My Account
By Bevan Woodward, Transport planner, BetterWorld NZ
It is true that the state of Rodney’s rural roads is poor. This is the result of many years of underinvestment and neglect. By adding shoulders of just 1.5 metres, a sealed road becomes safer for motorists, reduces the road maintenance costs caused by damage to the road edge, and provides safe space for cyclists and pedestrians. New alignments make sharp corners safer, as would reducing the speed limit to 80km/h on most of Rodney’s rural roads. These simple changes along with a sealing programme will make Rodney roads safer for all.
However this is one big impediment; the lack of funding. The main reason for the funding shortage is due to the programme of motorways that the Government is focused on. Consequently the vast majority of the transport budget is being diverted into a few very expensive motorways. Many people don’t seem to realise that by supporting new motorways such as Puhoi to Wellsford, then they are also supporting the slashing of budgets for other important transport projects – this includes road sealing, new footpaths, cycle paths, road maintenance, public transport, new arterial roads and street improvements.
To complicate matters, the burden of funding New Zealand’s transport investment is carried by the private motorist. Heavy trucks pay a disproportionately small amount for the cost for the damage that they cause to the road network. It is through this distortion of the ‘user pays’ principal that heavy trucks are given a subsidised advantage over rail and coastal shipping. Hence we’re seeing more trucks on the road, which unfortunately means more fatalities, serious crashes and delays on our roads as heavy trucks are over represented in New Zealand’s crash statistics.
In order to resolve this situation we need the Government to reconsider its prioritisation of new motorways which is to the detriment of road sealing, new footpaths, cycle paths, road maintenance, public transport, new arterial roads, street improvements, etc. And heavy trucks must pay a fairer road user charge, one that matches the damage they do to the roads. This will enable rail and coastal shipping to be more competitive which provides the bonus of fewer heavy trucks on our roads.
