Jet ski register targets ‘idiots’
Making it compulsory to register jet skis in Marlborough will put the ‘‘idiots’’ who speed too close to shore on notice, a retailer says.
There have been a growing number of complaints about the ‘‘motorbikes’’ of the sea speeding in the Marlborough Sounds in recent years.
To combat the issue new rules have been proposed to ensure all jet skis used in the region are registered, as they are in places such as Auckland.
Marlborough harbourmaster Luke Grogan said there had never been a fatal collision involving a jet ski in Marlborough, but some users were flouting the rules.
‘‘We are getting an increasing number of calls every summer from people concerned about jet skis being ridden at high speeds too close to shore,’’ he said.
‘‘And, in a high-speed collision with a swimmer, a kayaker or another vessel, the consequences are likely to be fatal.’’
Jet skis and other boats could not exceed 5 knots within 200 metres of the shore, or within 50 metres of another vessel or person in the water.
Grogan said if they breached the rules, jet ski owners should expect an infringement notice which carried with it the possibility of a $200 fine.
The proposal to register all jet skis, described by Grogan as the ‘‘motorbikes’’ of the sea, was included in a review of the region’s navigation safety bylaws.
Grogan said jet ski owners would pay about $60 to register, and would be given a sticker with an individual number they had to display on their craft.
This would make it easier to track down people who breached the rules, and to send out targeted education campaigns, he said.
Auckland Transport was developing an online registration system for jet skis, which Grogan said would likely be used if the rule was adopted in Marlborough.
This meant jet ski owners who had registered in other areas, such as Auckland, would also be covered if they used their jet ski in the Sounds.
People who bought a secondhand jet ski would be able to change over the registration details at little or no cost, Grogan said.
Marine and Watercraft owner Pete Walters said he supported jet skis being registered.
‘‘They aren’t the first council in New Zealand to do it and they won’t be the last. I think it makes sense and it gets the idiots out of the industry,’’ he said.
‘‘People have to understand they’re a boat. They don’t let boats go fast around swimmers so neither should a jet ski.’’
Walters said compared to twoand-a-half-years ago, when barely any jet skis were being sold in Marlborough, more and more people were using them.
‘‘It’s a hugely growing industry. People are starting to use them for fishing, they’re not just a speed machine, they’re an accessible boat for people,’’ he said.
Walters sold different models of the industry-leading Yamaha Waverunner jet skis from his Grove Rd, Blenheim store, the fastest of which had a top speed of 120kmh.
Public submissions on the proposed navigation safety bylaws close on October 31.