About 200 children and parents from Hawea Flat School, Hawea Playgroup, Hawea Early Learning Centre and the St Ninian's Church Mainly Music group assembled on the school oval to call for reductions in the 100kmh speed zone along Kane Rd and the 70kmh speed zone along St Ninian's Way and Camphill Rd.
Hawea Flat School chairman Dave Roberts said Queenstown Lakes District Council (QLDC) recently advised residents the area did not qualify as a ‘‘school zone'' - which would permit a reduced speed limit - under Land Transport New Zealand (LTNZ) criteria.
Since receiving that information, the school had learned local councils could petition LTNZ and the Ministry of Transport for special-case exemptions, Mr Roberts said.
‘‘If this isn't a special case, then what is?''
The protest aimed to send a simple message.
‘‘Now we know we don't qualify [as a school zone], the next step is ‘make us qualify'.''
Hawea Early Learning Centre spokeswoman Belinda Rixon-Church said the rolls of the school, kindergarten and playgroup were growing as the population swelled, which meant potential for an incident was also increasing.
‘‘This issue was recognised in the 2003 Hawea Community 2020 plan . . . and still nothing has happened,'' Mrs Rixon-Church said.
QLDC roading manager Ian Marshall disagreed.
‘‘[Since 2003], the speed limit has been reduced on Camphill Rd to 70kmh and numerous meetings have taken place with the school,'' Mr Marshall said.
‘‘The council has been responsive to the community's desire to reduce the problem, working to facilitate improved and safer access and safer drop-off for children on Camphill Rd.''
QLDC had also reviewed speed limits and found the mean speed of traffic on the 70kmh-limit Camphill Rd was actually 43kmh.
Mr Marshall said other tools had been identified to improve safety in the area, such as raising and enlarging the 70kmh signs, replacing the school signs with bolder fluorescent green signage, installing a new footpath on Camphill Rd and painting an edge line on the roads.
Mr Roberts said QLDC efforts to improve safety in the area had been appreciated, but those efforts were ‘‘completely inadequate for what exists in the area now''.
