Road freight should not subsidise rail
FOR THOSE VERSED IN GREEK mythology, the Government’s infatuation with moving freight from road to rail will sound very familiar. Like the sailors who find themselves lured to their deaths by the captivating music and enchanting voices of the sirens from Homer’s Odyssey, Government ministers have been lured towards the economic rocks by rail nostalgists who have little understanding of the importance of efficient freight movements to New Zealand’s success.
The Road Transport Forum is extremely concerned that the Government is progressing a law change that will allocate money to rail…money that’s been paid by those of us who use roads.
We recently appeared before Parliament’s Transport and Infrastructure Select Committee to directly express the industry’s problem with this legislation and the perverse impact it will have on the economy.
As we explained to the committee, there is no doubt that NZ requires a well-maintained, first-world rail network and must replace old and tired assets. We are also supportive of recent announcements regarding passenger rail and the infrastructure to improve that.
However, if funding to rail is justified by a promise that you will be shifting freight from road to rail, then that, at best, is extremely misleading and, at worst, is an outright lie.
The National Land Transport Fund (NLTF) is funded by road users for the purpose of funding the maintenance and upgrading of our roads. Yes, it has been used to help pay for public transport projects, including commuter rail, but that has a direct benefit to road users through the alleviation of traffic congestion.
Unfortunately, this legislation further politicises future road funding by letting it be accessed by rail.
Rail, as we know, is a bottomless pit when it comes to its need for extra money. Rail advocates use the argument that rail has never been able to stand on its own two feet because it has always suffered from under-investment. The reality is that rail outside of the major centres will never be able to pay its own way.
When it comes to freight specifically, rail isn’t even an option for the vast majority of the task. This is because the nature of the goods being moved around NZ won’t ever be suitable for
NOTWITHSTANDING THE DISRUPTION currently experienced because of the coronavirus outbreak, the most pressing issue for the industry over the long term remains our workforce shortage. While work continues with progressing the issue in government circles, the fact is that we cannot rely on the assistance that may come out of that to solve the problem, says transport operator Graham Sheldrake.
As Sheldrake explains, it remains incumbent on the industry to develop and support its own solutions.
“Anyone who looks around at the employment market in our industry over the last few years knows that if we keep going like we have been, we are going to have serious shortages of employees in the not-too-distant future. The fact of the matter is we just haven’t done a good enough job of nurturing the next generation in trucking.
“Economic variations aside, if we want to change things, we as operators have to act. Yes, it might take time – but we have to lift the image of our industry and give young people a chance to succeed in it.
“If we want to bring a younger workforce through, we need to commit to being good employers and be open, modern, flexible and invested in their success. That is the only way we can get the staff we need and keep them.
“If you want a payoff at the end of it you will need to invest: That means committing time to mentor, upskill, support and qualify an employee into your business. We also sometimes need to take a punt on a young person like I did with Summer Ratima Thompson, who has become an outstanding employee for me and won the 2019 EROAD Young Driver of Year Award.
“It is important that we use the highly-relevant qualifications developed over the last few years to attract new recruits and help existing workers gain the experience and skills to increase their pay and progress in the industry. Committing to ongoing training and qualifications should be a key aspect of any employer’s responsibility to their staff.
“Road freight needs to be more about a career, and less about a job. If we want to maintain the privilege of doing business with a steady flow of workers, it is absolutely critical that we pay people appropriately for the job they do.
“It’s not the young people we need to change. The world is their oyster. They have plenty of job and career options they can pursue. The changes that will improve our situation can only be made by us.
“I want to help other operators understand just how serious the issue is and I’d love to outline for you the bones of the Industry Cadetship Programme that I’m currently involved in developing. It’s really important that we get operator feedback, so I’d be really keen to have these conversations with you.
“The current average age of drivers in our industry is 54. If we want this number to increase further and then suffer the consequences as our workforce heads into retirement then we should carry on as normal. If we want to promote a younger, diverse workforce that includes more women, please join me and other industry leaders in supporting the Industry Cadetship concept.
“Every operator that is keen to take on a young person and train them up for a career in trucking is contributing – not only to the development of their staff, but the longterm sustainability of our industry. The Government might help us around the edges, but the key to improving the flow of people into road transport lies in our hands. As operators, we are the solution.”
More information on the and how it will work for operators will be available in the coming months.
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THE ROAD TRANSPORT FORUM FIRST WROTE to the Government way back at the beginning of February to warn that the economic impacts of the coronavirus were likely to be serious. At that stage the international focus was on China and the spread of the virus there, but RTF could see that it was starting to impact trucking businesses quite seriously here too.
Even then, businesses were feeling the squeeze – with the log transport sector, among others, really coming under pressure as the global forestry supply chain was one of the first to break down.
Now that the virus has found its way to our shores and the health response is in full swing, the economic downturn has reached far and wide.
“Trucking has always been an early economic barometer and as such, RTF requested that Government ministers help alleviate the situation by removing benefit stand-down periods for those workers being stood down, as well as provide tax breaks for those operators and contractors struggling to meet upcoming tax payments,” says RTF chief executive Nick Leggett.
“From a very early stage the health response by government has been exemplary. Ministry of Health, DHBs and Customs leapt into action pretty quickly. The strict travel restrictions were unquestionably the right thing to do, the Prime Minister’s public messaging has been spot-on and there is plenty of sensible practical advice for a lot of worried people out there.
“The testing and screening regimes are doing a good job at slowing the virus’ spread in New Zealand, which is so important if our health system is to properly cope.
“Unfortunately, the economic response has not been quite so flash,” says Leggett: “Government was incredibly slow in developing its business support package and, even once it was announced in early March, there were absolutely no details for another week.
“A week can be the difference between a business withstanding the downturn.....and having to lay off all its staff. For many operators the package was too late and, considering how early the Government was warned of the impending economic downturn and the resulting job losses, the delay was extremely disappointing.
“RTF is doing all it can to help. We continue to push ministers and government officials to consider greater relief for the industry, as the reality is that this will not be a short-lived experience.
“I urge all operators to keep a daily watch on the dedicated page on the RTF website (rtfnz.co.nz/covid-19/) that includes up-to-date information on how to manage the significant health and business risks of the virus. The page has advice on what to do to manage the risk in the workplace, what to do in the event of a suspected infection and where to go to access the various aspects of the government’s business support package.
“We have included links to World Health Organisation information and the United States Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, which has guidance specifically for truckers around pandemics and general precautions to limit disease spread.
“A good place to also visit is the business.govt.nz website. This is regularly updated with advice for businesses, including what you need to know with regards to the government support package and the tax relief available, as well as employers’ obligations when it comes to health and safety,” says Leggett.
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