Rising fuel prices and police efforts have failed to deter street racers who continue to tear up Manawatū's roads.
By Rebecca Hogan of Local Democracy Reporting
Despite the enforcement of bylaws in Palmerston North to prevent anti-social road use at seven key hotspots, Police inspector and Manawatū area prevention manager Phil Ward said inner city preventions had simply caused the issue to seep outward.
The now “displaced” drivers and thrill-seekers were finding more rural locations to meet, and the power of social media with its ability to mobilise antisocial drivers meant at times the police felt like “a big old ship trying to chase down a speedboat”.
“It’s turned into police versus them, as opposed to us being there to keep everybody safe.”
This shift concerned Ward from a community safety perspective, and because he knew these gatherings were intergenerational with even children present.
In 2025, an out of town “invasion” took place which involved racers from all over the lower North Island gathering to dominate state highways and key residential routes from Levin to Palmerston North, while making sure to avoid routes within the city’s bylaw.
Four bystanders, all under the age of 21, were hit by cars, and a woman had both of her legs run over.
Police officers were targeted and hit with fireworks, while a Palmerston North intersection was also covered in diesel and set alight.
Ward said the current approach of collective responsibility across the wider force meant officers could respond efficiently, pull together resources and thoroughly investigate antisocial road behaviour behind the scenes.
Constantly high fuel and diesel prices hadn’t hindered street racers in recent months, and Ward felt the thrill and adrenaline associated with the car meet-ups outweighed any growing costs.
Just how much the night-time burnouts cost the drivers themselves was unclear, as was the amount that councils and ratepayers were having to fork out as a result of antisocial road behaviour.
Around the motū, 51% of costs associated with roads and road repairs were subsidised and covered by the Government. The remaining 49% was paid by ratepayers.
Manawatū District Council responded to Local Democracy Reporting through an official information request, which revealed an estimated $1500 was spent on responding to two key racing hotspots in the last three years.
Responding to meet-ups and destruction caused by racers at Halcombe and Kakariki intersections, as well as the Banks and Kaimatarau roads’ intersection near Rongotea were partially paid for by ratepayers.
“Minor” complaints such as those related to cleaning up debris were, however, paid for through other council maintenance funds.
What portion of these other funds were made up of ratepayer dollars wasn’t clear.
The level of illegal street racing and the amount of money spent on repairing and cleaning up roads due to such behaviour across Palmerston North, Horowhenua, Rangitīkei and Tararua had not been tracked.
Horowhenua District Council group manager of community infrastructure Daniel Haigh felt greater enforcement from police and more investment in road controlling authorities like council and NZTA could help to reduce street racer activity.
There was a general view within the Horowhenua community that street racer behaviour was “an unwelcome use of public roads”, but in order for substantial change to occur there needed to be a “cultural shift” from within the car community.
Racers weren’t influenced by concerns of safety or how their behaviour could impact the community, but rather those partaking in Friday night skids and car meet-ups were largely influenced by a desire to fit in with a community, Haigh said.
Palmerston North City Council responded to street racing once damage had occurred, but found the 2023 bylaws had helped to discourage such behaviour on roads in industrial zones which were once targeted after dark.
Properly addressing this issue in the long-term required a combination of enforcement, education, and engineering, said council’s transport and development manager Tyler de Silva.
Last month, Manawatū police as well as officers from Wellington and Whanganui, gathered to intercept a car-meet in rural Palmerston North and parts of Horowhenua.
Projectiles were thrown at police officers from within the crowd but Manawatū area commander inspector Matenga Gray said officers still managed to stop the roughly 200 vehicles involved from “tearing up local roads and causing stress to communities”.
– LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air.
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