Budget
The transport budget allocation was not surprising and, in some ways, it was a win to see additional funding in transport.
The continued investments in the Cambridge to Piarere Expressway, state highway resilience, and additional strategic fuel reserves are all things we need and a good balance of some short and longer-term risk areas. These activities will also support economic growth and jobs at a time of significant economic uncertainty.
I also agree with the Government keeping its options open on when to increase fuel excise and road user charges.
We’ve always said we think rail has an important part to play in our supply chain so in principle, we’re not opposed to that funding but it’s unquestionable that previous investment in rail freight has delivered mixed results. We’ll be seeking reassurance that this actually delivers a good return on investment.
What matters to New Zealanders
Among other things, the Ipsos New Zealand Issues Monitor tracks what New Zealanders are most concerned about. The May update presented some interesting shifts from earlier reports.
In the October 2025 report, “Petrol/fuel prices” ranked 14th. In February of this year, it ranked 9th, and now in May, 4th.
In the October 2025 report, “Transport/public transport/infrastructure” ranked 13th, then in February it ranked 16th, and in May it is 12th.
The ranking and subject of the three most important issues for all three reports hasn’t changed. They are inflation/cost of living, healthcare/hospitals, and the economy, with the first being notably greater than anything else.
It occurs to me that the interconnectedness between transport and infrastructure, fuel and the cost of living may not have yet been fully appreciated, which is an opportunity to ponder on for our advocacy going forward.
A quick local win
Brooklyn Road in Wellington is about as different from the Cambridge to Piarere RONS as you could get, but it’s a good example of the scale and scope of our work.
We had a good win recently for Wellingtonians when we heard Brooklyn Road was going to be re-sealed with chipseal. We questioned how chipseal could be better than asphalt over the road’s life cycle. That road is the main route for waste collection trucks to the refuse station.
In a very short time, Wellington City Council changed its mind, and Brooklyn Road will now be resealed with asphalt.
Better safe than sorry
The next Wellington issue we’re dealing with comes with the recent opening of the Ngauranga to Petone pathway for cycle and pedestrians.
In terms of architectural design and landscape beautification, the new pathway is stunning and those involved should be congratulated.
It’s great to see the pathway being used, particularly when you consider its construction cost per kilometre is greater than that of Transmission Gully. That aside, two cycle paths now merge pretty much in the same vicinity where stock trucks and campervans turn into the Stock Effluent Disposal site. With the new pathway generating a lot more traffic and the dump site also appearing to be a handy parking spot for people fishing and other path users, we fear it’s only a matter of time before a vulnerable road user is struck by a vehicle accessing the site.
This safety risk was identified earlier and, in my view, priority should’ve been given to designing a safe transport route rather than a beautiful one. Hopefully we’ll be able to help resolve this quickly with the council before someone gets hurt.
Help us acknowledge and celebrate success
Our industry is pretty incredible. Despite the tough times there’s still a lot of good stuff happening across a range of areas. I’ve seen and heard about new entrants; I’ve seen some exciting career progression by individuals and I’ve seen continued leadership in the vehicle technology race.
Our annual Conference and Industry Awards Dinner is being attended by a number of transport operators, suppliers and political dignitaries. It’s a great opportunity to showcase excellence in our industry. If you haven’t already, please consider nominating someone. Details on the Awards are here and the deadline for nominations is 11:59pm, Sunday 31 May.
