The project team of 15 partner organisations goes beyond the usual NZ Transport Agency stakeholder relationships and deep into the ‘tourism supply chain’. This combined effort helps to influence visitors’ driving choices such as their expected travel times and the type of vehicle they hire; and that starts before they’ve even left home.
Jim Harland, Regional Director Southern and chair of the project’s Governance Group says: “A partnership approach is the only way to ensure we can help people make safe and informed choices at every stage of their journey. Everyone involved is committed to working together to find ways to look after and provide information to visitors, to keep them, and others, safe on our roads.”
The project partners developed an action plan with a package of short, medium and long-term initiatives. They are led by different partners and cover all stages of the tourism supply chain: planning, booking, in-flight, arrival and journey.
In preparation for the 2015/16 summer season a number of initiatives were introduced that benefit all visitors to New Zealand regardless of where they travel. For example, Tourism New Zealand created a training module in seven languages to upskill overseas tourism operators, and the Automobile Association introduced an online Visiting Drivers Training Programme (external link) in five languages.
The Rental Vehicle Association and Tourism Industry Aotearoa established a Code of Practice whichCode of Practice (external link) which recommends a range of activities including enhanced checks when people are renting vehicles, and providing safety information in vehicles.
There’s also a particular on-the-ground roads and roadside focus in the Otago, Southland and West Coast regions. In these major tourism destinations international visiting drivers make up a significantly large proportion of the traffic in summer. Actions like rumble strips and barriers are designed to reduce the likelihood of crashes occurring and to minimise the consequences when they do occur. Successful roading initiatives could be replicated throughout New Zealand.
Following a $25M investment from the National Land Transport Fund, activity for this year includes further engineering works, more efforts to target visitors who buy or borrow a car, and an education campaign.
If you want to find out more about the range of initiatives underway you can watch the project video , or visit the website .watch the project video (external link), or visit the website.
You can contact the project team at visitingdrivers@nzta.govt.nz .