Not only do they have to navigate the country’s worst traffic, Bay of Plenty drivers have been battling contradictory speed limits on a major road.
The 1.5km-long Tara Rd is the gateway to the Mount and Tauranga for commuters, businesses and vehicles heading to the Port of Tauranga.
But the road has had two different speed signs - 70km/h on one side and 80km/h on the other. And it’s not known how long they’ve been like that.
Bay of Plenty MP Tom Rutherford spotted this while on a Sunday drive with his partner, Hannah, calling them “a bit confusing”.
“80km/h on one side and 70km/h on the other - with the two signs right opposite each other. I laughed because it is comical, I mean it’s ridiculous. Is it 80 or 70? Because I’m a local, I know it’s 80, but I thought, wow, something is not right here.”
Rutherford got in touch with council on Sunday.
“I emailed their public general email address, advised of the issue, and attached a couple of photos as a reference as well.”
Tara Rd links Pāpāmoa to Te Puke. Image: Google Maps/Stuff.Contractors came out to fix the signs on Monday to make them both 80km/h, the correct limit when travelling away from the Mount to the east.
Asked whether his MP status had prompted the speedy fix, Rutherford says he didn’t know, but as a representative of the people of the Bay of Plenty he's happy to get things done for them.
While his constituents thanked their MP on his official Facebook page, they also wondered how council had got it wrong, with many pointing to the fact that the city is run by non-elected commissioners.
“A small challenge sorted. Now here’s a big challenge...get rid of our city commissioners and give Tauranga what it deserves in a full council and a mayor.”
Rutherford says he will.
“Absolutely! We believe restoring local democracy at the Tauranga City Council is crucial,” he wrote.
“I’ll continue to work with the Local Government Minister to have local democracy restored in Tauranga, in July 2024.“
Anna Somerville, manager Network Safety & Sustainability at Tauranga City Council told Stuff that it isn’t clear why the signs were different.
“From time-to-time signs can come loose and be rotated by the wind, and occasionally we see vandalism where someone obscures, removes or rotates a sign.”
But she's confident it's a one off.
“We’re not currently aware of any other signs indicating inconsistent speeds on our roads. It is unusual for a road to have different speed limits in each direction, and Tauranga does not have any roads where that is the case.”
The speed limit on Tara Road between Domain Rd and Doncaster Drive is 80k/mh in both directions, with a lower limit of 70 km/h at the western end near the roundabout at Domain Rd.
Traffic woes and speed are contentious issues in Tauranga, with locals protesting last year at plans for reductions to 30kmh for inner city roads.
5 comments
Frustrating Signs.
Posted on 24-01-2024 12:47 | By Justin T.
Pitty the same speedy remedy doesn't happen for roadworks signs and cones where no work exists or reductions required.
Not a first
Posted on 24-01-2024 13:12 | By sundance kid
The bypass under the Wairoa Bridge has had conflicting roadsigns on either end for some years. 80 km heading North and an open speed limit going South. This has been brought to the attention of Council, Transport NZ and our local MP in the past. I even approached our local MP at the time in person. He was busy making noted but you guessed it.... made happened. The good thing is though. There are no road cones.
Common sense
Posted on 24-01-2024 14:24 | By First Responder
For the slow road users, keep to your 70, and stay in the left lane. Those passing are allowed to speed up to 80, to pass the idiots that never pull over, and are a pain in the a### on the road
That’s nothing Tom…
Posted on 24-01-2024 15:14 | By Shadow1
You haven’t started discovering the inability of these council employees to function under a Commission. They all do what they’re told and spout the Council line “there’s no gain without pain”, “this is the best thing to happen to Tauranga “, “we can do this under the Public Works Act you know “.
Try delving into the way they let contracts. No “lowest price conforming” there.
Shadow1
Correction
Posted on 26-01-2024 14:53 | By Christo
Regarding the previous comment -
The bypass under the Wairoa Bridge ends on Wairoa Road which is 80km/h and on Te Puna Station Road which used to be an open speed so the signs were correct all along.
Leave a Comment
You must be logged in to make a comment.