Hon John Key
Prime Minister

16 March 2009
Media Release        

Transport funding realigned and increased

Prime Minister John Key and Transport Minister Steven Joyce are today outlining government plans for simpler, more efficient funding of New Zealand’s transport system.

The biggest effect of the changes will be almost $1 billion in additional investment in state highway construction over the next three years.

Mr Key says the package is about better matching transport funding to the realities of how New Zealanders get around each day, and how our goods are transported.
 

Measures include:

·         replacing regional fuel taxes with smaller increases in national fuel excise and road user charges, which feed into the National Land Transport Fund

·         confirming the government's commitment to Auckland rail electrification

·         committing an additional $258 million of the government's capital allocation to land transport over the next two years

·         amending the Government Policy Statement on Land Transport Funding to make more money available for state highway construction

Mr Key says these measures will, over three years, free up close to one billion additional dollars for building new and improved state highways, taking the total amount available for such work to around $3 billion over three years.

”An additional billion dollars of construction of new and improved state highways will be an important stimulant to the economy as more jobs are created in the roading and construction sectors,” Mr Key says.

“The increased activity will help New Zealand get through the recession, but just as importantly, improving the state highway network will also put the country in a better position to grow more quickly when the world economy picks up again.”

"The cancelling of regional fuel taxes will take some pressure off the pockets of Auckland drivers, while at the same time the government remains committed to Auckland rail electrification," Mr Key says.

The new funding announced today is in addition to that announced in the February infrastructure package.

ENDS 

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