Respect for road rules key to crash stats

Refusal to acknowledge past mistakes and learn from them is the certain way to set us up for the next disaster.

Marie Kaire, (Letters, Saturday January 12, 2019) compares New Zealand’s crash statistics with the low rate in Norway, citing the use of rail transportation as a major difference. For countries with roughly similar sized population (though vastly different land-mass) it’s tempting to make comparisons; however rail is only one of several factors that should be considered.

When we moved to Norway as expat teachers of English, we were told it was easy to get expense-paid accommodation at the pleasure of His Royal Highness, the King of Norway — just flout the speed limit. The general speed limit is 80 km/h on the open road, apart from a limited network of motorways around Oslo (90-110 km/h). And if you’d like the heavy hand of the law to extend your stay in a Norwegian prison, have a few drinks. In fact, having a drink in Norway is not so easy. Vinmonopolet outlets are wholly owned by the state and rigidly controlled. Yes — the roads are wellconstructed and safe. Many of them are toll roads. Add to that petrol tax, road-user tax and CO2 tax and, of course, Norway has one of the highest rates of personal income tax in the world. Another safety feature that plays a part — headlights are mandatory at all times.

But I have to agree with Marie — attitude is everything. Norwegians drive with consideration for others and respect for the rules of the roads. Patricia Fenton Whangarei

Accountability

If the annual road user charges off official NZTA figures from the 20km killer highway of the north are close to $15m a year, why do we give local government elected representatives such big soap boxes to shout from? About time they were made accountable! Ben Smith Northland

Time for councils to learn

Several councillors from Kaipara District and Northland Regional councils are right to complain about the wasted money and energy for the litigation over the Mangawhai Waste Water Scheme disaster. However, they don’t explain why the councils didn’t accept the cheques offered to pay off all outstanding rates and settle the dispute four years ago. To blame only the opponents — in this case the Mangawhai Ratepayer Organisation — is turning a blind eye to their own mistakes.

Why has the scheme cost us over $60 million for only 1500 connections? (That is over $40,000 per connected household).

Why does the scheme need a further $17 million of upgrades during the next 10 years and why must the scheme be completely rebuilt at the end of this 10-year period?

Why do the councils refuse to research modern, alternative, and vastly less expensive solutions?

Refusal to acknowledge past mistakes and learn from them is the certain way to set us up for the next disaster. It is an illusion that in future everyone will just pay up and shut up. Then we will all see what councils and the communities they are supposed to serve have learned.

The next very serious social conflict will result from global property speculation which will mean most young families will never get the chance to build an economic base for themselves. Another big problem is that the self-serving construction bureaucracy develops a self-serving regulation industry.

Regulation for regulation’s sake. Not for safety, not for efficiency. Young people are screaming out for new and better ways.

How will these be found if every attempt to change is blocked? Christian Simon Mangawhai