Agenda of Regional Transport Committee

Regional Transport Committee item: 5.1

1 August 2023

TITLE:	Regional Land Transport Plan 2021/2027 - National Funding Assistance Uptake Report
From:	Chris Powell, Transport Manager - Northland Transportation Alliance
Authorised by Group Manager/s:	Louisa Gritt, Group Manager - Community Resilience, on 18 July 2023

Whakarāpopototanga / Executive summary

This report covers the year end subsidy claims submitted to Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency for the second financial year of the 2021-2024 three-year funding period and details the funding assistance uptake by each approved authority for the financial period 1 July 2022 to 30 June 2023.

Ngā mahi tūtohutia / Recommendation

That the report ‘Regional Land Transport Plan 2021/2027 - National Funding Assistance Uptake Report’ by Chris Powell, Transport Manager - Northland Transportation Alliance and dated 11 July 2023, be received.

Background/Tuhinga

Reports relating to the progress made on the uptake of funding assistance requested through the Northland Regional Land Transport Plan 2021-2027 (RLTP) and approved in the National Land Transport Programme 2021-2024 (NLTP) for the Far North District Council, Whangarei District Council, Kaipara District Council, and the Northland Regional Council are tabled at each Regional Transport Committee (RTC) meeting.

These reports and attached spreadsheets provide the RTC with information relating to how each Activity Class/Programme: -

· Is tracking regarding the uptake of the funding assistance approved through the National Land Transport Plan 2021-2024 for the relevant financial year.

· supports the five Regional Strategic Objectives reflected in the Regional Land Transport Plan 2021-2024.

· supports the seven Regional Priorities included in the Regional Land Transport Plan 2021-2024.

It also details: -

· The probability of all the approved funding assistance being fully uplifted in the relevant financial year, and

· The reasons for any variations and action to be taken.

The Activities/Programmes reflected in the Attachments do not include non-subsidised projects or work categories.

The base information contained in the attachments is sourced directly from the Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency’s ‘2021-2024 National Land Transport Programme for Northland’ and from the individual June 2023 year end subsidy claims submitted by each of the approved authorities.

It is important to note at this time that due to Cyclone Gabrielle and the extended rain periods experienced, the resultant damages resulted in the road controlling authorities having to divert from business as usual and concentrate on the recovery process. This resulted in several planned projects and work not being undertaken. This will reflect against a number of the cost centres in the attached spreadsheets.

Waka Kotahi have advised that unspent subsidies can and will be rolled over into the 2023/2024 financial year to assist with this.

Any questions regarding the information reflected in the Attached can be directed to the relevant approved Road Controlling Authority.

Attachments/Ngā tapirihanga

Nil

Regional Transport Committee item: 6.1

1 August 2023

TITLE:	Northland Road Safety - Road to Zero update
From:	Chris Powell, Transport Manager - Northland Transportation Alliance
Authorised by Group Manager/s:	Louisa Gritt, Group Manager - Community Resilience, on 20 July 2023

Whakarāpopototanga / Executive summary

This report updates the Regional Transport Committee on the progress of Northland’s Road to Zero Program for the local roads of Northland.

The following persons will speak to this paper: -

· Nick Marshall – Road Safety and Traffic Engineering Lead – Northland Transportation Alliance.

· Nicole Cauty – Project Manager – Road Safety Promotions – Northland Transportation Alliance.

· Anne-Marie Fitchett – Road Policing Manager Northland – New Zealand Police.

Ngā mahi tūtohutia / Recommendation

That the report ‘Northland Road Safety - Road to Zero update’ by Chris Powell, Transport Manager - Northland Transportation Alliance and dated 20 July 2023, be received.

Background/Tuhinga

Northland Transportation Alliance in conjunction with Waka Kotahi have developed a comprehensive multifaceted program of capital improvements and road safety promotion activities to meet the expectations of the Governments 10-year road safety strategy a Road to Zero. Road to Zero has a targeted goal of reducing Death and Serious Injuries from road trauma by 40% by 2030.

This report focuses on three key responses to the Road to Zero goal.

1. Infrastructure Improvements – improvements to roads and roadsides

2. Speed Management – speed limit reviews and supporting infrastructure.

3. Road User Choice – Encourage safer choices and safer behaviors on our roads.

Presentation: Attachment 1:

Infrastructure Improvements

Far North Program
Project Type	Project	Phase
High Risk Rural Roads	Kaitaia to Ahipara	Procurement
High Risk Rural Roads	Mangamuka detour	Construction
Intersections	Dominion / Bank	Construction
Intersections	Allen Bell / Parkdale	Construction
Schools	7 School sites	Design & Construction

Kaipara Program
Project Type	Project	Phase
High Risk Rural Roads	Pouto Road	Stage 2 Complete Stage 3 Design
Traffic Calming	Logan Street	Procurement
Traffic Calming	Gordon Street	Deferred

Whangarei Program
Project Type	Project	Phase
High Risk Rural Roads	Whangarei Heads	Construction
	Ngunguru Road - Murphy’s Bend	Complete
	Ngunguru Road Route	Design
	Bream Bay Coastal Route (Cove Road)	Complete
	Bream Bay Coastal Rout (Nova Scotia Drive)	Design
Intersections	Ngunguru / Maruata	Design
Schools	Bream Bay College	Complete
	Kamo Intermediate	Complete
	Parua Bay Village	Design
Safe Crossings	Ngunguru Village	Complete
	Waipu Cove	Design / Consultation
	Dave Culham Drive	Procurement
	Parua Bay Tavern	Scoping
	Waipu Village	Design
	Riverside Drive (Skate Park)	Scoping
Traffic Calming	The Avenues	Complete
	Raurimu Avenue	Construction
	Murdoch Crescent	Procurement
	Tauroa Street	Procurement
	Clark Road	Design
	Corks / Station corridor	Design

Speed Management

Northland Transportation Alliance is leading a rolling review of speed limits on Northlands local roads (excludes State Highways) as part of the implementation of the Road to National Road Safety Strategy.

The speed limit reviews are being undertaken on a road catchment area basis, with the highest benefit catchments prioritised. High benefit catchments are those areas where better speed management will lead to significantly improved road safety outcomes through a reduction in serious injury and fatal crashes. Progress in each District is set out below.

Far North District

· Okaihau-Kaeo-Waimate Review Area (176km of roads) was fully implemented in early 2021.

· Kaitaia-Awaroa, Kohukohu-Broadwood, and Te Oneroa-a-Tohe Ninety Mile Beach area (500km of roads, excluding Te Oneroa-a-Tohe Ninety Mile Beach) was fully implemented in early July 2023.

· Moerewa Urban area (10 km of roads) has been fully implemented.

· Consultation and hearings are complete for the Bay of Islands and Kerikeri area (321 km of roads). Deliberations will be held with the new Transportation Committee in September. Planned implementation is fourth quarter of 2023 and the first quarter of 2024 with an emphasis on early implementation for schools.

· A total of 990 kilometres is planned to be treated in the Far North by June 2024, including reaching our target of 40% of school frontage treated.

Kaipara District

· Mangawhai – Kaiwaka and Kaiwaka West, incorporating Oruawhango Road and Oneriri Road (214km of roads) was fully implemented in June 2022.

· Consultation and Hearings are completed for the Pouto Peninsula and the West Coast area (west of SH14), excluding the Dargaville urban area) which comprises 343 kilometres. Deliberations are planned for August 2023, with implementation in early 2024 if approved.

· A total of 557 kilometres is planned for treatment in the Kaipara District by June 2024, including reaching our target of 40% of school frontages treated to at least 40 kilometres per hour.

Whangarei District

· Vinegar Hill, One Tree Point / Ruakaka and Waipu urban area (117km of roads) was fully implemented in 2021.

· Waipu South located to the east of SH1 and south of Waipu (52km of roads) was fully implemented in November 2022.

· Consultation, hearing and deliberations are complete for the Whangarei Heads area (199 km of roads), and the Interim Speed Management Plan approved. Work has begun on detailed design with physical works planned for fourth quarter 2023.

· A total of 368 kilometres of roadway will be treated in the Whangarei District by June 2024, including reaching our target of 40% of school frontage treated to at least 40 kilometres per hour.

Northland Summary 2021-24

During this three-year LTP period (2021-24) we plan to have implemented new safer speeds on 1915 kilometres of local road network, which represents 29% of the total network.

Treating 29% of our network is predicted to reduce the number of Death and Serious Injury crashes over a 10-year period by 67.

Regional Speed Management Plan 2024-27+

Under the Setting of Speed Limit Rules, 2022 all Road Controlling Authorities are required to develop and consult on a Regional Speed Management Plan. The Regional Plan for Northland will comprise a review of all local roads in Northland, including a truth check of those roads where new speeds have been implemented to ensure that a whole of network approach is developed as part of the Regional Plan. This work will also include physical implementation of safer speeds around schools for all schools on the road network by 2027. An overview of the development process for the Regional Plan is shown here:

· Workshop proposed plan, objectives and policies with elected members of each Territorial Authority.

· Develop and implement a Māori engagement strategy.

· Collate the proposed speed limits, implementation programme and associated infrastructure as part of a whole of network approach into a draft RSMP.

· Consultation of the Draft RSMP by the Regional Transport Committee during the same timeframe as the RLTP consultation.

· Based on consultation finalise the RSMP and present to Regional Transport Committee for approval.

· The Regional Transport Committee submits the RSMP to Waka Kotahi for certification.

· Once certified, the implementation of the RSMP will begin in the next LTP period. Significant changes to timing of work or changes to specific speed limits will require re-certification.

Road User Choice

Road Trauma Update

Calendar Year 2023 - 1 January – 31 December, Provisional Road Fatalities Statistics

Fatalities Jan – Dec 2023	Far North	Whangārei	Kaipara	Northland	National
Local roads	3	3	0	6	56
State highways	3	4	2	9	74
TOTAL	6	7	2	15	130

The calendar year progress of 2023 at this early stage is continuing last year’s trend. It is an early upward trend for Northland with 23 deaths as opposed to 18 in 2022. Nationally the figures for years 2022 and 2023 are 191 & 182 deaths respectively. ‘RIDS’ – Restraints, Impairment, Distractions, Speed continued to be leading factors in the northland crashes.

Breakdown of the 2023 Deaths year to date: 23 Deaths

Monthly contributions:

· January – 5

· February – 2

· March – 3

· April – 1

· May – 6

· June – 6

· July – 0

Role:

· Driver – 16

· Passenger – 4

· Motorcyclist – 2

· Cyclist – 0

· Pedestrian – 1

Age Group:

· 0-14yrs – 0

· 15-19yrs – 2

· 20-24yrs – 1

· 25-39yrs – 9

· 40-59yrs – 4

· Over 60yrs – 7

Gender:

· Male – 19

· Female – 4

Road Type & Posted Speed Corridors: (High speed and state highway areas dominating)

Local Road:

· 100kph – 6

· 80kph – 1

· 70kph – 0

· 50kph – 1

· Total 8

State Highway:

· 100kph – 11

· 80kph – 1

· 70kph – 1

· 50kph – 2

· Total 15

Motorcycle Safety - Ride Forever (R4E) Rider Training Update -

1. R4E – 2019/2020 – 240 riders completed courses for that financial year.

2. R4E – 2020/2021 – 186 riders completed courses for that financial year.

3. R4E – 2021/2022 – 182 riders completed courses for that financial year.

4. R4E – 2022/2023 – 180 riders have completed courses for that financial year just complete.

· Bronze Course – 76

· Silver Course – 51

· Gold Course – 53

Road to Zero:

The current New Zealand strategy has set a target of reducing New Zealand’s road trauma (serious and fatal injuries) by 40% by 2030. The goal has been established using the figures from 2018. This is how we are tracking so far, noting the 2023 numbers are what has been reported year to date:

A graph of numbers and lines

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The road to zero figures for future years are what Northland would expect to see when applying a steady reduction to achieve the 40% reduction by 2030.

Attachments/Ngā tapirihanga

Attachment 1: NZ Police Presentation for RTC 1 August 2023 ⇩

Regional Transport Committee item: 6.2

1 August 2023

TITLE:	Committee Member Priorities and Updates
From:	Calvin Thomas, Northland Transport Alliance Manager
Authorised by Group Manager/s:	Louisa Gritt, Group Manager - Community Resilience, on 19 July 2023

Whakarāpopototanga / Executive summary

The purpose of this agenda item is to provide each member of the Northland Regional Transport Committee the opportunity to communicate the key strategic transportation issues identified by their respective Council/Organisation via either a written report or verbal update.

Ngā mahi tūtohutia / Recommendation

That the report ‘Committee Member Priorities and Updates’ by Calvin Thomas, Northland Transport Alliance Manager and dated 17 July 2023, be received.

Background/Tuhinga

Under the Northland Regional Transport Committee Terms of Reference, the functions of the Committee are defined as:

1. To prepare for approval by the Northland Regional Council:

a. A Regional Land Transport Plan for the Northland region, or any variations to the plan or any reports on the plan prepared under the Act;

b. A Regional Public Transport Plan, or any variations to the plan prepared under the Act; and

c. To provide the regional council with any advice and assistance the regional council may request in relation to its transport responsibilities.

2. To adopt a policy that determines significance in respect of variations made to the Regional Land Transport Plan

3. To regularly monitor and review progress towards the adoption and implementation of the Regional Land Transport Plan.

4. To approve procedures and requirements for implementing the council’s public passenger transport service registration functions under the Act.

5. To advise the council on any significant legislative changes, programmes, plans or reports relating to the region’s land transport system.

6. To liaise with Ministry of Transport, New Zealand Transport Agency, the Commissioner of Police, district councils, Northland’s Road Safety Forum and other interests on land transport matters and advise the council on appropriate new initiatives.

7. To regularly monitor and review progress towards the performance targets and outcomes relative to land transport contained in the current Long-Term Plan and Annual Plan. Members are tasked to regularly monitor and review progress towards the performance targets and outcomes related to land transport contained in the current Council Long-Term Plan and Annual Plan.

The objective of these regular member updates is to provide staff with clear understanding of the Regional Transport Committee’s key strategic issues and priorities to inform works associated with developing the 2024/2027 RLTP (and individual Council LTP’s where applicable)

At the time of finalising this Agenda item no written Member reports had been received by staff for inclusion, with the Chair requesting for District Council representatives to provide Member updates verbally at meeting.

A specific request for progress of repairs at the Motuti slip site (FNDC), along with a request for clarification of the process of how Committee members can request for specific work to be undertaken on particular roads, with verbal updates on these two items to be provided by staff at the meeting.

Attachments/Ngā tapirihanga

Nil

Regional Transport Committee item: 7.1

1 August 2023

TITLE:	Draft Government Policy Statement on Land Transport 2024 - Risk Assessment Report.
From:	Chris Powell, Transport Manager - Northland Transportation Alliance
Authorised by Group Manager/s:	Louisa Gritt, Group Manager - Community Resilience, on 19 July 2023

Executive summary/Whakarāpopototanga

This report highlights the risk to the review of the Regional Land Transport Plan 2021/2027 as a result of the delay of the release of the Draft Land Transport Government Policy on Land Transport 2024. The paper proposes that RTC members continue with the review process despite this delay including the addition of up to two workshops dedicated to the review to ensure that it is completed on time.

Recommendation(s)

1. That the report ‘Draft Government Policy Statement on Land Transport 2024 - Risk Assessment Report.’ by Chris Powell, Transport Manager - Northland Transportation Alliance and dated 11 July 2023, be received.

2. That the Regional Transport Committee agree to attend additional workshops to go through the amended “Strategic Front End” in detail and either approve, amend or reject the recommended changes. It is proposed that these workshops be held on: -

i. Tuesday 12 September 2023 from 10.00am to 11.30am

ii. Tuesday 7 November 2023 October 2023 from 10.00am to 11.30am.

3. That the Regional Transport Committee support the RTC Chair writing to each of the three Northland District Councils on behalf of the committee, confirming that a major focus of the next RLTP must be re-establishing a fit for purpose road network and, notwithstanding the finalised GPS priorities, requesting for appropriate District Council budgets be allocated within respective Council Long Term Plans to address the identified resilience and network condition issues.

Options

No.

Option

Advantages

Disadvantages

That the Regional Transport Committee does not progress the review of the RLTP 2021/2027 prior to the release of the draft GPS.

None

The Regional Transport Committee loses the opportunity to submit on the GPS.

The review of the RLTP may not be completed in time and in turn could jeopardise receipt of national funding assistance

That the Regional Transport Committee adopt the recommendations made in this paper.

The Regional Transport Committee allow for an expediated process for the Completion of the Regional Land Transport Plan 2021/2027 – Three Year Review and submit on the Draft Government Policy Statement on Land Transport 2024.

Additional workshop time may be required.

The staff’s recommended option is Option 2

Considerations

1. Climate Impact

Unknown at this time.

The Regional Land Transport Plan provides policy direction and serves as a programme business case for land transport within Northland. Climate change, in particular the resilience of Northlands transport network in the face of climate change is a matter addressed in the RLTP. The nature and extent to which the RLTP will addresses climate change is, to a large degree, directed by the Government Policy Statement on Land Transport, which has not yet been released by the Minister of Transport.

2. Environmental Impact

Unknown at this time.

Direction will be provided in the Draft Government Policy Statement on Land Transport 2024 when released.

3. Community views

Community views will be sought through consultation on the Draft Regional Land Transport Plan 2021-2027 Three Year Review.

4. Māori impact statement

Unknown at this time.

Direct will be provided in the Draft Government Policy Statement on Land Transport 2024 when released.

5. Financial implications

Unknown at this time.

If the delay in the release of the Draft Government Policy Statement on Land Transport 2024 is delayed for too long, this could potentially adversely impact the ability of the relevant road controlling authorities to progress their roading plans and Long Term Plans.

6. Implementation issues

Unknown at this time.

The full impact will depend on the release date of the Draft Government Policy Statement on Land Transport 2024.

At this time, there is concern that, unless additional time is provided, the continued delays being experienced could potentially lead to the Draft Regional Land Transport Plan 2021-2027 Three Year Review having to be rushed in order to meet an increasing tight deadline.

7. Significance and engagement

Unknown at this time.

The time frame provided for the compilation, consultation, approval and release of the Draft Regional Land Transport Plan 2021-2027 Three Year Review is uncertain whilst the RTC awaits the release of Draft Government Policy Statement on Land Transport 2024.

The delay of the Draft Government Policy Statement on Land Transport 2024 may impact the time available to engage with the community.

8. Policy, risk management and legislative compliance

The compilation, consultation, approval and implementation of the Draft Government Policy Statement on Land Transport 2024 lies in the hands of the Minister of Transport and the Ministry of Transport.

Policy, risk management and legislative compliance is directed through the Land Transport Management Act 2003. These will need to be managed within the tight timeframes.

Background/Tuhinga

Background Information.

To date reports providing detail on the required process to be followed for the compilation of the Regional Land Transport Plan 2021/2027 Three Year Review (RLTP) which includes overage of the Draft Government Policy Statement for Land Transport 2024 (Draft GPS) tabled at the February 2023 and April 2023 Regional Transport Committee (RTC) meetings.

The Government Policy Statement on Land Transport

A GPS sets out how money from the National Land Transport Fund (NLTF) is allocated towards achieving the Government’s transport priorities.

The GPS sets out ranges for funding for activities classes such as public transport, state highway improvements, local and regional roads and road safety.

The relevant GPS will guide what must be included in a regional land transport plan, if funding assistance is required.

Each GPS sets out the priorities for the following 10-year period and is reviewed and updated every 3 years.

Timing Process

The Draft GPS was originally scheduled for release for consultation in March 2023 with the final released in November 2023 and taking effect on 1 July 2024.

These times allowed for regional transport committee’s and Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency (Waka Kotahi) to consider if they wanted to rewrite or review their 2021/2027 regional land transport plans. It would also provide sufficient time for compilation, consultation, approval and release of the amended plans by 30 April 2024, being the cut-off date to have the documents downloaded into Waka Kotahi’s Transport Investment Online (TIO) for consideration for funding assistance in the National Land Transport Programme.

The Draft GPS was not released in March 2023.

Due to the impact of Cyclone Gabrielle the release was again delayed to the end of May 2023. This date again moved to mid/late June 2023.

At the time of compiling this report, no formal date on the release of the Draft GPS for consultation had been given.

Potential Implications of Delay in Release of Draft GPS

It is important to reiterate the importance of the GPS in the process, as a RLTP must be consistent with the relevant GPS and that Waka Kotahi must give effect to it with regards to land transport planning and funding. Therefore, any delay in the release of a GPS will hinder the progress of the RLTP process.

In order to fully comply with all the criteria for the compilation, consultation, approval and release of a RLTP, a time period of approximately 18 months must be provided from the release of the relevant GPS.

Should, as is in the case of the Northland RLTP 2021/2027, the RTC approve a review of the document and not a complete rewrite, this time period can be reduced to approximately 12 months.

Should the original date for submission of the completed RLTP remain as 30 April 2024, this will effectively reduce the time period to 9 months from the date of this meeting.

This scenario has eventuated once in the past, with Waka Kotahi providing an additional 2 months for completion and submission.

Regional Transport Committee Submission on Draft Government Policy Statement.

It is recommended that the RTC make a submission on the Draft GPS following its release.

Draft Regional Land Transport Plan 2021/2027 – Three Year Review

Based on the above report, no further progress has been made on the compilation of the draft RLTP Three Year Review.

It is therefore recommended that the RTC consider and approve the following steps in order to expedite the process and try and ensure timelines are met.

Based on the RTC’s priorities of a Resilient, Sustainable, Secure and Safe regional land transport system, and on the early GPS signals released to date, staff amend the “Strategic Front End” section of the existing RLTP to better reflect these. It is proposed that this be undertaken in from 7 – 18 August 2023.

That a copy of the “Strategic Front End”, with staff’s recommended changes highlighted, be forwarded to the RTC members to include their recommended changes. These changes to be done through “Track Changes”. It is proposed that this be undertaken between 21 August 2023 and 1 September 2023.

A copy of the Draft “Strategic Front End” showing all recommended changes be sent to the RTC members and relevant staff for their information.

Should the Draft GPS be released in time, the “Strategic Front End” will reflect the updated governments priorities.

A workshop be held on 12 September 2023 where the RTC members and staff recommendations on amendments to “Strategic Front End” be discussed and the agreed amendments be made the draft RLTP at the workshop. Should an additional workshop be required to complete this exercise, this be held on 7 October 2023.

In the light of the compounding effects of multiple extreme weather events contributing to deteriorating road conditions in Northland, the members of the RTC support the RTC Chair compiling and sending a letter to each of the three Northland District Councils on behalf of the committee, confirming that a major focus of the next RLTP must be re-establishing a fit for purpose road network and, notwithstanding the finalised GPS priorities, requesting for appropriate District Council budgets be allocated within respective Council Long Term Plans to address the identified resilience and network condition issues.

Attachments/Ngā tapirihanga

Nil

FNDC Councillor Steve McNally	WDC Councillor Simon Reid	KDC Councillor Ash Nayyar
Waka Kotahi Director Regional Relationships Steve Mutton	Deputy Chairperson John Blackwell

TITLE:	Confirmation of Minutes - 13 June 2023
From:	Erica Wade, Personal Assistant - General Manager Community Resilience
Authorised by Group Manager/s:	Louisa Gritt, Group Manager - Community Resilience, on 21 July 2023

TITLE:	Receipt of Action Sheet
From:	Erica Wade, Personal Assistant - General Manager Community Resilience
Authorised by Group Manager/s:	Louisa Gritt, Group Manager - Community Resilience, on 21 July 2023