As part of the introduction of the new Rule, roads within 5 categories of roads were required to reverse to their previous speed in a one-off ‘transition’ exercise in July 2025, if they were subject to speed reviews after 1 January 2020 and their original higher speed limit had been reduced.
Roads that meet this requirement are known as ‘specified roads’ within Section 11 Transitional arrangements of the Rule. These reversals were required to be implemented by 1 July 2025.
For NZTA, this included a range of sections of state highways within 4 classes – urban connectors, transit corridors, rural connectors, and interregional connectors (see below). All other types of classes of state highway remain unchanged.
View the full list of sections of state highways that automatically reversed by 1 July 2025 (updated with the results of the new speed reviews for 16 urban connectors on 19 June 2025).
The list also includes results from the January – March 2025 public consultation for the Section 11 Transitional changes. These results are marked with 2 or 3 stars (** or ***).
Full list of state highways affected by speed reversals in the 2024 Speed Rule [PDF, 483 KB]
Where speed limits were lowered on sections of state highways that are classified as urban connectors, these sections automatically reversed back to their original higher speed limit by 1 July 2025. Urban connector sections of state highways generally have fewer houses and businesses and are designed to move people and goods quickly and efficiently.
There was one exception to these reversals, where reversing the speed limit was inappropriate due to changes in the surrounding environment, such as new residential development.
While urban connectors in this category were required to automatically reverse in July 2025, we received strong feedback on several of them that local communities wanted to keep some lower speeds. In response, NZTA opened new speed reviews on these sections, running from 2 April – 14 May 2025. These new speed reviews looked at a range of technical and safety analysis, including Cost Benefit Analysis, alongside consultation feedback, to investigate whether the speeds, once they were legally set at higher speeds in the speed register, should be changed back to their lower speed limits immediately afterwards in July 2025.
Read more about the new consultation on urban connectors
See the full list of state highway urban connectors managed by NZTA that were to reverse by 1 July 2025 in the PDF list above.
CloseWhere speed limits were lowered on sections of either local roads or state highways that are classified transit corridors, these sections automatically reversed back to their original higher speed limit by 1 July 2025. Transit corridors are urban motorways and corridors that provide for movement of people and goods within an urban environment.
There was one exception to these reversals, where reversing the speed limit was inappropriate due to changes in the surrounding environment, such as new residential development.
See the full list of transit corridors managed by NZTA that were set to reverse by 1 July 2025 in the PDF list above.
CloseWhere speed limits were lowered since 2020 on sections of state highways that are classified as rural connectors, these sections automatically reversed back to their original higher speed limit by 1 July 2025, unless consultation demonstrated public support from local road users, councils, communities and iwi to retain lower speed limits on all or part of the route.
More information on the outcome of this process can be found in the Consultation section below.
Rural connector sections of state highways provide a link between rural roads and interregional connector state highways. Many have more residential activity or multiple driveway or access points than the adjoining inter-regional connector. Typically, these types of state highways would originally have been set with 100km/h speed limits, however some sections were lowered because of increasing death and serious injury rates, deteriorating road or environmental conditions, or the way the road was used.
See the full list of state highway rural connectors managed by NZTA that were set to reverse by 1 July 2025 in the PDF list above.
CloseSpeed limits on interregional connector sections of state highways that were lowered since 1 January 2020 also automatically reversed by 1 July 2025 unless consultation demonstrated public support from local road users, councils, communities and iwi to retain lower speed limits on all or part of the route.
More information on the outcome of this process can be found in the Consultation section below.
Interregional connectors are state highways that move people and goods over long distances between regions efficiently. These highways run mostly through farmland and natural areas with low levels of roadside activity. Typically, these state highways would originally have been set with 100km/h speed limits, however sections of some high-risk interregional connectors were lowered either because of increasing death and serious injury rates, deteriorating road or environmental conditions, or the way the road was used.
See the full list of state highway interregional connectors managed by NZTA that were set to reverse by 1 July 2025 in the PDF list above.
CloseIn addition to the four specified road categories that include state highways managed by NZTA, one other type of specified roads was also subject to reversals in 2025. These are ‘local streets’ mostly managed by local councils, with permanent 30km/h speed limits, where one of the reasons for reducing the speed limit was because there is a school in the area (the road outside the school gate will become a variable speed limit).
The rule contains more information about the requirements for these local streets to reverse.
Setting of Speed Limits Rule - Requirements for council managed local streets
CloseUnder the new Rule, speed limits on rural and interregional connector sections of state highways that were lowered since 1 January 2020 automatically reversed by 1 July 2025 unless NZTA could demonstrate through a public consultation that there was road user and community support to retain any of those lower speed limits on all or part of a route.
In total, approximately 38 state highway locations managed by NZTA were required to automatically reverse, and an additional 49 were consulted on.
Consultation took place from 30 January – 13 March 2025, to understand if road users, councils, communities and iwi supported keeping any or part of these specific state highway locations at their lower speed limits, rather than seeing them automatically reverse.
NZTA would like to thank people for providing feedback during this consultation process. View the full consultation summary report to understand the consultation outcome and which sections of state highway were reversed to previous higher speed limits.
Full consultation summary report [PDF, 1.9 MB]
All speed limit changes were implemented by 1 July 2025.
This consultation process on interregional and rural connectors was a different process to the urban connector state highway category consultation approximately 3 months later.
Note: Feedback on other corridors in your region can be sent via email and will be considered as part of future speed reviews.
Email: speedmanagement@nzta.govt.nz
Learn more about the Speed Rule and Section 11 Transitional arrangements in the rule:
