fatalities and hospitalisations will be fewer than 50 per annum. There were four fatalities and 106 hospitalisations due to road crashes in Gisborne during the 2006 year. The goal for the Hawkes Bay region is fewer than 190 fatalities and hospitalisations per annum by 2010. There were 25 fatalities and 203 hospitalisations due to road crashes in Hawkes Bay during the 2006 year. Funding for NZ Police land transport activities to help reach the 2010 targets totals $4.9 million in Gisborne  and $8.8 million in Hawkes Bay for the 2007/08 year.

Mr Fitzharris says the activities funded through the NLTP reflect Land Transport NZ’s objective of contributing to an integrated, safe, responsive and sustainable land transport system.

Regional newsletters, a fact sheet and the NLTP book, which details all projects in the 2007/08 NLTP, will be available at www.landtransport.govt.nz from 6pm today.

For more information:

Ian Hunter
Partnership Manager, Central
(04) 931 8900  or 0274 506 966