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New Zealand Road Rules

August 17, 2012 by Mark Perkins 10 Comments

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From my extensive experience as a tour coach driver, I can often pick the newbie’s to New Zealand, folk struggling with the New Zealand road rules while they are on their New Zealand campervan holiday. The telltale signs are the way they are reacting on the road, speed, indecision not sure which lane they should be in etc. So let me update you and help on a few of those driving issues.

New Zealand rod rulesIn New Zealand, we drive on the left-hand side of the road and many times we see drivers taking off from a scenic photo shoot location or an attraction on the WRONG side of the road. To help combat this the New Zealand Transport Agency have taken to painting big white arrows pointing in the direction as to which way you should be travelling in if on that side of the road.

If you come from a country that drives on the right-hand side of the road then can I perhaps suggest you put a sign up where it will be very noticeable when driving, to remind you to keep to the left-hand side of the road at all times. Always remember the centre line should always be on your right shoulder.

Remember that the Weather in New Zealand may differ from where you live so be sure to find out what the weather is likely to be.

New Zealand Road Rules – Signalling at roundabouts.

This is a relatively new rule in New Zealand and as a professional driver, I get annoyed at people who do not signal correctly. or in plenty of time.

Basically, the rule is:-

If you are approaching a roundabout and wanting to exit by virtually travelling straight through, the only signal you are required to give is a left-hand signal once you have entered the roundabout and before you take the exit.

However, if the exit is past 180 degrees of your entry line then you need to give a right-hand signal before entering the roundabout and again a Left hand signal before you exit at the appropriate time and place.

If you wish to take the first exit off the roundabout then you need to signal a left-hand turn before entering the roundabout. Sounds all quite complex but really is very straightforward.

The diagrams of New Zealand Road Rules below should help you.

New Zealand Road Rules roundabouts
Signalling at roundabouts

New Zealand Road Rules – Turning right at intersections

The rule is:-

If turning right Give Way to all oncoming and left turning traffic.

If turning right at the top of a TEE intersection Give Way to all traffic

The maximum speed limit in New Zealand

The New Zealand road rules state the maximum speed you can travel in New Zealand is 100 km/hr on motorways/freeways or open country roads and will be indicated by either of these signs.

New Zealand Road Rules Open Road Speed

Recommended Cornering speed signs

New Zealand Road Rules Cornering speed
Recommended speed sign

When approaching a corner quite often there is a sign showing the direction and recommended speed for the corner. These numbers always end in a 5 e.g. 35, 45, 75, 85 km/hr, whilst legal speed limits are always in tens, 30, 50, 70, 80 90, 100 km/hr etc.

Stop Sign

New Zealand Road rules stop sign
Stop sign

A stop sign means to come to a complete stop in such a place as to be able to clearly see in all directions before proceeding.

Give Way Sign

New Zealand Road Rules Give Way sign
Give Way

 

A give-way sign means slow down but not necessarily stop, make sure the way is clear to go ahead and then continue if safe to do so.

One Way Bridge Signs

New Zealand Road Rules One Way Bridges
One-Way Bridge

When driving in New Zealand you will come across many One Way bridges, especially in the South Island. The sign above on the left means, be ready to stop if another vehicle is either on the bridge or approaching it.

The sign above on the right means, You have the right of way, the oncoming vehicle SHOULD Give Way.

Word of caution! ALL WAYS BE PREPARED TO STOP

 

The New Zealand Driving Rules – Alcohol Limits

If you are Under twenty years of age

The legal alcohol limit is zero.

If you are twenty years of age or over

You must not drive if you have consumed more than the legal alcohol limit, which is 250 micrograms per litre of breath or 50 milligrammes per 100 millilitres of blood.

In conclusion: taraffic-

Apart from these few examples, the NZ road laws are relatively straight forward and not dissimilar to your own countries. Keep left, don’t drink and drive and be mindful of other traffic behind you. Slower campervans can be quite frustrating to other road users, I strike it all the time, so find a SAFE place to pull over and let thetrafficpass. Most of the time they will give you a thank you toot or flash their hazard lights a couple of times.

A good page to visit, especially in the winter is the NZTA Highway Conditions pages

Happy motoring and I hope this guide has been of help regarding understanding the New Zealand Driving Rules and driving whilst on your New Zealand campervan holiday.

Recommended additional information

Have you found this post helpful Yes or No?

Is there anything else you would like to know about te New Zealand Road Rules?

Then please leave a comment below, I would love to hear from you.

 

Filed Under: Driving In New Zealand Tagged With: holiday in new zealand, new zealand road rules

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Lorenzo says

    August 2, 2015 at 12:00 pm

    Just love your New Zealand by Campervan blog.
    Lots of helpful information
    Thank you.

    Reply
    • Mark Perkins says

      May 10, 2017 at 8:49 am

      Lorenzo,
      Thank you for your comments and I am so glad you found it helpfull.
      Mark

      Reply
  2. Rosita says

    March 12, 2016 at 11:51 am

    Useful information as I am coming to New Zealand in a few months.
    Thank you.

    Reply
    • Mark Perkins says

      May 10, 2017 at 8:51 am

      Rosita,
      You are welcome. Enjoy your time here.
      Mark

      Reply
  3. Jen says

    April 12, 2017 at 3:54 pm

    This is amazingly helpful!! Especially considering New Zealand is seriously #1 on my bucket list right now, I am definitely going to use this information in the future! This is stuff I never would have thought about until I got over there… wow. I do have a question about the speed limit, 100 km/hr, what does that translate to in the U.S. in mi/hr? Thank you so much for this.

    Reply
    • Mark Perkins says

      April 12, 2017 at 4:02 pm

      Great, so glad it was of help. 100km/h is equivalent to approx 60 mph
      Thank you for your interest.
      Mark

      Reply
  4. Simlulan says

    April 14, 2017 at 7:03 pm

    Interesting idea. I am intending to visit New Zealand and is about to rent a car. I am so lucky to land into this page that educates foreigners on how to abide by the road rules in New Zealand. I would take note of all the tips provided and all of them are useful to me. Thank you.

    Reply
    • Mark Perkins says

      April 14, 2017 at 7:08 pm

      You are most welcome.
      My main word of advice when driving in New Zealand is to KEEP LEFT, we have too many fatalities of those not used to driving on the left hand side of the road.
      Safe Travels

      Mark

      Reply
  5. Summerly says

    April 17, 2017 at 7:09 am

    Lots of great information, I have never actually drove on the opposite side from which we drive but I feel like I would get so confused!! So is it safe to say that most rules are the same, just reversed? I like how you described going through the roundabouts. My city just put some in and people don’t know how to use them and I also didn’t know about the correct signaling methods, I’m sure it is similar to yours.

    Reply
    • Mark Perkins says

      April 17, 2017 at 2:15 pm

      Hi
      Glad you found the info helpful. A lot of people don’t know how to use them here either, hence the article lol.

      Mark

      Reply

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