State Highway 30 between Whakatane and Rotorua will return to a 100kmh speed limit by July 2025, finalising a long and frustrating process for road users in the Eastern Bay.  

The NZ Transport Agency today released its final decisions, after yet another round of consultation, and local MP Dana Kirkpatrick has welcomed the announcement which restores a sensible speed limit to large tracts of state highway in the Eastern Bay.

“The result was emphatic – nearly 90 percent support for returning the route from SH30 Lake Rotoma to Te Teko and then on to Awakeri and Whakatane to 100kmh.  There will be reduced speed limits in the townships of Te Teko and Awakeri as is appropriate.

“There have been more consultation periods than I care to remember and all have said the same thing – this road needs to be at 100kmh where appropriate.  I want to thank the people who continuously reminded me that we needed to get this done and lodged their submissions time and time again to get to this point.

"State Highway 30 is a key strategic route in the roading network and a major freight highway – if we are to get this country moving we must ensure that speed limits and roading infrastructure are appropriate and supporting our goal of productivity and efficiency.

“I read the more than 700 submissions received the first time this was consulted on in 2022 and most people opposed it then – it has since been a struggle of bureaucratic proportions to get the agency to see sense.

“We campaigned on this in the election and it has been a priority for me to get this across the line, I have had to push hard to make sure the Eastern Bay has been heard in its desire to have an efficient and appropriate freight and motorist route and I am delighted we have delivered on an election promise.”

NZTA announced in late January the automatic reversal of 38 sections of the state highway network, including the section between Gateway Drive and the Landing Road Bridge. This will be reverted to 80kmh by July 1. It is currently 60kmh