A budget of $450,000 to spend over the next three years on road safety by targeting driver behaviour, has survived an initial challenge and has been included in the Waitaki District Council's draft long-term budget.
Details of the programme were sought by councillors during a council meeting last month finalising the 2015-25 long-term plan which listed the spending but no great detail.
The project would involve $150,000 a year, the council contributing $63,000 a year from rates and the New Zealand Transport Agency $87,000.
It is an item in the agency's draft regional land transport plan, after an approach from the council about the project, seeking subsidy from the road safety budget.
Cr Jim Hopkins had challenged the spending and whether it represented good value for money.
Yesterday, he tried to question staff about the present road safety programme, which includes radio advertising.
About half of the radio advertisement was inaudible, he said.
He also asked who had overseen the preparation of the present campaign and who had signed it off.
Staff said they needed time to answer those questions, and the committee yesterday was discussing the road safety funding for the next three years, not what was happening now.
Assets group manager Neil Jorgensen said the council spent money on safety improvements to its roads.
Spending money on driver behaviour was also part of improving road safety, he said
