Expressway part of plan for roading programme
Government outlines expansive changes
Transport Minister Simeon Brown wants to fast-track the National Government’s 15 Roads of National Significance (RONS), one of which is O¯ 2NL. In the draft Government Policy Statement on land transport issued this week, National says all RONS will have four lanes and will be built as “quickly as possible”.
So, the Horowhenua Expressway may happen faster, though NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi told the Horowhenua Chronicle this week just over half the properties and land required for the expressway had been purchased by the Crown so far.
“We have been working with property owners within the project area since 2018, and in November 2022 we lodged Notices of Requirement, seeking to designate land needed to build and operate the new highway,” O¯ taki to North of Levin project director Lonnie Dalzel said.
“To date, 97 properties have been acquired by the Crown on the O¯ taki to North of Levin alignment. This equates to 57 per cent of the properties and 51 per cent of land required to build the new highway. The cost of buying these properties is circa $130 million.
“Discussions with property owners are undertaken on a case-by-case basis. Each property is different, and we often buy only part of the land if that is all that is needed for the new highway. We are continuing to work closely with landowners as well as working with preferred alliance partners, and look forward to beginning construction in 2025.”
The Government is hoping national and international business will step up to help fund all these roads. Toll booths are another to help fund roading, but New Zealand motorists will also face a hike in car registration, which both Transport Minister Simeon Brown and Prime Minister Luxon called a “one-off” payment, although it is collected annually. It will go up by $50 in two stages, starting next January, because “registration fees for cars have not increased since 1994”, Brown said.
Despite promises not to hike taxes, the new strategy is also warning of an increase in fuel tax, though the extra tax for Auckland drivers will go. By the end of the decade it will have
We have been working with property owners within the project area since 2018 . . . Project director Lonnie Dalzel
increased by 22 cents, although there is also a plan to swap that for universal road user charges, by then charging motorists depending on the weight of the vehicle and its frequency
of use.
The first fuel tax hike will be 12 cents a litre in 2027, then a further 6 cent hike the next year, followed by 4 cents each year after that. This would all help to make better and safer roads, he said, which is something all road users benefit from.
NZTA will be tasked with finding alternative funding for roading “as much as possible”, Brown said on Monday. NZTA has already warned these new roads will cost a lot more than National has budgeted.
Brown agreed Luxon’s commitment was “no ifs, no buts”, and said the Government would not be
allowing objections over cost and consenting to stand in the way.
Funding has been cut by a third for public transport, and subsidies for bus fares for school children will go. There will also be less money for walkways and cycleways.
The strategy also demands the fixing of potholes“within 24 hours”. There will be money for Auckland and Wellington transport to ease congestion.
Luxon said he was focused on lowering inflation to fight the cost-ofliving crisis.
“Lower inflation will help low incomes as will some tax relief.”