NZTD News

The Ashburton District Council and Rangitata MP James Meager have voiced strong opposition to the proposed speed limit increase on State Highway 1 through Rakaia, scheduled to go into effect on July 1. Under the NZ Transport Agency's (NZTA) decision to reverse blanket speed limit reductions across 38 sections of the state highway network, Rakaia’s limit would rise to 70 kph, just nine months after it was lowered to 50 kph.

Local leaders and residents worry that the speed increase jeopardizes safety in the busy communit...

New Zealand has a productivity problem. 

Not new news to anyone paying attention – this is a hot topic taking up a lot of column inches. 

And so it should be. 

Productivity for the whole economy averaged 1.4% p.a. between 1993 and 2013 but averaged only 0.2% p.a. over the last ten years (Treasury Paper May 2024). 

Put another way, our average productivity growth as an economy has plummeted by over 85% since the late 90s and early 2000s. 

We’ve gone from the third highest...

Speed and productivity

In my opinion the challenge in balancing competing demands could not have been better demonstrated by some work done at the International Monetary Fund (IMF) that came hard  on the heels of NZTA announcing consultation on the reversal of a number of speed limits. We understand that higher speeds bring challenges – you cover more distance when reacting and it takes longer to stop – but on the other hand the IMF analysis Where Are the World’s Fastest Roads? shows high-speed ro...

The Government’s commitment to get New Zealand’s roads back on track is delivering strong results, with around 98 per cent of potholes on state highways repaired within 24 hours of identification every month since targets were introduced, Transport Minister Chris Bishop says.

“Increasing productivity to help rebuild our economy is a key priority for our Government, and boosting pothole repairs and prevention will deliver a safe and efficient state highway network that will support this growth.

“One of the reasons...

The national road freight association has emphasised the importance of getting the Desert Road on State Highway 1 reopened as soon as possible, estimating that the closure is increasing freight costs for businesses and consumers by $100,000 per Day.

Transporting New Zealand Chief Executive Dom Kalasih says that while using block road closures allows NZTA to work more efficiently and safely, it is essential that these projects are well managed and keep to schedule.

 “Transporting New Zealand supported the blo...

The Eurocargo CNG has been crowned Sustainable Truck of the Year in the Distribution category due to its versatile and sustainable features. The Sustainable Truck of the Year awards, established in 2016 by the Italian trade magazine Vado e Torno, are awarded every year by an independent jury of industry journalists. The judges' choices take into account several factors, including sustainability, efficiency – from an emission-reduction perspective – as well as safety and driver comfort.

The jury commented on the award a...