You have to hand it to National, they are remarkably deceptive and far smarter than the average voter.
Simeon Brown is building a mass surveillance roading network and pretending it’s a road safety feature all because we hated lower speed limits and refuse to pay for physical safety infrastructure…
Our road safety agency is taking over speed and other traffic cameras with plans to massively increase the number of cameras on our highways and more than triple the number of tickets issued each year to 3 million.
NZTA Waka Kotahi is also planning to increase the number of cameras on our roads from the current 150 fixed and mobile cameras to around 800.
The plans are laid out in a Privacy Impact Assessment carried out by NZTA Waka Kotahiahead of the planned high-tech development of a national camera network. Other documents show an expectation the changes will save $1.5 billion and between 1563 and 2431 lives over 20 years.
Traffic cameras have traditionally been managed by police but the role is shifting to NZTA Waka Kotahi after being seen as a better fit with its role as the road safety agency.
…the yokels screamed when speed limits and physical infrastructure upgrades were enacted as a means to reduce our traffic road toll and National have fettered those reactionary voices against public upgrades to safety on our roading infrastructure while also enflaming culture war nonsense over Māori road signs.
This has led National to dumped the speed limits, physical upgrades and te Reo in favour of a Police State Mass Surveillance Network that once plugged into AI and face recognition technology will allow 3 million tickets per year (up from a million) as well as total real time spying on everyone…
The road safety agency’s high-tech solution included a plan to use artificial intelligence to carry out the checks needed to see if someone had broken the law, although it “acknowledges the need to strike a balance between efficiencies and maintaining the public’s trust and confidence in the system”.
“This will mean a balance between automation and maintaining viable human oversight.”
The expanded camera network would be accompanied by a public relations campaign “explaining the purpose and promoting the role of safety cameras” in a bid to win public support.
…the problem is increased fines won’t stop those who are dangerous drivers, only physical upgrades alongside everyone slowing down will reduce the road toll.
National cut costs on physical upgrades for a fine system that won’t stop the problems while increasing the speeds.
The solution being an AI face recognition real time mass surveillance network masquerading as public road safety.
Kiwis are dumb enough to allow this to go live.
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Absolutely disgusting. There are very few roads outside urban centres in New Zealand where you can’t safely drive at least 50 kph over the speed limits, which make no sense unless you’re driving a Morris Minor or a 50’s Foden tractor with an unloaded trailor behind.
…at least 50kph over the speed limit.
Hell no! That’s 150kph on roads with poor camber and numerous imperfections.
You are not right on this one Mo’. I used to roam around the North Island in the 70s and 80s in various Ford V8s–Galaxies, Fairlanes etc. when the population was just over 2 million people. Traffic was light, you could do 160kmh on Matamata or Foxton Straights and a lot did in their company cars particularly believe it or not.
But now the roads are crazy busy, crumbling, pot holed, 90kmh is all you want to do in the provinces apart from a handful of motorways and expressways. This camera plan is about just two things–surveillance, and a cash flow–part to the Govt. and the rest to the arseholes that develop the tech and store the data–guess who pays?
Plenty of good spots up and down SH1 of the North Island where you can do 180kph with full safety, and anything west of Tuhoe country is pretty good to go. Funny how the government cares less about the potholes there.
I cycle on rural roads and I do not feel a bit safe even when drivers are following the speed limits. I would also feel a lot safer if a certain contributer to this discussion had his driver’s licence revoked.
If the cyclists would just stay in their lane! They would be sweet. Petrol taxes have paid gazillions for the hardly used cycle lanes and drivers have the added expense of paying for parking because road side car parking has been switched to unused cycle lanes.
Imagine if all the dollars wasted on cycle lanes had been spent on making the roads safer for the vast majority of the population who drive vehicles (and that includes just about every cyclist).
Are you Stirling Moss reincarnated? I’ve seen the standards of driving in NZ.. You are advocating for a doubling, or tripling of the road toll..
That really does take a special kind of stupid…
“Safety” is the magic word, what we, the people allow in the name of safety is, well, your last sentence says t all.
The assumption being that ticketing itself has to do with road safety and not everything to do with revenue gathering…..?
To be fair Martyn, Brown couldn’t put two Lego blocks together let alone build anything, why? Because he’s National and well, they destroy things, it’s the only thing they do well!
National shut down community police stations, fuckwits!
The stations being closed are full of mold and vermin.
Perhaps the new cameras will be able to identify cell phone users and with a higher fine help road safety.
Correct Trevor but we already new it was revenue collecting.
I’m not talking about the stations having to be closed now, I’m talking what National did previously…
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/67840387/3-million-savings-from-closure-of-30-police-stations
When police needed investment, road safety included, National crumbled.
Judging by the photo and Simeons “local water” naming for water infrastructure, shall we call this project the ‘Simeon Brown Eye’? Seems appropriate for an a’hole
Waka Kotahi’s role as the primary instrument of state electronic surveillance of the populace was initiated under Michael Wood, who as well as being Minister of Transport in the Labour government was the New Zealand representative on the Five Country Ministerial intelligence gathering group. He also committed an incredible $1.4 billion to the Cubic Corporation mass surveillance system, aka “National Ticketing Solution”.
Ah right – tickety-boo then for Labour is it? Will National then revolt on this feckless left-wing imposition? Be different National, go for change on this, surprise everybody.
No, National won’t. National’s transport spokespeople Simeon Brown and Scott Simpson were astounded at the cost of the NTS, and were all set to oppose the scheme, until someone had a word in their ear to let them know that this was a Five Eyes initiative and therefore must be allowed to proceed regardless of cost.
You are wrong I’m right. This was actually a part of the road to zero plan and as Nats hated that I will be surprised if Brown doesn’t repeal. But shows that he’s never even thought about the details. Just go for the rednecks and their votes.
He’s always wrong Uncle Tom.
Developed under Labour, announced by department in December last year, not Simeon’s baby but I share the sentiment about over reach and surveillance.
https://www.thepress.co.nz/nz-news/350132333/speed-cameras-quadruple-nationally-waka-kotahi-takes-over-operations
Let’s GPS track our politicians and get the cops wearing cameras before we further subjugate the working population.
Fuck off you boring cunt, this was implemented under Labour, coming into affect. How goes that vein in your forehead?
Three waters and Auckland Fuel tax were Labour things too but they repealed those within seconds. If he didn’t agree with this it would be gone.
Your language is basic and your thought lines sound more so. If you take the trouble to write them down FGS find something original and informative about the subject not just what clouds have crossed your mind.
If we are looking at speed limits, be consistent. Just as we need to slow down in appropriate areas its absolute bs to make people drive at a max of 100 on big wide three lane roads. It’s 110 max on the Hamilton bypass but the new road from Puhoi- ish to Warkworth is 100. No sense in that. In addition we should be actively tasering people on the motorway who sit at around 90 in the outside lane. What happened to keep left unless overtaking. As for people using their phones on the motorway ( not talking actually surfing/texting), fines are not high enough.
lol… the cops and transport people can’t even keep kids from closing off a state highway to do burnouts. The more you treat people like outlaws, the more they will act like one. The PTB will become increasingly ineffectual and basically out numbered and ignored.
The reality is that NZ has arguably the best roads in the world – after being around the world and driving extensively, this is easily my conclusion. Also our cars are in better condition that many other places around the world. The reduced speed limits only frustrate drivers, especially when the roads aren’t busy. Busy roads naturally slow down anyway. This is Nationals alternative to tolls and congestion charging, a revenue avenue for NZTA.
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