This should raise a few temperatures around here...

[NighthawkNZ:Me]

It appears that politicians and policy makers can't do simple math.

...

Ummm, Which is safer?

Yeah but Malcolm...

What the hell do we know, just because we are out on the roads every day and not being driven around in new limos, just because we can do our math and actually went to school, and just because we can see a safer route (which for bikers does become a sixth sense in a sense ) and can see better options, like better driver education, better roads etc... what the hell do we know...

What we do know is this, that they are not truly worried about bringing the road toll down at the end of the day and that it is about money.

Politicians think we are dumb, but we KNOW they are stupid...

2007 road toll up by x amount of % than last year 2006, how many more road users were on our roads over that period of time and if there were 1000 more road users than last year and only 29 more deaths on the road, does that not mean the over all road toll percentage is lower.

The same police stats also show that even the though there are an increase in road users, there were less deaths percentage wise. They should be saying that on the news. last year the lowest in 40 years... heck forty years ago what there were 2 drivers on our roads for every 100 km of road... and now how many road users per km.

I actually hate the way they present these stats on the news it irks me...

If the govenment truly wanted lower road toll, they would use the stats to show that it is actually lower for a start... They would be introducing better driver education, introducing that many roads will be upgraded, correcting the camber, and fixng many of the truely dangerous parts of the road... heck finally get rid of many of these silly one lane bridges on main routes like the on at Beamont... They wouldn't be worried about radar detectors (heck when I had one years ago it reminded me to keep my speed down... i didn't say I could go faster) Zero tolerance for alcohol and driving and if caught harsher laws to deal with it. (and a zero tolerance is easier and probably cheaper to plolice too)

Tougher laws on what cars and vehicals are allowed on NZ roads... change the laws on what vehicles new drivers are allowed. ie; no V8, or turbo charged this or that etc... possibably introduce a similar scheme of power rating that learner bikers have... (which incidentally I would change... and including ridding the 70km learner law) introduce a strike 3 law and your out (not prison but never allowed to drive and then if caught driving then prison time)

Then again what the hell do I know... I'm not a politician... Im just a peasant...

[Swoop]

I didnt know they counted horse riding and a road toll... is that a first or always been like that ?

Beaches (or at least some of them) are classified as a road.

[Ixion]

I didnt know they counted horse riding and a road toll... is that a first or always been like that ?

I bet the horse was speeding!

EDIT: They DID ! The horse bolted out of sand dunes in front of the car. And that imbecile Cary Griffiths says "its not your typical crash" then rabbits on about alcohol and speed ! Wherer do they find these morons, he's even stupider than his predecessor, the moron Cliff, who I thought was the lowest level of organism capable of having enough sentience to keep breathing.Iwas wrong the Griffiths takes stupidity to new depths.

[Ocean1]

Nowt wrong with the roads. You folk don't know what a bad road is.

Why do you always remind me I'm so fuckin' old.

A lot of roads on the west coast used to be paved with... OIL. Quick lick with a dozer, a smear of clay, add a mixture of whatever old fuel oil and engine oil was available, and roll. Done.

They were always uphill in both directions too.

Are they going to put a ban on going to the doctor or the hospital?

Fuckin' dangerous places dem hostibules, 100% of people in 'em die y'know.

Beaches (or at least some of them) are classified as a road.

Anywhere with vehicular access is considered public road, for the purposes of taxation.

[swbarnett]

Mind you you could fat along on your motorcycle at 120, get pulled over by a cop and get off with a verbal warning. Or so I believe.....

A close friend was let off at 150...

[swbarnett]

Horses have been used as transportation for a looong time. If the incident ocurred on a public road then I accpept that statistic as one worthy of inclusion in the road toll.
Pretty unrelated to issues regarding speed limits & driving a car though

Not if the fatality was as a result of another vehicle colliding with the horse.

[tl_tub]

Im almost certain he has a vstrom now

'National operations manager for road policing, Inspector Carey Griffiths says New Zealand speed limits are too high for the roads.'

Cracks me up when I see him on telly now.
He's a biker, or was, when I knew him when he was a Sgt prosceutor here, not too long ago.
He brought my 1200 Bandit, and rode, shall we say........similar to most bikers.......

[James Deuce]

Makes a good point. The majority of Kiwi road users shouldn't be allowed behind the wheel/bars because they don't take it at all seriously and spend most of their time traveling between traffic lights. Consistently averaging 80 km/hr on the open road is beyond most people these days and not because of congestion either.

We're about to get an open road speed limit drop chucked at us because of the price of oil. This "Carey" person has been a bad boy and his punishment is to soften us up by declaring us all too stupid to drive at 100 km/hr.

[HenryDorsetCase]

Holy shit, we drove up to Hanmer and back today. I now wholeheartedly support a speed reduction from 100kph to 60kph on the "open" road. I literally lost count of the number of SUV's that tailgaited me, or people carriers doing the same thing, or heroes who saw the gap I left in front then simply had to fill it, the STUPID places people passed, the obvious inattention, the "family" wagons with all manner of outlandish shit haphazardly tied to them, the complete muppets who had NO idea and were looking three feet in front of their front bumper when they were looking ahead at all.

The classic was the middle aged couple in the FAIL-mobile (a people carrier)... we were coming back up Johns Rd, and some guy in a white 4 dr Jap import sedan was doing (get this) 40-45kph, when the limit is 80, and the safe travelling speed is more. The builder in the ute in front of me towing the trailer spotted it, and slowed, and I slowed, but our FAIL people didnt. I was preparing myself for the Liberace but he managed to not hit me by about half a metre. All I could see in the rear view mirror was the female FAIL waggling her sea of chins, and Mr FAIL had managed to turn on the windscreen wipers when applying the brakes. Perhaps the extra air resistance slowed it up some more? Almost as funny as her gums flapping as she was obviously displeased by her choice in life-partner's driving ability.

But if I do 120kph on the "open" road when there is no traffic, I'm dangerous? Yeah, right. I see how that goes.

[Renegade]

we are so fucked, the government are just gunna keep stitching us up, it dosnt affect the polliticians cos they dont pay for a dam thing any way, we dont even want half the polliticians in there but bugger me we cant get rid of the cunts, its getting to the stage where im at a complete loss with this country.

i havent been pulled up bya cop in 4 years, i dont think im going to pay rego any more, mite just put it on hold, then there goes insurance i guess, anyone able to confirm no reg = no insurance??

[R6_kid:Me]

then there goes insurance i guess, anyone able to confirm no reg = no insurance??

confirmed...