Land Transport Management Amendment Bill

There is an out-of-Parliament experience that a select group of MPs get to have on a regular basis as we return to our homes.

It is called the Rush-Hour Rock – a curious tradition in which over 1.4 million New Zealanders – about a third of our national population – juggle and jostle for road space.

This morning I logged into Aucklandtraffic.co.nz to see if things had miraculously changed, and want to share some of the views of Aucklanders about the traffic flow in Auckland city.

Shaun: I live in Pukekohe : leaving at 6:30am each morning It takes me approx 1.5 hours to get to Greenlane where I work.

Warren: Auckland's Public transport system has the worse patronage in Australasia. There are more cars per capita in Auckland than any other city in the world.

Andrew: Insufferable and third world. I have lived and worked all around the world and this is my context. Major investment is needed quickly.

Juanita: It is horrible every morning north bound and it is horrible every evening...south bound. That’s a possible total of 1 hour & half to 2 hours a day...when i can spend that time at home wif my kids not just that...i have to leave even earlier which takes time from my kids to get to work on time and leave way later than the actualy time i work till....just so the traffic isn’t soooo bad.....again more time away from home...i hate auckland traffic...

Is it any wonder that in the 2007 Quality of Life Survey, out of all New Zealanders, the residents of North Shore, Waitakere and Manukau are the least satisfied with their work/life balance?
This Bill is huge. Huge in its scope, huge in its impact on New Zealanders.
It sets out the government’s high level priorities for land transport, putting in place a new system for the funding and planning of land transport, and introducing full hypothecation (dedication) of fuel excise duties to the National Land Transport Fund.

The impacts of two key issues addressed at the select committee – that rail should be more integrated into the transport planning and funding framework; and that the rules and regulations around regional fuel taxes have been tightened up - are by themselves significant.
But there are many other aspects of this legislation which must be seen as some of the most significant issues facing this nation.

No discussion of this Bill could begin without acknowledging that the development of public transport, including walk ways, is a key response to the dual challenges of peak oil and climate change.
Across New Zealand 70% of our CO2 emissions from transport occur in urban areas. Improved public transport systems will result in less emissions, greater oil independence, less smog, lower petrol bills, and a greater quality of life given that chronic road congestion could significantly diminish.

We need to make a long term investment to significantly reduce emissions by making our cities more walking and cycling friendly, investing in high quality bus services and innovative light rail systems, reducing our dependence on fossil fuels, and reducing our relatively high levels of car ownership.
This issue of investment – the economics of change – are at the crux of the matter.
In the medium to long term, public transport will benefit lower income earners by providing affordable transport as petrol costs continue to increase as a result of global peak oil production crisis.
In the face of this crisis, our priority in the Maori Party has always been to ask what measures might be put in place to assist low income earners with petrol price rises in the short term?

While we must significantly reduce oil dependency and strategically plan for the utilisation and development of sustainable energy resources, we must be equally vigilant to ensure that all New Zealanders are able to access affordable transport options in a world where oil shortages will mean ever- escalating petrol prices.
We will not forget the relentless pressure on working families; on families living in severe and significant hardship.

Home ownership, education, energy, food and health care costs have also risen faster than the overall rate of inflation.
Families are struggling to meet the costs of a basic standard of living.
Our hospitals are facing the pressure of children suffering third world diseases, the origins of which have been clearly linked with overcrowding and income poverty.
We will continue to speak out about poverty and the desperate conditions that many of our urban dwellers face.

We must protect their interests at all cost.
And so we will demand that motorists who do pay the extra tax are able to see a clear benefit from doing so in the form of additional public transport options, including footpaths, that the region might not otherwise get.
There must be a clear relationship between the introduction of the fuel tax and the tangible results – quickly.
In the case of Tamaki Makaurau for instance, we need to see progress made immediately in developing a high quality, rapid transit system, incorporating an electrified rail service and the North Shore Busway, as well as a significantly improved network of public transport services right across the whole Auckland region.
There are of course other groups that stand to benefit from the improvements to the land transport management system.

The inaccessibility of public transport was brought to the attention of the select committee by the CCS Disability Action.
The concepts of participation, accountability and non-discrimination of disabled people must permeate through land transport planning and funding - and it is pleasing to see that specific provision is made for such groups to be included in the consultation rounds of regional transport committees.
Madam Speaker, I have concentrated on Auckland in response to the concerns of my constituency and in my capacity as the Member for Tamaki Makaurau.
There is no doubt that electrification of the Auckland rail system will be a major step forward for passenger rail services.

The Ministry of Works had plans to electrify Auckland rail in the 1940s; plans which were shelved then, just as they were shelved in the 1970s. This is the third go at ensuring the Auckland region is equipped with a world-class public transport rail service.
Who wouldn’t support the decision to invest in new electric trains, upgraded rail stations, ferry terminals, passenger information and integrated ticketing, and other public transport capital projects?
Putting it another way, if it’s a choice between fast, clean, quiet electric trains or old, polluting diesel trains, bursting at the seams at rush hour, I know which locomotion I’d be sitting on.
Finally, we are well aware that the controversy around the regional fuel tax has fuelled hot debate in our own party, and across the motu (the land).

I believe the submission for the New Zealand Council for Infrastructure Development had some interesting things to say in support of the Bill's provisions to enhance long term integrated planning and funding of land transport in New Zealand.
They suggested that we need to better integrate rail, ports and freight transport logistics into transport planning - which given the need to keep the costs of consumer goods like food as low as possible, as well as public transport - it's a critical point that perhaps needs more work in the committee stage of this Bill.
They also recommended that regional fuel taxes should be optimised according to transport needs and priorities of a region, not to a pre-determined formula decided by statute.
The stages that are required to secure approval for the regional fuel tax include sign off by regional transport committees, the regional council and finally the Minister.

In all of these stages, the existing Local Government Act consultation process require that tangata whenua and Maori communities must be involved. We are satisfied that such a process is adequately robust for regional fuel taxes to be introduced and committed to only in the face of publicly supported and beneficial regional transport projects.
During the select committee stage of this Bill, the regional fuel tax regime tightened up, resulting in a decision that regions are unable to implement without prior permission of the Minister.
But the other key change, was that the maximum of five cents for roading has been amended and clarified as including carriageways, bridleways, and footpaths – in effect a much broader definition of roading which effectively includes all but a handful of public transport and freight terminal projects within the roading limit.
Madam Speaker, we will not shirk from being outspoken in caring for the interests of those who are suffering.
But we are enthusiastic about getting people off the roads, improving the public transport system, and making a long term investment in the quality of life for New Zealanders – while at the same time enhancing the quality of our global environment.