The ACT Party is proposing a transport infrastructure plan which would encourage more international investment and road tolls.
The policy, if ACT is part of the next government, would also set 30-year infrastructure plans between government and councils in each region of the country. The party polled 12% in the latest 1News Verian poll which is enough to secure about 15 seats in Parliament.
If the Government cannot afford every road people want, then investors and builders from around the world will be invited to build it and toll it for a specified period before it is handed back to Government.
ACT Party leader David Seymour says the current system of relying on the Government to maintain roads with taxes isn’t working.
“New Zealand’s roads are woeful because nearly all new roads rely on excise tax for funding and government debt for financing.
“This method of funding and financing means projects don’t get built if the Government can’t afford them, even though they might be needed and profitable.
“For example, Penlink is a very valuable asset to the people of Whangaparaoa, only just being built now. It could have been built and paid for thirty years ago if this policy existed back then.
“There are projects all over New Zealand that could be built sooner under this model,” Seymour says.
ACT says New Zealand’s existing toll roads have “exceeded expectations”. It points to The Northern Gateway, saying it has saved 1.23 million hours of travel time annually, and prior to the Tauranga Eastern Link there were 1.8 fatalities each year, compared to only 0.17 now.
ACT transport spokesperson Simon Court says the approach would bring New Zealand up to speed with other parts of the world.
“Sydney has been able to fund the completion of the 110km Sydney Orbital motorway network in twenty years through making use of public-private partnerships and the collection of toll revenue. In Ireland, 35% of the motorway network is now operated by public-private partnerships,” he says.
Between 2007 and 2017, more than NZ$300 billion was raised by funds globally to invest in infrastructure. Most of that capital was raised from insurance companies, pension funds, and sovereign wealth funds (including the New Zealand Super Fund) looking for long-term investments.
*Read the full policy document here.
