Nearly half of proposed $10.8b transport plan relies on Govt funding

Wednesday, 29 November 2023

Better transport is needed in Christchurch, local leaders say.

Spending on transport in Canterbury could double over the next decade to $10.8 billion to help cut emissions, increase maintenance, improve safety and manage risks from natural hazards.

But critical projects could be in jeopardy if the Government does not put its hand in its pocket for billions of dollars of funding.

Canterbury’s transport leaders say there is an “immediate risk to funding” for a second Ashburton bridge, a mooted mass rapid transit system for greater Christchurch, and the Woodend bypass in North Canterbury, which are regarded as top priorities for the region.

Peter Scott, chairperson of Environment Canterbury (ECan), said getting funding was “vitally important” to the projects, but regional leaders had “softened up to the fact the national land transport fund doesn’t have a lot of money in it”.

The fund, which comes from road user charges and fuel taxes, is one of the main forms of supporting transport projects across the country, alongside direct Crown and council funding.

The planned $10.8b investment was unveiled this week by the Canterbury Regional Transport Committee - made up of representatives from Canterbury’s city and district councils, ECan and Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency - when it approved a draft regional land transport plan, which will go out for public consultation early next year.

At least 40% of the transport investment proposed for Canterbury over the next 10 years, starting from July, is for road maintenance, operations and renewals work.

The multibillion-dollar funding boost was proposed to help tackle maintenance work that has been deferred and to support a transport system that must cope with ever-increasing use in the future, said Scott, who also chairs the committee.

But almost half the money would need to come from Government coffers.

“To deliver this plan we will need central government to come to the party to fund the gap we need, which will likely be around $4.6b,” Scott said.

Ashburton locals have long wanted a second bridge over the Ashburton River, as the current SH1 bridge is a bottleneck for traffic and requires a massive detour if closed.

Much would depend on whether the new Government changes its policy statement for land transport, he said, which currently has provision for a second Ashburton bridge and the Woodend bypass.

A second Ashburton bridge could cost the district council and Waka Kotahi $130 million, the draft transport plan suggested, a figure Scott said was “well beyond a council” so would require additional funding.

And the plan warned: “While the draft [Government policy statement on land transport] 2024 signals for the Ashburton bridge to be supported with 100% government funding, there is a significant risk that these projects will remain unfunded.”

Bringing mass rapid transit to Christchurch “is likely to cost several billion dollars and will need completely different funding mechanisms developed”, the report said, suggesting “land value capture tax or a new council controlled organisation” as ways to fund it.

“It is likely the region faces a 10-year funding gap of $4.6b…,” the report said. “This will most likely affect both local and regionally significant improvements.

Locals stand on State Highway 1 in Woodend, stopping traffic in both directions, as they rally for a bypass that would take the highway around the town. (File photo)

“Significant conversations around transport funding and financing may need to occur to reduce this risk.”

In July, National promised to build a bypass around Woodend in North Canterbury if it won the election, with Waimakariri MP Matt Doocey - who had long campaigned for the bypass and is now in Cabinet - promising the party would deliver it in its first term of government.

National promised $270m to build the bypass and to extend the Christchurch Northern Corridor through to Pegasus, funded through the national land transport fund and additional Crown capital.

Doocey could not be reached on Tuesday for comment.

Residents in Ashburton have also clamoured for a second bridge for years, hastened when widespread flooding in 2021 saw the South Island severed following the closure of the main bridge on State Highway 1.

National’s transport plan from earlier this year also noted two options for the Ashburton River bridge - replacing the existing bridge on SH1 or building a second bridge on Chalmers Ave.

The plan said National would “instruct NZTA to engage with the Ashburton community and council to determine the best option and ensure construction is under way within three years”.

Scott said much would depend on the new Government’s policy on road projects, but noted it had “already made it pretty clear that road maintenance is a priority”.

“There’s a will, it’s just a matter of cash - where do you get the money to get those things.”