The human impact of Coalition games

Open to all

New Zealand should be a place of safety and hospitality for those that visit. It’s a beautiful country and many people around the world think highly of Aotearoa and its people.

And so it is with great sadness that I learned that members of South Korea’s national ski team may have died yesterday near Geraldine in a car accident. They were here before the Winter games in Queenstown.

It was on a patch of road that is considered one of the most dangerous in the district, with multiple fatalities and accidents. Timaru mayor Nigel Bowen has been pleading for reduced speed limits since August, but that’s fallen on deaf ears, and NZTA said it would have to wait until new Government speed rules are introduced.

For those of you who aren’t aware, Simeon Brown plans to introduce blanket speed increases. So this news reminded me of the people & impacts behind any policy.

In my mind, I imagined a happy group, relatively young people, excited and energised by their trip. Their coach was in th…