Porirua City Council is proposing that the speed of the Waitangirua link road off Transmission Gully be increased to 60kph.

At a meeting of the Council’s Te Puna Kōrero, Porirua Mayor Anita Baker and councillors heard a report from Council officers recommending the limit be raised from 50kph to 60kph over the kilometre-long stretch.

It will revert to 50kph 750m before the intersection with Warspite Ave.

No change to the Whitby link road speed limit was suggested, due to the amount of residential development nearby.

The original 50kph speed limits were set in August 2021 by Te Puna Korero. But, in May 2022, then-councillor Euon Murrell found support to have a speed limit review undertaken, as it was felt going from 100kph on Transmission Gully to 50kph on the link road was unreasonable.

The report to Council noted that people are travelling faster than 50kph most of the time, anyway – recorded data for both directions of the Waitangirua link road “shows that the mean speeds are well above the posted 50kph posted speed limit”.

If the limit was increased to 70kph or 80kph, truck curve advisory signs would be necessary on the relevant curves, whereas 60kph suits a road that is near residences, but fewer than in most urban areas.

Consultation with the public will be carried out on the proposal and the final decision will require approval of the director of land transport at Waka Kotahi.

A Porirua-wide speed management plan that reviews, and potentially reduces, speed on all public roads is also under way.

Te Puna Kōrero’s decision will need to be ratified at the next full meeting of Council, on 23 February.