Where to for Kaipara's Roads?

Are Kaipara’s roads over maintained? Can we afford more seal? Should Kaipara District Council reduce spending on its most costly but most vital infrastructure? Can it afford to?

These are among important questions asked in the Long Term Council Community Plan Kaipara’s Future – Working Together 2009/19, which outlines next year’s programme, what it costs and who pays, along with the district’s direction for 10 years. The plan is available for public comment and offers the community an important chance to have input into Kaipara’s future.

Kaipara District Council maintains 1,554 kilometers of road of which 1,124 are unsealed. The NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) provides a 60% subsidy for pavement and bridge maintenance, drainage, slip repairs reseals and traffic facilities, plus 70% for new works.

Chief Executive Jack McKerchar says many road users will be surprised to learn that NZTA considers Kaipara roads to be over-maintained by its standards, pointing to this District spending more per kilometre travelled than other similar councils. However, Council disagrees and proposes to continue maintenance at present levels.

“It considers that to lower maintenance spending would allow roads to revert to the unsatisfactory standards of 15 years ago,” Mr McKerchar says.

“But this is a big budget item so we are keen to hear your views.”

Repairing slips around the District is a priority in the proposed roading programme with over 60 needing attention over the next two years. NZTA will provide 91% subsidy for these slips.

Seal extension is a big question as Kaipara District Council has previously set aside $350,000 from rates for this annually but there is concern over whether Kaipara’s local roads will meet the subsidy criteria under current government policies.

To help minimize rate increases in 2009/10 the Long Term Council Community Plan Kaipara’s Future – Working Together suggests that $150,000 be cut from the $350,000 and that $100,000 of this $150,000 be used as the local share in an application for “R Funding“ subsidy to improve the regionally important Paparoa/Oakleigh Road to cope with increased heavy traffic.

Council is concerned that doing away with the $350,000 would remove any opportunity to extend seal if subsidy is available and that it could take years or significant future rate increases to reinstate the fund.

The community is being asked if it wants to:

* Retain or increase the $350,000 seal budget to take advantage of any subsidy that becomes available.
* Reduce it this year to use with “R Funding” then scrap the seal extension budget in future.
* Delete seal extension completely in the present economic situation.

Other roading expenditure reductions proposed to help hold rates include reducing next year’s expenditure on footpaths from $100,000 to $60,000, meaning possibly less maintenance and no new footpaths unless they demonstrate road safety benefits and qualify for subsidy.

Also, $40,000 will be saved by deleting the budget for new street lights.

Projected shortfalls from the Regional Development Funding (RDF), established by Government for areas impacted by forest harvesting, mean that for 2009/10 Council intends to activate a special rate on forestry lands to protect ratepayers from extra costs caused by harvesting traffic.

Although Council’s current RDF prioritised programme exceeds $8 million, a recent decision by the RDF Technical Committee re-prioritised this and left Kaipara with no allocation this year, only $750,000 in 2009/10 and $4.3 million in 2010/11, if any funds remain.

Copies of the Long Term Council Community Plan Kaipara’s Future – Working Together can be viewed at Council offices, public libraries or online at www.kaipara.govt.nz. Council is urging as many people as possible to discuss it or make submissions by 5.00pm on Tuesday 21 April 2009.