[comment caption=Would raising the driving age improve road safety?]Lifting the driving age to 17, tightening alcohol limits and new give way rules are part of a raft of ideas being floated by the Government to improve road safety.
Transport Minister Steven Joyce released the "Safer Journeys" discussion document which puts forward more than 60 suggestions of changes to laws, regulations and policies to reduce the road toll.
Lifting the minimum driving age from 15 to 17 is one of them.
There is currently a bill before Parliament to raise the age to 16 and to extend the learner licence period from six months to 12 months.
The bill has been put forward by United MP Peter Dunne and Mr Joyce said National had not taken a position on the issue yet.
Another idea is to reduce the legal blood alcohol limit from 80mg per 100ml to 50mg per 100ml, or alternatively leave the limit at 80mg and increase the penalties.
It was estimated that up to 33 lives could be saved and 686 injuries prevented every year by reducing the limit
There could also be a zero blood alcohol limit for those under 20 years of age and recidivist offenders.
Proposals to reduce speed include more speed cameras, tougher penalties and more varied speed zones on high risk rural roads, as well as lower speed limits in urban areas.
International evidence was that greater use of speed cameras reduced overall average speeds and small reductions in speed in urban areas reduced pedestrian deaths.
A pedestrian hit at 50kmh had roughly a 50/50 chance of survival at 30kmh the chances were 90 percent.
The document also suggests that changes to the give way rules for turning traffic might make decisions easier for drivers.
Currently if cars are turning they give way to all traffic not turning, and in all other situations, give way to traffic crossing or approaching from the right.
The idea is to require cars turning right to give way to traffic turning left into the same road.
It was estimated this could reduce intersection crashes by 7 percent though it would take a $2 million education campaign to get drivers used to the idea and $1 million to make changes to road signs and road markings.
Other proposals included improving roads and installing more median barriers.
Mr Joyce said it was not his intention to implement all the ideas.
"The purpose of this review is to have a public debate about which are the most likely to make an impact and the most necessary to adopt," Mr Joyce said.
It was important that there was public acceptance of any changes otherwise they would make it difficult for police and others to enforce them, he said.
New Zealand's road toll did not compare favourably with other countries and the social cost of road crashes was estimated to be $3.8 billion a year.
The priority areas for improving road safety were:
* Alcohol and drug impaired drivers;
* Safer speeds;
* Young drivers;
* Motorcycling; and
* Roads and roadsides.
Medium priority areas included improving the safety of the light vehicle fleet and reducing the impact of fatigue and distraction.
Automobile Association spokesman Mike Noon said any money collected from traffic fines should be spent on improving road safety.
That would mean about $100 million a year being spent on things like flashing lights and electronic speed zone signs around schools.
New Zealand needed safer roads, better trained drivers and solutions to tackle hardcore drunk drivers, Mr Noon said
Public consultation closes on October 2.
