28 February, 2002

Widening The Focus

Fact Sheet One

The existing funding framework focuses heavily on roads. Public transport, rail, walking and cycling are all under-resourced as a result.

Roading will remain a key area of land transport funding but the government is widening the focus to put greater emphasis on public transport, rail, the needs of pedestrians and cyclists, road safety and regional development.

As well, a more strategic, long-term focus for funding decisions is needed. Building land transport infrastructure invariably involves long-term planning periods and a commitment of resources over many years.

Key initiatives

Planned changes include:

• Changing the focus of key government transport agencies to land transport as a whole rather than just roading.

• Amending the principal purpose of Transfund New Zealand to require it to allocate resources to achieve the objectives of the New Zealand Transport Strategy.

• Providing clear Ministerial guidance to Transfund and Transit New Zealand which sets out the government's land transport priorities.

• Using different methods of evaluation for different types of projects. Presently all projects are evaluated against the same criteria, so a motorway project and a public transport project are evaluated against each other, instead of against similar projects.

The government will also:

• Develop a national cycling strategy.

• Ensure that, wherever appropriate, transport incentives work to encourage more heavy freight to be carried by rail.

• Ensure Transit and Transfund evaluate all major projects against the government's new strategic objectives.

• Require Transfund and Transit to develop 10 year revenue and expenditure plans.

• Allow regional councils to fund and, under agreed conditions, both own and operate public transport infrastructure and services.

• Enhance the regional land transport strategy planning process.

• Explore the potential of congestion pricing.