All road users are being urged to make history for a second time this Easter holiday weekend by ensuring no-one dies on our roads - as Police will be out in numbers targeting speed, alcohol and other unsafe behavior.
The call comes as 2012 was the first ever Easter weekend since records began 57 years ago that no-one was killed on New Zealand roads during the official weekend holiday period.
The official period begins at 4pm on Thursday (28 March) and ends at 6am on Tuesday April 2.
“Last Easter we showed that we all can make a very real difference by collectively watching our speed, wearing our seatbelts, not driving drunk and maintaining our concentration, particularly as more people travel away over the break,” says Superintendent Carey Griffiths, National manager Road Policing. “We’d love to see a repeat of that result this holiday weekend, and ask that everyone does their bit to make it happen.
“Police will be doing their part with a highly visible presence that will focus on enforcement of the normal lowered 4km/h tolerance that applies during holiday periods, and the targeting of drunk, dangerous and other unsafe driving behaviour in both rural and urban areas,” he says.
“Since 1956, more than 560 people have been killed in crashes on our roads on Easter weekends - with last year the only exception. It would be outstanding if we were able to repeat last year’s result this weekend and make history for a second time,” Mr Griffiths says. “That will mean fewer crosses marking our roadsides and fewer families grieving the loss of loved ones.”
During the long weekend, Police will also be joining with Australian Police jurisdictions as part of Operation Crossroads, to focus awareness about road safety issues.
Excessive speed accounts for 34 per cent of deaths and is also a contributory factor in more than 13-20 per cent of serious injuries on Australian and New Zealand roads.
Jon White CEO of ANZPAA, the agency that serves Police Commissioners in Australia and New Zealand, says that while speed is one of the contributors to road accidents and fatalities, there are many variables that contribute to road trauma tragedies such as alcohol, drugs, fatigue, mobile phone use and not wearing seatbelts.
“Speed is a major cause of serious road accidents; however we don’t just want people to think that as long as you stick to the speed limit you are safe. We are calling for all drivers to constantly evaluate their speed among other aspects of their driving, such as obeying road rules, paying attention to your surroundings and being courteous to other road users," says Mr White.
ENDS
More information:
www.transport.govt.nz.
Lesley Wallis
Communications Manager - Road Policing
04 4707111 - 2072209752
lesley.wallis@police.govt.nz
Ross Henderson
Police Media - Road Policing
04 470 7316 - 027 703 7329
Easter weekend after hours Police media pager - 026 101 082