Simon Bridges says roading investment is an imperative factor in keeping New Zealand roads safe, after a report was released recommending a rural road speed limit drop.
The former Transport Minister was asked today about the OECD International Transport's Speed and Risk report which urged a speed limit of 70km/h for rural roads without medians barriers.
"I think that's possibly the case in some areas, but we don't want to be simplistic about that," Mr Bridges said. "There's a bunch of factors here, there's car technology, it's dumb driver behaviour and it's the quality of our roads."
The report says to "reduce road trauma, governments need to take actions that will reduce the speed on roads as well as speed differences between vehicles sharing the same road".
It comes after a high Easter Holiday Road toll, totalling six deaths, three times higher than 2017.
In roading statistics from NZTA, a dramatic jump can be seen in the number of driver casualties in the last 12 months.
In the 12 months to March 29, 2017, 159 drivers died. In the same time period of 2018, 202 were killed. A jump of 43.
He said National believed a prioritised investment in roading "was making our roads safer over time".
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