Constable Steven Knox vowed to one day join the police and make a difference to road safety after his friend was killed by a drunk driver.

Almost three decades later, and 12 months into the 'Stay Alive on 5' campaign, the Hawke's Bay Police Highway Patrol officer has done just that. 

Since he launched the campaign in November 2020, there have been zero fatalities on the Hawke's Bay side of the Napier-Taupō road.

"Back in my younger days I had a close friend that got killed by a drunk driver in Napier and from that day on I always had a desire to join to make a difference somehow but I went on a different career path," he told Hawke's Bay App.

"It was always in the back of my mind that I've got to join to pretty much fulfil the promise I had made way back then to her and myself. 

"So I did later on in life and I've worked my way now into highway patrol and the serious crash unit because I see that is where I can make that difference and that is really the driver behind ‘Stay Alive on 5’. 

After a notorious year of road crashes in 2019-2020 resulting in nine deaths on the Hawke's Bay side of the Napier-Taupō road, Knox believed it was the right time, and place to make good on his promise. 

"With this project, even though it's not where she died, to me I feel that I am fulfilling that promise I made of saving other lives." 

And the reality is, they are. 

Knox says that while the zero fatalities statistic is obviously fantastic, the wider effect of an overall reduction in road crashes is just as important.

“For the period November 2020 to October 2021, there’s been a 72 per cent decrease in crashes along State Highway 5 as a result of focused and targeted effort.”

The Ministry of Transport calculate the ‘Social Cost’ of road crashes as a way of quantifying the damage done.

"The massive reduction in minor, serious and fatal injuries that we’ve seen as a result of the campaign has been calculated as a $43,914,100 social cost saving from the previous year. 

The campaign has seen a significant increase in police patrols on the road, with both marked and unmarked vehicles working in tandem, and the use of speed camera vans.

“Police presence on the road is a powerful deterrent to speeding and dangerous driving, such as risky overtaking manoeuvres. Speeding and bad decision-making on the road can have devastating consequences.”

The increased presence has resulted in a significant increase in traffic stops on the previous year.

In the first six months, they saw an increase in tickets issued for those going 30km over the speed limit.

"But we don't believe more people were speeding at that rate, we believe because we've been up there more and more of us were actually catching those people where previously they would have come through undetected."

While he understands people don't like being pulled over or receiving a speeding ticket he says a lot of people don't see the consequences of those actions.

"I totally get that but there's a reason behind what we're doing and I would rather pull someone over for doing 112km an hour, give them a ticket and have that conversation than letting them go and 2km down the road they've continued at speed, crossed the centre line, had a head-on and died."

He hopes this will continue to decrease as more road users get the message that police have a new focus on road safety in this area, and change their behaviour accordingly.

Other measures include working with partners to share short road safety messages on billboards and fatigue stops with free coffee for drivers to help raise awareness of the dangers of speed, fatigue and conditions.

“The campaign has been a partnership between a number of agencies and one of the great results has been the approval of around $30 million worth of repairs to road surfaces and safety measures by Waka Kotahi (NZ Transport Agency).

"There has been substantial roadworks undertaken recently and more is planned."

Knox acknowledges that even with the increased efforts the potential for a fatal crash never goes away, but he’s hopeful that these positive results can be sustained or improved.

“Police can only do so much, so to see the campaign contribute significantly to a reduction in harm, meaning more people getting to their destination safely, is very rewarding.

"As we head into the Christmas holiday period there will be checkpoints across the region and an increased Police presence on our roads to make sure drivers, passengers and vehicles are safe."

People travelling the Napier-Taupō road through the summer holidays are urged to take care so that everyone can get to their destination safely and can enjoy the festive season.

"Drive to the conditions, slow down and Stay Alive on 5."

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