Brakes put on speed limit around Hamilton schools
Drivers will have to slow down around Hamilton schools from Monday with the city council dropping the speed limit.
As of Monday the speed limit around all 58 of the city’s primary, intermediate and high schools will be 30kph.
Hamilton City Council City transport unit manager Gordon Naidoo said the aim is to make the areas safer for all road users, particularly children.
“With the relationship between speed and road injuries well established internationally, by reducing speed limits around schools we are taking practical steps to help protect our youngest road users.”
Research shows that if a pedestrian is hit by a car travelling at 50kph, they have a 10% chance of survival – whereas the survival rate increases to 90% if the car is travelling 30kph
Naidoo hopes the change will also give children more confidence to walk, bike or scooter to school if they can, which not only has health benefits, but also helps reduce traffic congestion around schools.
“Children travelling to school can be easily distracted by their surroundings. They may also find it difficult to judge distances and could step into the road without warning, so it is important that drivers are patient, take extra care and stick to the speed limit when driving near schools.”
Knighton Normal School deputy principal Materoa Collins welcomed the reduced speed limits.
“Having safer speed limits around schools keeps our tamariki at the heart of all that matters to us. It puts their safety first and foremost,” said Collins.
The new 30 kph speed limits will replace the previous 40 kph speed limits around Hamilton schools.
The change was approved at council’s traffic speed limit and road closure hearing panel in December 2023, following full consultation with schools and the public earlier in the year.
There was strong support from schools about the change, while 293 comments were generated from 177 respondents during public consultation – of these, 63% comments were supportive of speed reductions, while 19% of the comments were opposed to the changes.
It’s not a ‘one size fits all’ for all schools. Naidoo said careful consideration was given to each school location to determine whether a permanent speed limit was appropriate or if it better suited a variable speed limit, which would see the limit reduced to 30 kph around drop-off and pick-up times only.
For schools on roads considered to be important for moving people and freight, variable speed limits will be in place.
As part of the process the council worked with schools to better understand the journeys their students take to determine whether any changes should be made to the area covered by the new speed limits,” Naidoo said.
“As a result, in some areas there will be additional side streets and back entrances covered by the 30 kph speed limits, to better reflect how students are getting to and from school.”
The council said they haven’t had to purchase new electronic variable signs which cost $10,000 each, as they’ve been able to utilise existing signs where they’re no longer required.
The council has only needed to pay for the relocation of the signs.
Naidoo also wants drivers to be considerate when parking around schools by not parking across driveways, footpaths, yellow lines, cycle lanes or bus stops.