Haumarutanga rori - taiohi

Road safety - young people

The Travel Safe team work alongside schools and communities to increase active travel and keep students safe on their way to and from school.

Young Driver Workshop

Free young driver workshops are aimed at road users aged between 16 and 24, who hold a current learner or restricted driver licence. Participants will leave with improved knowledge, confidence, and skills.

Each workshop includes:

A 60-minute one-on-one driving lesson with a certified instructor
Waka Kotahi NZTA roadworthy vehicle check (what to check to ensure your vehicle is safe and roadworthy)
Driver behaviour awareness (speed, impairment, restraints, distraction, and fatigue
Awareness session on sharing the road with heavy vehicles

Parents/caregivers are strongly encouraged to attend but it’s not compulsory. The four-hour workshops are held during school term holidays, usually between 9am and 1pm.

Drive has everything you need to prepare for your learner, restricted and full licence tests.

Visit the Drive website

Kids Can Ride

Kids Can Ride is Travel Safe’s year 5-6 cycle skills programme. It is based on the BikeReady curriculum, an established initiative by Waka Kotahi.

Experienced cycle skills instructors visit schools to help students learn to navigate local streets and intersections with structured learning outcomes.

Kids Can Ride consists of two grades: Grade 1 (year 5) – Preparing for on-road riding, and Grade 2 (year 6) – Introduction to on-road riding. Students will complete grade 1 learning before being able to undertake grade 2.

Grade 1 is held at school, usually in a field or on a court and is designed to encourage and develop basic bike control skills. The session also covers how to check and fit a helmet, and a basic bike safety check.

Grade 2 takes place on quiet local roads and is designed to give students real cycling experience to build skills and confidence for making short journeys on local roads. Grade 2 covers how to see and be seen, communication, road positioning and cooperating with other road users.

It’s Travel Safe’s goal to see Kids Can Ride delivered in every school in Tauranga and the Western Bay of Plenty.

For more on Kids Can Ride contact travelsafeschools@tauranga.govt.nz.

Young driver workshop

Kids can ride

School Travel Safe Action Plans

School Travel Safe Action Plans are community led and embedded in neighbourhoods across Tauranga and the Western Bay of Plenty.

Educating with in-school programmes
Encouraging different ways to get to and from school like walking, biking, busing, and scootering
Engineering better routes to school with improved crossings, school speed zones, and shared paths
Enforcing parking regulations around schools.

Parking Behaviour

Drop off and pick up are busy times that pose a safety risk at the school gate. Travel Safe help schools to communicate things like parking time limits, drop off and pick up zones, parking over the kerb and other safety risks at the school gate.

We deliver an in-school parking and safety programme named Peaceful Parker, and partner with council parking officers to do school visits when requested by schools or the community.

Travel Smart and Travel Safe Leaders

For more than 15 years our Travel Smart (Primary) and Travel Safe (Intermediate) leaders have been supporting the action plan by helping to deliver programmes at school and doing important voluntary work like monitoring crossings.

Student leaders know what’s happening in and around their schools and address any safety issues they see.

Intermediate Schools' Bike Safety

The Intermediate Bike Safety programme is a natural progression from Kids Can Ride and focuses on ‘real time, real environment’ on-road cycling.

It involves a road rules refresher, bike and helmet safety checks, school cycle safety procedures, and how to navigate intersections. The programme includes a practical skills assessment and sees students riding in their local area with an instructor.

Design Your Own Helmet Competition

Five Tauranga school students received a huge surprise in May when they were presented with their winning helmets as part of Travel Safe’s ‘Design Your Own Helmet’ competition, while filming a video about the importance of wearing one. Read the full media release.

The competition will reopen again in October this year.

Feet First

The Feet First programme encourages active travel to and from school to support reduced congestion around schools and associated health, social, environmental, and economic benefits.

The programme is based on healthy fun competition through the collection travel data, celebrating healthy ways to travel, and student-led initiatives for promotion. The programme is flexible and can easily be adapted to meet the needs of the school community.

Kids on Feet

A Kids on Feet walking school bus is a fun, safe and active way for children to travel to and from school with adult supervision. It involves students walking together with at least at least one adult ‘driver’ and picking up children at designated stops on the way to and from school.

Walking school buses are flexible to meet the needs of schools and supported by Travel Safe with guidance and resources for students and parent/caregiver volunteers.

For help with Kids on Feet contact travelsafeschools@tauranga.govt.nz

Car Restraints

Looking for Support around car seat restraints? Contact one of our local car seat technicians at travelsafeschools@tauranga.govt.nz. We offer free car seat installations, checks, and will help answer any questions or concerns regarding your car restraint.

Ruben the Road Safety Bear

Ruben the Road Safety Bear visits pre-school and younger children with his minder to talk about keeping safe around roads and traffic.

Ruben has his own song and dance – The Ruben Rock, and his focus lies in four key areas:

safe passenger (child seats, seat belts and booster seats)
safe pedestrian (crossing the road)
playing on the street and sneaky driveways, and
supervised cycling and helmet use.

For more on Ruben the Road safety bear including some fun resources visit his website.

Ruben the Road Safety Bear

Under-20 Basketball Nationals slam into Tauranga

Tauranga’s newest sports facility is set to host its first national tournament - and it’s a slam dunk for local basketball fans.

The Foot Locker U20 Basketball Nationals will take place over King’s Birthday weekend, from 30 May to 2 June 2025 at the new University of Waikato Haumaru Sport and Recreation Centre.

The former site of The Warehouse on Cameron Road was purchased by Tauranga City Council in early 2024 and has been converted into a multi-purpose sport and recreation centre featuring indoor sports courts.

Supported by Tauranga City Council through the Tauranga Event Fund, this Basketball New Zealand tournament gives representative level players a final chance to compete at age-group level on the national stage.

It brings together young talent from across the country – including Kiwis returning from overseas – and is free for the public to attend.

Bethlehem Ward Councillor Kevin Schuler, who helped officially open Haumaru earlier this month, says the tournament is a great opportunity for the city and community.

“We’re proud to support the U20 National Basketball event through the Tauranga Event Fund. National sporting events like this strengthen our community by providing opportunities for connection, participation, and inspiration, especially for our younger generations.

“Basketball continues to grow rapidly in Aotearoa, and hosting this national competition shows we’re serious about being a city that supports youth development.

“Hosting national sporting events such as this also attracts visitors and wider economic benefits for Tauranga and helps raise our profile as a great host city – so it’s a win-win for everyone.

“This new facility right in the heart of Tauranga is already proving its worth by being able to host this event and sets the stage for an exciting long weekend of sport. It really is going to be something special.
“We also encourage visitors who are here for the event to take time to enjoy everything our city has to offer.”

Kevin Schuler opening of Haumaru Sport and Recreation Centre

Councillor Kevin Schuler spoke at the opening of Haumaru Sport and Recreation Centre earlier in May. Photo credit, Jamie Troughton, Describe Media.

Basketball’s rise in Tauranga has been remarkable. Since 2009, the number of teams registered with the Tauranga City Basketball Association has nearly quadrupled from 228 to an impressive 812 in 2024.
Mark Rogers, General Manager of Tauranga City Basketball, says demand for court space has surged alongside the sport’s popularity.

“We’ve seen huge growth over the past decade. Numbers grew steadily until 2023, when a lack of space began to hold us back. The addition of the Haumaru facility to the Council-owned network will open the door for further growth in the coming years.”

The U20 Nationals are a key development event for players, referees and coaches across the country, and are gaining international recognition. The upcoming event will welcome 16 men’s teams and 8 women’s teams from across New Zealand, all of whom have earned their place through regional qualifiers. Referees are also hand-picked for their performance as part of national development pathways.

umpiring a basketball game

National events are key development events for players, as well as referees and coaches. Photo supplied by Basketball New Zealand.

Many athletes who compete will go on to secure college scholarships in the USA or professional contracts in Australia’s National Basketball League and Women’s National Basketball League.
“Currently, there are around 150 New Zealanders on college basketball scholarships in the USA, with the vast majority having played in the U20 Nationals in previous years,” says Jay Macdonald, Basketball New Zealand’s Tournaments Lead.

“This year, some Tauranga players will be back from their college to represent Tauranga City Basketball Association.”

Spectators who attend can expect fast-paced, high-quality basketball with many players coming from Sal’s National Basketball League, G.J. Gardner Tauihi Basketball Aotearoa, and US college teams.
Stu Stevenson, Head of Sport and Fitness at Bay Venues, says the tournament is a fitting way to mark the opening of the new facility.

“We are excited to be hosting the Foot Locker U20 Nationals basketball tournament at the newly opened centre. This event is particularly special for us as it will be the first tournament held at Haumaru. We look forward to welcoming some of the best young basketball players from across the country and providing them with a new venue to showcase their skills.”

With seating for spectators and free public entry, the community is encouraged to come along and experience the energy, talent and passion of New Zealand’s future basketball stars – right here in Tauranga.

Event Details

What: Foot Locker U20 Basketball Nationals
When: Friday 30 May – Monday 2 June 2025 (King’s Birthday weekend)
Where: University of Waikato Haumaru Sport and Recreation Centre
Cost: Free entry
Event Link: Basketball New Zealand U20 Nationals

Image caption

Tauranga and Canterbury teams face off at last year’s nationals in Rangiora. Photo supplied by Basketball New Zealand.

Posted: May 26, 2025,