Traffic Enforcement in New Zealand: A Failed Experiment?

This chapter reviews the delivery of traffic enforcement services by the New Zealand Police between 1992 and 2022. The New Zealand Police merged with the Traffic Safety Service on July 1, 1992, and became responsible for enforcing traffic legislation throughout New Zealand. This chapter uncovered several issues with how traffic enforcement was being delivered by the New Zealand Police after the merger. The amount of funding given to the New Zealand Police to enforce traffic legislation has increased by more than 185% over this period, but their performance has been found wanting. Traffic enforcement outputs have decreased over time, which indicates that the police have not been dedicating the time needed to create a deterrence from visible patrol, which has been to the detriment of road safety in New Zealand.