New Zealand road transport reform and the environment

Abstract

Managing New Zealand's roads has been, and always will be, a complicated undertaking. Roads provide a number of benefits to society, such as mobility and the transportation of goods and services. But access and mobility comes at a price, that being high social, economic and environmental costs. Traffic accidents result in severe social and economic costs, and pollution released by vehicles can endanger the health of present and future generations of humans and non-humans. The difficulty for road managers is attempting to enhance the benefits of roads while minimising their costs. The growing levels of pollution (such as increases in carbon dioxide concentrations (a greenhouse gas )(MfE, date unknown)) suggest that road managers have not been successful when it comes to avoiding, remedying, or mitigating adverse environmental effects that result from roads (as the Resource Management Act requires). The New Zealand Government has recognised that the current road management system is not delivering satisfactory outcomes in terms of its efficiency, safety, and its effect on the environment. Consequently, the immediate past administration initiated a review ofthe road management system, which resulted in the release of Better Transport Better Roads (BTBR) in 1999. This document outlined a new possible model for road management intended to improve the efficiency, safety, and environmental outcomes of road management in New Zealand. The main changes that BTBR proposed were to the management, funding, and payment options for roads. Between four and eight public road companies would be responsible for local roads, and Transit New Zealand Ltd would be responsible for the state highway system. Funding would be provided by Transfund New Zealand Ltd. The principal objective of the companies would be to "operate as successful businesses; be as profitable and efficient asadverse environmental effects. A set of criteria was developed to evaluate the BTBR and LGNZ models, and to identify areas in which these models were inadequate. The criteria were developed by reviewing the literature and identifying policies that are, or could be, effective at avoiding, remedying, or mitigating adverse environmental effects. Criteria were also established that would address problems arising from the current management system. Applying this framework to the two models revealed that the LGNZ model was more likely to avoid, remedy or mitigate adverse environmental effects than the BTBR model. However, the LGNZ model was unable to satisfy all of the criteria, and therefore a new model was developed which did so. The new model incorporates two major changes. First, it proposes institutional reform, with Regional Transport Authorities (RTAs) taking on the transport roles and responsibilities of regional councils, local territorial authorities, and Transit New Zealand. RTAs would be responsible for all transport matters (excluding aviation) in their areas, that is, those of the regional councils. The other major change proposed is the introduction of electronic road pricing. Differential road pricing would be used to reflect different fuel-efficiencies of vehicles, engine size, and the distance travelled. However, before road pricing is introduced, the public transport system and other alternatives to the private vehicle would need to be developed to a level where they provided real alternatives to the private car. This would help reduce the expected public opposition to road pricing.