The New Zealand Transport Agency has responded to criticism of the lack of central median barriers on State Highway 2, between Bethlehem and Katikati.

Instead, the transport agency says it's in the process of spending $520 million the Government has allocated to SH2.

The package includes the $286 million Tauranga Northern Link, $150 million to support future growth and $85 million for targeted safety improvements.

The safety improvements over the next six years are designed to reduce the risk of crashes occurring. They include rumble strips, shoulder widening, safety barriers, better signage and looking at changes to speed limits.

The transport agency is working with the communities on what these changes look like, with open days planned for April, says NZTA Waikato and Bay of Plenty State Highways Manager Niclas Johansson.

He is responding to comments made on TVNZ Breakfast on Monday by Clive Matthew-Wilson who said median barriers are cheap, effective and that they are not used because of government policy.

'Take SH2 through the Bay of Plenty, really serious accidents on a regular basis,” says Clive.

'Two lanes of opposing traffic - why don't they do it? Because the Government has made a calculated decision that it's more important that the trucks and the cars keep flowing and if they put a median barrier in they said that all gets slowed down.

'So, so we get traffic flow through SH2 in the Bay of Plenty, we are accepting an appallingly high road toll.

'Those deaths are easily preventable. Let's be really clear about this and the government knows this. They just don't take the steps.”

He cites a 2003 Monash University study on the effectiveness of flexible wire barriers that finds serious injury and fatal accident are reduced by as much as 90 per cent, through extensive use of flexible barriers.

Clive says an example in New Zealand of their successful use is on the formerly notorious section of SH1 south of Paekakariki.

About 40 people have died on the section of highway over 20 years and nothing worked.

When they finally put in a median barrier the deaths and accidents stopped overnight, says Clive.

And that section of SH1 is narrower than SH2 through the Bay of Plenty.

The NZTA says the stretch of SH2 between Tauranga and Waihi is one of the most complex roads in the country.

It has many different competing traffic demands – it's used by locals travelling to work and dropping their children off at school, commercial traffic and heavy vehicles plus people travelling to the Bay from Auckland, and seasonal agricultural vehicles.

It's geographically constrained with sharp drop offs and steep slopes on one side and people's homes, businesses and kiwifruit orchards on the other. This means there is not much room to make major changes unless property is purchased.

The highway from Tauranga to Waihi is one of the top 30 high risk roads in New Zealand.

The section from Tauranga to Katikati is rated the 14th corridor in New Zealand in terms of fatal and serious crashes in the country. There have been 64 deaths and serious injuries in crashes on the highway in the past five years.

Many of the crashes on the stretch of SH2 have been caused by distracted drivers, with head-on crashes and run off road crashes the most common cause of death and serious injury.

The transport agency will host open days in Katikati, Omokoroa and Waihi in the coming months to give the communities an update of where the various pieces of work are at.

More safety improvements on SH2 are planned over the next 10 years, focussed on the highest risk sections between Athenree to Katikati and Omokoroa to Te Puna.

'The $520m package for SH2 comes on the back of many changes that have been made over the past few years while the long term plan for the road was determined,” says Niclas.

'In 2009 the speed limit on high risk sections of SH2 was lowered to 90km. We know a 10 per cent drop in speed doubles the chance of a person walking away after an accident.”

Over the past five years, on behalf of the Government, he says the transport agency has made around $12m worth of safety changes designed to reduce death and serious injury crashes on SH2.

These changes included widening the road, installing guard rails to prevent run off road crashes, wide centre-lines to reduce the risk of head-on crashes.

'We also upgraded a number of intersections to make it easier for people to turn onto SH2,” says Niclas.

Last year the Transport Agency also worked with the police on a campaign to raise awareness of the dangers of driver distraction on this route.

'Many of the crashes on this state highway are caused simply because drivers are distracted. The harsh reality is a moment's inattention can have heart wrenching results.

'The campaign involved monthly police stops on SH2, with information given out to drivers about the risks of the road and what they can do to keep themselves and other drivers safe.”

Population along the highway is growing and is expected to rise from 21,000 people to 35,000 people in the foreseeable future.

The traffic volumes are around 11-12000 per day near Katikati and have grown at an average of 1 per cent per year over the last 10 years.

This is expected to continue to around 14-15000 vehicles per day over the next 30 years or so.

The highway does experience high volumes during peak holiday periods.

'Safer Journeys is the government's strategy to improve the safety of our roads. It recognises people make mistakes, but shows how we can make changes so that mistakes don't have to cost lives. By using internationally proven strategies, we can make our existing roads more forgiving of human error,” says Niclas.

'Roads can have many hidden hazards and not all roads have the same level of risk. Safe Roads is all about helping drivers to read the road and making the road more forgiving of mistakes.

'There are lots of things we can do to make our roads safer and many Kiwis are already doing their bit. We're choosing safer vehicles, we've changed our attitudes towards drink driving, and we're becoming more aware of the dangers of speed and other risk factors. But mistakes still happen and safer roads and roadsides can help to make those crashes survivable.”

One of two cars which crashed head-on on State Highway 2, south of Katikati, in July of last year. Photo: Bruce Barnard.