A 110kmh speed limit looks likely to be introduced on some New Zealand roads.

Associate Transport Minister Craig Foss said a proposed new speed management guide, released on Thursday, would "modernise New Zealand's approach to managing speed" and enable a limit of 110kmh on some roads.

"To be eligible for a 110kmh limit, a road will have to meet very strict conditions, including having a median barrier, at least two lanes in each direction and no direct access to neighbouring properties," he said.

KEVIN STENT/STUFF Kiwis could soon be travelling faster than 100kmh on the nation's open roads.

The New Zealand Transport Agency will be responsible for approving potential 110kmh roads. It has already identified 155km of highway across Auckland, Tauranga and Waikato that would be suitable, subject to minor treatments.

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In Auckland, those roads are the Tunnel to Lonely Track section of the Northern Motorway (SH1), the Upper Harbour Motorway (SH18), and the Takanini to Bombay section of the Southern Motorway (SH1).

SUPPLIED Associate Transport Minister Craig Foss says a road will have to meet very strict conditions to be eligible for a 110 kmh limit.

The Tauranga Eastern Link (SH2) and the Cambridge, Rangiriri, Ohinewai, Ngaruawahia and Te Rapa sections of the Waikato Expressway (SH1) also qualify, as will the Longswamp, Huntly and Hamilton sections once complete.

The transport agency is currently reviewing all remaining four-lane motorways and expressways across country - a further 222km out of a possible 425km - to identify what work, if any, would be required for them to be 110kmh roads.

Others likely to become eligible include the soon-to-be completed Kapiti Expressway, the northern section of Christchurch Motorway, and the Transmission Gully motorway north of Wellington when it is finished in 2020.

SUPPLIED The Government has given the go-ahead for a 110kmh speed limit on some roads.

Foss said changes made under the guide may also include altering road design and lowering speed limits, as well as raising them in certain circumstances.

The public will get a chance to have its say on the proposed changes before they are finalised. Consultation will begin in early 2017 and run for six weeks.

'WE'RE PLAYING WITH KIWIS' LIVES'

Labour's police spokesman Stuart Nash said that, by and large, he was not against raising the speed limit. But his gut feeling was that a 110kmh limit would put lives at risk.

"If you say that you can drive 110kmh on the Auckland motorway then motorists are going to get into their mind that actually equals 115kmh, and they're also going to get in their mind that 110km becomes the new norm," he said.

"So no matter what road you're on, the new norm for Kiwi drivers is going to be 110kmh … and I think we become more and more unsafe, and I think more Kiwis will end up dying."

Nash expected there would be some public "kick back" over the 110kmh limit and he hoped police would oppose it.

"We're playing with fire and we're playing with Kiwis' lives," he said. "That aside, we haven't got enough police on the roads to actually police this in the first place."

A police spokeswoman declined to comment, other than to say the police were aware the proposal and would consider making submissions at the appropriate time.

Road safety charity Brake was also critical of the move, saying it was "extremely concerned" about the risk to drivers.

"The faster you're travelling, the greater your stopping distance is, the less time you have to react to an unexpected hazard and the bigger the impact in the event of a crash," director Caroline Perry said.

"New Zealand has an older vehicle fleet and not everyone has five-star rated vehicles with all the accompanying safety features. And over 90 per cent of crashes are caused by driver error."

Foss was confident a 110kmh limit would not contradict the safety message the Government and police had been pushing for some time.

When it came to the road toll, "excessive speed" was considered the problem, alongside alcohol, drugs, fleeing from police, and not wearing seatbelts or helmets, he said.

In 2015, speeding was a contributing factor in 93 fatal crashes, 410 serious injury crashes and 1286 minor injury crashes, which resulted in 101 deaths, 496 serious injuries, and 1831 minor injuries.

DRIVERS WELCOME CHANGES

Automobile Association spokesman Mike Noon said the organisation had been calling for changes to speed limits for more than a year and was pleased they were now being considered.

"There are some roads where the limit is too high, and they should come down," he said.

"But we do have some very good-quality highways which, if they were in other countries, would run at 110kmh, or maybe more."

The number of roads being considered was low but carried a high volume of traffic, and a 100kmh speed limit would make them more efficient, Noon said.

"This is matching the speed limit with the safety of the road."

People who were not comfortable driving at 110kmh would be able to stick to the left-hand side of the road, as all roads were considered were multi-lane, he said.

But a 110kmh limit may still be of little benefit to motorists if they find themselves stuck behind a truck.

Road Transport Forum chief executive Ken Shirley called for the heavy vehicle speed limit to remain at 90kmh.

"Elevating the heavy vehicle speed to say 100kmh significantly increases the risk of vehicle rollover," he said.

"The wider speed differential also provides motorists with safer passing opportunities and may lead to less frustration with heavy trucks on expressway routes."

DON'T EXPECT CHANGES TOMORROW

In a statement, the Ministry of Transport said not to expect wholesale changes to the nation's speed limits in the short term.

"For many roads, no change to travel speeds – or speed limits – will be needed. It is for those corridors where current travel speeds or speed limits may be too low to too high that changes should be made."

Any road controlling authority, such as local councils, that wants to change a speed limit in their area will still be required to follow the consultation requirements for changing a speed limit before doing so through its bylaw process.

TOP SPEED LIMITS WORLDWIDE

Germany - no limit (autobahns)

Poland - 140kmh

France - 130kmh

Netherlands - 130kmh

Denmark - 130kmh

United States - 129kmh

South Africa - 120kmh

Finland - 120kmh

United Kingdom - 113kmh

Canada - 110kmh

Sweden - 110kmh

Australia - 110kmh

New Zealand - 100kmh