We’re seeking feedback on a proposal to reduce the speed limit on Wairere Drive, between the intersection of Arthur Porter Drive and Pukete Road.
We recommend you read why we are seeking your feedback before providing feedback. We look forward to hearing from you.
The survey should take an average of 5 minutes.
Why are we doing this
Hamilton is New Zealand’s fastest growing city and to support that growth, we need to create a city that has easy access to all the things we need like parks, schools and shops, and provides jobs for our people.
Foodstuffs North Island are planning to build a new PAK'nSAVE supermarket in Te Rapa that will provide residents with better access to essential goods, create jobs, and support local businesses. However, the opportunity comes with important decisions to make sure the area near the supermarket remains safe and accessible for everyone.
Foodstuffs North Island Limited has been given resource consent to develop a 6358m2 PAK'nSAVE supermarket on the corner of Te Rapa Road and Eagle Way. As a condition of the consent, Foodstuffs must install traffic signals at the intersection of Wairere Drive and Karewa Place to allow for a right turn into (but not out of) Karewa Place from Wairere Drive. For these changes to happen, the speed limit on a section of Wairere Drive (between Te Rapa Road and Pukete Road) must be permanently reduced from 80km/h to 60km/h.
The Land Transport Rule: Setting of Speed Limits 2024 (speed limits rule) requires a minimum length of 500m for a 60km/h speed limit. Because the distance between Te Rapa Road and Pukete Road is only 410m, we propose to extend the speed limit reduction further west to include part of Wairere Drive, between Arthur Porter Drive and Te Rapa Road. This will also reduce the number of speed limit changes along Wairere Drive which would happen if a shorter section of the road changed.
The new supermarket will not only give Hamiltonians in the north-west more choice about where they buy their groceries, it will also create around 150 new jobs in the city. It will benefit the Hamilton economy by increasing construction spending and creating jobs in the short-term, and adding to the social and economic well-being of our community in the long-term.
It's expected the supermarket will cater to an area where around 80,000 people live, and bring in customers from as far as Ngaaruawaahia, Rototuna, Rotokauri, Te Rapa and north of Forest Lake. Rotokauri North-West is a key growth area in Hamilton, with 16,000 new residents expected in Rotokauri and 4000 in Te Rapa North in the coming decades.
If the speed limit is not reduced, the supermarket cannot be developed under its current resource consent. Any changes to the consent, or its conditions, will have a significant financial and time cost for both Foodstuffs North Island and Council.
Please continue reading the Statement of Proposal below.
We’re proposing to reduce the speed limit from 80km/h to 60km/h on Wairere Drive, between Pukete Road and Arthur Porter Drive, to allow the PAK'nSAVE development to go ahead. No physical changes are proposed to the Wairere Drive/Pukete Road and Wairere Drive/Te Rapa Road intersections apart from new signs and road markings.
The installation of traffic lights at the intersection of Karewa Place and Wairere Drive was determined by an independent commissioner as part of the resource consent granted for the PAK'nSAVE development. This speed limit review does not revisit that decision, and no further feedback will be sought.
All changes to the intersection, new signs and road markings are paid for by Foodstuffs North Island.
A new supermarket in the northwest will bring massive social and economic benefits to our city. It not only means new jobs during construction and when it opens, but it creates better access to food and fuel for the community.
We consulted on this speed limit reduction in 2021, and agreed to go ahead with the proposal which we included in the 2023 Speed Management Plan. However, central Government recently introduced a new Land Transport Rule: Setting of Speed Limits 2024 which means the previous consultation and the 2023 Speed Management Plan are invalid, and we're required to complete the consultation process again to meet the new requirements.
Wairere Drive is defined as an Urban Connector in the Speed Limits Rule 2024 and provides for the movement of people and goods between different parts of the city. It's mainly used by vehicles, and very few enter or exit the road to access properties or businesses directly from this section of road.
Our traffic monitoring shows all traffic on this section of Wairere Drive travels 62km/h - 68km/h, so there will be minimal impact on travel time. Lowering the speed limit would allow the required traffic signals to be installed at the intersection of Karewa Place and Wairere Drive and enable the development of the supermarket to proceed.
In accordance with the requirements of the Land Transport Rule: Setting of Speed Limits 2024, the following table sets out the cost benefit disclosure for the proposed speed limit change.
Note: the above information has been prepared using the NZ Transport Agency Optional Cost Impact Analysis Tool.
We expect the new supermarket will bring lots more people and their cars to the area. Part of the reason for the consent conditions is to make sure that the safety of both new and existing road users is carefully considered and catered for in the new development.
The Government Policy Statement on Land Transport 2024 sets out the Government’s expectations, and references the recently released objectives for road safety. The Wairere Drive speed limit change proposal addresses all five principles in the “New Zealand’s road safety objectives” 2024 document. The proposed 60km/h speed limit:
- is supported by estimated reductions in the number and severity of crashes
- will have insignificant economic and social outcomes as the current measured average speeds are practically the same as the speed limit proposed (traffic on this section of Wairere Drive travels 62km/h - 68km/h)
- will deliver an estimated reduction in the number and severity of crashes in an efficient and cost effective way that achieves value for money, with minimal regulatory burden for New Zealanders
- reflects the changing land use in the area and reinforces the current safe behaviour of the majority of road users on this section of road demonstrated by the current measured average speeds being practically the same as the proposed speed limit
- will be fully consulted to ensure community views are considered, and support public understanding of the process.
We’d like your input before we make any final decisions. Please share your feedback between 24 January and 7 March 2025. All feedback will be analysed and presented at a Council meeting in early April 2025. Submitters who would like to speak to their written submission will be able to do so at this meeting.
A decision will be made on the proposed speed limit reduction after all views are considered.
This is your opportunity as a community to shape the future of Hamilton's northwest. We want to hear your thoughts!
