Category: Ministry of Transport

Submit by Wednesday 2 May: Let the Government know you support the new draft Government Policy Statement (GPS) on Land Transport

Posted on by stb_nyltr0

The draft Government Policy Statement is a very significant change from the previous Government’s motorway-dominated policies – the policies that led to the now-defeated Basin Reserve flyover proposal. As far as Save the Basin is concerned, it’s a vital and welcome change of direction.

But it’s only a draft, and it’s under threat.

The powerful roading and trucking lobbies are marshaling their forces to push back against the GPS. That’s why we need you to submit and say that you support the direction laid out in the draft Government Policy Statement.

Only got time to make a quick submission? Please read the next section – it’s got all you need!

Make a quick submission

We suggest you email gps2018@transport.govt.nz with the subject line “Providing feedback on the Draft GPS 2018” and say something like this:

I support the Government’s new transport policy direction. It’s good for the climate, good for public health, and it provides better transport choices so fewer people need to rely on private cars.

I especially like the increased funding for public transport (including rapid transit), walking, cycling and rail, and the decreased funding for state highways.

Make a detailed submission

Possible submission points

There are plenty more points you can make if you wish, and we’re certainly not claiming the draft GPS is perfect. Here are some detailed points of support, and suggestions for improvements, you could make in your submission:

I strongly support:

a) the strategic priorities of safety, access, environment, and value for money
b) increased funding for public transport (including rapid transit), walking, cycling and rail
c) emphasis on integrated planning and mode neutrality
d) a second-stage GPS “to fully realise Government’s direction for transport investment” (draft GPS, p5)

Here are some things I’d like to see changed:

a) allocating funding by Activity Classes that are largely defined by mode is inconsistent with the theme of “a mode neutral approach to transport planning and investment decisions” (p23)
b) environment (“reduces the adverse effects on the climate, local environment and public health”, p7) should be a key strategic priority (like safety and access), rather than a supporting one
c) continuing the very high level of funding for state highway improvements does not appear to be consistent with the strategic priorities
d) recognising the safety implications of mode choice (eg the risk associated with travelling by car is roughly ten times greater than the risk of travelling by public transport)
e) greater support for demand management, such as congestion charging
f)  ensuring distributional effects and equity effects of policy tools are managed properly – so insofar as there are adverse effects, the changes in transport funding and mode provision don’t hit poor people disproportionately hard

Background information

The Government Policy Statement on Land Transport sets the Government’s policy direction on transport. It’s revised every three years, and the last one was issued in 2015 by the then-National Government.

The last government were going to issue a new Government Policy Statement this year that reaffirmed their fixation with prioritising building motorways. Now, Minister of Transport Phil Twyford and Associate Ministers Julie-Anne Genter and Shane Jones have a very different vision for transport: a vision that prioritises reducing dependence on private cars, reducing greenhouse gas emissions, and improving public health. This potentially means a modern, sustainable transport system is coming Wellington’s way.

You’ll find the draft GPS and related documents here:

https://www.transport.govt.nz/ourwork/keystrategiesandplans/gpsonlandtransportfunding/

How to submit

The email address for your submission is gps2018@transport.govt.nz.

The official submission form is a downloadable PDF that has to be filled in and submitted by email or post. You may find it easier to simply send your submission in the body of your email.

Further reading

Here are two articles that do a good job of summarising why the draft GPS is worth supporting:

Here is a useful summary of changes in various “activity classes” in the new draft GPS that clearly shows why it’s a change of transport direction that’s worth supporting (.docx format).

Same Old, Same Old: The Draft Government Policy Statement On Land Transport

Posted on by stb_nyltr0

The Government Policy Statement (GPS) on Land Transport is the context in which all Government land transport policy is developed – and ever since the current National-led Government came to power, successive Government Policy Statements have been heavily focused on roading, despite the clear evidence that building more roads does not solve congestion.

Unfortunately, the latest draft Government Policy Statement on Land Transport shows no sign of changing this.

Its strategic priorities are unchanged from the 2015 GPS (p. 8):

The three strategic priorities, continued from GPS 2015 are:

  •  economic growth and productivity
  •  road safety
  •  value for money.

Strikingly missing from these strategic priorities is the environmental performance of our land transport system. Perhaps that’s because it’s already bad and rapidly getting worse: whether in regard to the serious local health effects of particulate emissions from transport, the effect of motorway-building on urban environments, or the urgent need to rapidly reduce greenhouse gas emissions from transport.

The New Zealand Government has ratified the Paris Agreement, taking on a commitment for a substantial reduction in New Zealand’s greenhouse gas emissions. Land transport is responsible for around 20% of New Zealand’s greenhouse gas emissions, and the volume of transport emissions has been rising steadily. Land transport is second only to agriculture as a greenhouse gas emitting sector.

The Government is relying mainly on a move to electric vehicles to reduce transport emissions. However, the composition and replacement rate of the New Zealand vehicle fleet both mean that, even if such a change were to occur, it would not occur either fully or quickly enough to produce the level of emissions reduction required.

Therefore, one of the aims of the Government Policy Statement should be to drive a rapid reduction in greenhouse gas emissions from transport. This can be achieved by prioritising the use of public transport and of active modes and the provision of the necessary infrastructure, and by deemphasising the provision of infrastructure for private motor vehicles, which will in turn encourage more journeys by what is currently a highly polluting motor vehicle fleet.

Based on this draft Government Policy Statement, the ratification of the Paris Agreement is not being reflected in actual Government policy.

How to submit

Submissions on the draft Government Policy Statement close at 5pm on Friday 31 March 2017. Details of how to download the draft Strategy, and make submissions, can be found on the Government draft GPS page at

http://www.transport.govt.nz/ourwork/keystrategiesandplans/gpsonlandtransportfunding/

Transport Minister Simon Bridges: NZTA Intends To Enter Into “Open And Collaborative Process” Over Basin Flyover Aftermath

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In a letter to the Save the Basin Campaign (in response to one we sent to John Key soon after the High Court decision was announced), Transport Minister Simon Bridges says some encouraging things:

The NZ Transport Agency advises me that … it intends to enter into an open and collaborative process with councils and the community to spark new conversations and ideas about the best way to deliver substantive solutions to the congestion at the Basin and other pinch points in the network.

I appreciate that you have had a strong interest in this issue over a period of time, and thank you for the time that you have already committed to developing and presenting alternative solutions for consideration.

This is great to hear – but there are concerns that the process adopted so far is neither open nor collaborative, and furthermore that the experts who have developed alternative solutions which the Board of Inquiry said deserved further consideration have not been consulted in the wake of the flyover decision.

Let’s hope that Minister Bridges’ views, as expressed in the letter above, result in the Regional Transport Committee, City and Regional Councillors, and NZTA officials demonstrating a new openness and willingness to genuinely and widely consult on the Basin, and on the best options for Wellington’s transport network.

Ministry of Transport Research Shows Up NZTA’s Flawed Traffic Projections

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Historic New Zealand light vehicle traffic forecasts vs actual growth (Source: MoT)
Historic New Zealand light vehicle traffic forecasts vs actual growth (Source: MoT)

In trying to justify the Government’s $12 billion “Roads of National Significance” motorway-building programme, which included a Basin Reserve flyover, the New Zealand Transport Agency makes great play of a projected increase in Vehicle Kilometres Travelled (VKT). The growth in VKT, they say, can only be dealt with by building more motorways.

It’s been known for a long time that the second part of this argument is false: there is plentiful evidence from all around the world, and from New Zealand, that building new roading capacity only induces more traffic, thus leading to bigger motorways, thus leading to more traffic…

But, at the Board of Inquiry into the Basin Reserve flyover proposal, NZTA’s claims of growth in VKT was also challenged. Submitters pointed to recent New Zealand research that shows young people, especially in cities, are turning off driving.

Now research by the Ministry of Transport shows that Vehicle Kilometres Travelled in New Zealand has not grown since 2007. You can view this on the Ministry’s own site and also read a detailed analysis by Auckland’s Transport Blog.

Which raises two very basic questions:

1)    Why is NZTA continuing to claim that traffic demand will rise?
2)    Why is the Government continuing to ignore its own research?

You might think – you might very well think – that this is because the Government has bet $12 billion of public money on continuing to ignore the evidence. But I couldn’t possibly comment.

Transport Realities Are Changing Fast. Is The Government Starting To Take Notice?

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“Peak car” acknowledged by the Ministry of Transport

Following each General Election, Government departments prepare a Briefing for the Incoming Minister (BIM). Patrick Morgan of Cycle Aware Wellington has drawn my attention to the following passage from the Ministry of Transport’s BIM – emphasis is mine:

“The average distance travelled per-person in light passenger vehicles has fallen by around 8 percent, from a peak of about 7,600km in 2004, to around 7,000km in 2013. The total distance travelled over the same period has increased marginally (from 39.3 billion kilometres in 2004 to 40.4 billion kilometres in 2013) as a result of population growth. This trend is not unique to New Zealand – it has been observed in a number of developed countries.

There is some debate as to whether this trend is the result of economic factors or a more structural shift in attitudes towards personal transportation. The fact that this trend emerged before the onset of the global financial crisis gives cause to believe that social, behavioural and lifestyle factors (such as the proliferation of smart phones, social media, online shopping and video conferencing) may also be having an influence. A related trend is a reduction in the number of driver licences being issued. In particular, fewer young people are choosing to drive. This suggests that in some groups, the perceived merit of car ownership and use may be declining.”

(from http://www.transport.govt.nz/about/publications/briefingtoincomingminister/)

Save the Basin has already drawn attention in the media to New Zealand research showing that young people in urban centres are turning away from driving private cars. It’s great to see that the Ministry of Transport has picked up on this. The question now is: are the Government and NZTA willing and able to realise that the assumptions on which their transport thinking is based no longer apply?

Photo by Patrick Morgan
Photo by Patrick Morgan

Presentation draws together the many health benefits of reorienting transport planning

OraTaiao, the New Zealand Climate & Health Council, is playing an increasing role in drawing attention to the negative health implications of the Government’s obsession with funding motorways while depriving sustainable transport and active modes of financial support. Last week, Russell Tregonning of OraTaiao delivered an excellent presentation entitled Transport, Climate and Health: Wellington at the cross-roads that draws together:

  • the urgent need to reorient transport planning and spending to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from transport
  • the other public health and economic benefits that would flow from doing so – such as reductions in crashes, air pollution, and obesity and related ailments
  • the changing patterns of transport behaviour that are helping to change transport planners’ and Government’s transport thinking worldwide

We encourage you to download, read and share Russell’s presentation.