Infrastructure New Zealand has welcomed the announcement that the government and Auckland Council will investigate road pricing
However, CEO Stephen Selwood is concerned that the Terms of Reference over-emphasise demand management and do not recognise the constraints current funding is placing on both near and longer-term investment.
“Mobility is central to social and economic well-being,” he observes. “Imposing prices at a level which makes travel prohibitive should not be the goal.
“We need to find an appropriate balance between raising the revenue necessary for investment whilst also managing demand more effectively across the transport system.
“Prices should be set at a level that encourages people to think about travelling at a different time, in a different way or in another mode rather than at a level which is not affordable and where mobility is suppressed.”
Organisations including business and community groups, the AA and public transport associations are all integral to winning support for change, Selwood argues.
“We strongly recommend that the governing parties undertake a very proactive engagement process to ensure support.
“While a fair and robust pricing system is developed for New Zealand over the medium term, a near-term solution to Auckland’s funding challenge must be identified.
“The easiest way to implement pricing in the short term would be tolls on the motorway.
“Using existing technology and priced dynamically, motorway tolls would balance demand and provide a stepping stone to full road pricing,” Selwood maintains.
