The Government is considering lowering the alcohol limit for adult drivers as part of a range of measures announced today to make roads safer.Young drivers, drunk drivers and motorcyclists are also targeted in the new Transport Ministry 10-year road safet
The Government is considering lowering the alcohol limit for adult drivers as part of a range of measures announced today to make roads safer.
Young drivers, drunk drivers and motorcyclists are also targeted in the new Transport Ministry 10-year road safety strategy Safer Journeys released by Transport Minister Steven Joyce this morning.
Consideration will also be given to changing the give way rules for turning traffic.
Mr Joyce said Cabinet had not yet decided about whether or not to reduce the current adult blood alcohol limit from 80mg/100ml (0.08) to 50mg/100ml (0.05).
"This is a very finely balanced argument and we need to ensure that New Zealanders understand the difference between 0.05 and 0.08 and what impact a change would have on the road toll," Mr Joyce said.
Most New Zealanders, when asked, Mr Joyce said, agreed the limit should be lower but were split when asked if it should be lowered to 0.05.
"I've said all along that road safety measures only work if they have the broad support of road users -- and we'd want to be sure New Zealanders understand the benefits of a change and support it before proceeding."
Crashes involving drugs and alcohol killed 119 people in 2008 and seriously injured 582 more people.
In April, Mr Joyce would take to Cabinet a package to crack down on drink driving, including compulsory devices to lock up a vehicle if alcohol was detected, a zero drink-drive limit for repeat offenders, a zero drink-drive limit for drivers under 20, a review of traffic offences and penalties for repeat offenders and for charges of drink driving causing death and serious injury.
Mr Joyce would also seek then to either lower the adult limit or conduct research into how much risk drivers who had between 0.05 and 0.08 alcohol in their blood were.
Measures tackling teen driver problems, already made public, were confirmed. Mr Joyce said he would take that package of measures to Cabinet this month to try to reduce high rates of youth involved in serious and fatal accidents.
Measures were:
* Raising the driving age from 15 to 16;
* Requiring novice drivers to have 120 hours' supervised practice before driving alone;
* Better education;
* An investigation into vehicle power restrictions.
The government will face opposition from groups, including farmers, over the age change.
Federated Farmers transport spokesman Donald Aubrey yesterday said: "This may work in Kelburn, but not in Kerikeri. Public transport is almost nonexistent in rural areas where driving isn't a rite of passage, it's an essential part of life."
Motorcyclists also got special attention with Cabinet to consider later in the year measures to improve motorcycle rider training and licensing and require licensing of mopeds. The Government also intended to introduce a power-to-weight restriction for novice riders which would be consulted on through the select committee process.
Changing the give way rule would also go to Cabinet later in the year and public input would be sought. The New Zealand Transport Agency would develop a mass media campaign before changes came in.
The Agency would also work on improving safety on high risk rural roads and high risk intersections and develop a classification system for the roading network.
