NZTD News

Road freight association Transporting New Zealand says it is disappointed with Tasman District Council’s decision to proceed with widespread speed limit reductions across the district, saying that they simply don’t stack up. 

“On many of the roads where speed reductions have been approved, the mean operating speed is already well below the new limit, which makes the cost of implementing the changes and the return on investment highly questionable,” says Membership Manager Lindsay Calvi-Freeman. 

Example...

National road freight association Transporting New Zealand is endorsing plans to toll the new 10km motorway from SH1 Belfast to Pegasus Motorway and the new Woodend Bypass (B2P), which is planned to open by 2030.

Transporting New Zealand Chief Executive Dom Kalasih says that tolling revenue is essential to getting B2P and other Roads of National Significance delivered. The NZTA estimates that the route will earn $514 million in tolls over 35 years (or a positive net present value of $125m), helping cover the estimated ...

The Light Traffic Index (LTI) rose 1.0% in August and is 1.5% higher than a year ago. The more volatile Heavy Traffic Index (HTI) fell 1.3% in the month, but is still up 2.6% y/y.

Light traffic (motorbikes, cars and vans) is generally a good indicator of the state of demand, as opposed to production. It typically provides a six-month lead on momentum in the  economy, with variation reflecting discretionary spending on outings, movement of couriers and tradespeople etc. 

The trend in light traffic has be...

People using the State Highway 1 and State Highway 5 roundabout at Taupō will have noticed the Commercial Vehicle Safety Centre being built is well advanced.

The administration building has been shifted to site, and most of the below-ground work at the centre and on the roads leading to it is in place.

This includes a 50-metre long and 5.2m wide weighbridge. The in-road weigh-in-motion scales on the 5 roads heading towards the safety centre have been installed. Work on the camera technology and Variable Message S...

A missed opportunity on congestion charging 

Congestion charging legislation has passed another hurdle, with the cross-party Transport and Infrastructure Select Committee recommending only minor changes to the draft legislation.  

While it’s good to see a bipartisan approach being taken to major transport reform, it’s frustrating to see there will be no ability for schemes to exempt or discount freight vehicles from congestion charges. Nor will there be a requirement for freight conside...

This week I had the pleasure of attending the 29th Annual CBAFF Conference. Each year this is a must-attend event for me, bringing together key businesses from across the freight and supply chain sector including many NRC members. Shipping lines, ports, port transport operators, freight forwarders and customs brokers made up the majority of the room, along with sponsors and industry suppliers.

The beauty of this event is hearing first hand from people working up and down our export and import supply chain. It broadens ...