Transport
The Government's transport plans are best described as hastening slowly. Elected on a platform of investing in public transport over highways, progress has been slow.
New Zealand faced an infrastructure deficit, particularly in public transport in Auckland, under the previous government. But the Labour-led Government's management of these new projects – particularly a promised light rail track to Auckland airport – has been found wanting. As detailed in a report by Stuff, the light rail process, led by minister Phil Twyford, has been beset with problems. First the minister fell out with the NZTA board inherited from the previous government, before appointing a whole new board. Then a last-minute bid, allegedly written on six PowerPoint slides, delayed the process by at least a year. At the same time, companies continued to bid for the NZTA rail line plan because they were told it would go ahead. That is now uncertain.
In the meantime, new road construction has been almost completely halted. The good news is a suite of repairs has been carried out on old, unloved, pothole-ridden local roads, but people looking for big new highways will be disappointed. Only the Manawatū Gorge replacement road has been greenlit.
The other side of the Transport portfolio has gone quite well: Twyford led the charge that uncovered that NZTA had neglected its role as transport regulator basically since it was formed in 2008. He orchestrated a massive shake-up which has put safety at the centre of the agency. Hopefully this will eventually reduce a road toll that has climbed shamefully high over the decades.
The Government's electric vehicle policy is also a bright light, promising heavy subsidies for EVs at no cost to the Government. The cost will instead be borne by those who purchase gas guzzlers, who may have something to say about the policy come election year.
