New licensing fees for commercial road transport operators will be introduced later this year, Land Transport NZ announced today.

The new fee structure will help raise industry standards by enabling Land Transport NZ to more effectively monitor operator performance and create a fairer system which benefits responsible operators.

The annual licensing fee for each vehicle operated under a Transport Service Licence (TSL) will increase from $24 to $55. A TSL is required by vehicles used in the operation of a goods service, passenger service, vehicle recovery (towing) service or a rental service.

The application fee for a new TSL will increase from $30 to $440, while the application fee to gain status as a new Approved Taxi Organisation (ATO) will increase from $30 to $3,678. These are one-off fees paid by those entering the transport service industry.

The annual licensing fee fully funds Land Transport NZ’s monitoring of transport service operators to ensure compliance with legislative requirements. The application fee for those entering the industry covers the cost of processing new TSL and ATO applications.

Land Transport NZ General Manager Regulatory Services Ian Gordon said the new fees were developed in consultation with industry, following the first major review of the transport service licence fee structure in more than 17 years.

“We’re committed to applying regulations fairly and firmly to protect people, and the additional revenue collected from these fees will allow us to do that more effectively. The new fees will allow Land Transport NZ to employ more regulatory services staff, spend more time working with existing operators to raise standards, and support new entrants to the industry. The extra resources will also strengthen our ability to remove those who are unwilling or unable to meet legal requirements.”

The new fees are expected to take effect from 1 October 2007, to be formalised through an amendment to the Transport Services Licensing Regulations. For more information on the new fees visit http://www.landtransport.govt.nz/commercial/law-changes-2007-fees-qas.html.

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