The state of New Zealand’s roads

The quality of New Zealand’s roads and the infrastructure we drive over have been top of mind for many frustrated drivers of both small and commercial vehicles. However, there may be smoother roads ahead thanks to a $400 million funding boost.

There has been a noticeable increase in potholing and surface issues on our roads nationwide and the issue does not appear to be funding related, Bus and Coach Association (BCA) Chief Executive Ben McFadgen says.

“Especially given the fact that NZTA [Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency] had an extra $500 million injected into their coffers for maintenance.

Recent severe weather events have closed roads around the country, affecting the ability to move freight, says Ia Ara Aotearoa Transporting New Zealand Chief Executive Nick Leggett. He adds that climate change is certain to have an adverse impact on our infrastructure, and “we need to be buckling up for more of them”.

“When you have infrastructure that is just not in a condition to cope with severe weather because less money has been spent, and materials probably are not up to the standard that we expect, then there just isn’t the resilience to cope with more frequent and more severe extreme weather.

“There is a little bit of good news, however. Waka Kotahi has taken our industry issues seriously; the agency asked for and got $400 million extra for roading maintenance in this year’s budget. Unfortunately, when you have had such a maintenance mountain for so long and when you also have a shortage of people to do the work, your capacity is reduced. It takes a long time to dig yourself out of that hole.”

Funding for land transport activities, including road maintenance, is allocated through the three-yearly National Land Transport Programme (NLTP). The amount of funding available for each activity class in the programme is established by government through the Government Policy Statement (GPS) on Land Transport. In developing the NLTP, Waka Kotahi must give effect to the GPS. and for the maintenance of local roads, Wako Kotahi Senior Media Manager Andy Knackstedt explains.

“Through the current 2021-24 Programme, $2.8 billion is being invested to maintain and operate the country’s 11,000km of state highways, and a further $4.2 billion to maintain and operate local roads. Waka Kotahi is responsible for programming maintenance work for state highways, with local authorities and Auckland Transport responsible for local roads.

“The $2.8 billion for state highway maintenance in the current Programme includes an additional $400 million over the initial budget allocation, which is specifically targeted at pavement and surfacing renewals.

Another reason why we have seen big delays in road repairs is that we are not in the resealing season, which ended in May. Summer is the best time to reseal roads, as warm temperatures and dry air help the new seal stick to the existing road surface.

If work is undertaken in winter, the cold ground would mean the new surface would harden and crack, plus the stones in the chip seal could pop out if exposed to cold weather within four weeks of application.

“Our first construction season in this Programme period, 2021 to 2022, saw approximately 2,200 lane kilometres of road resurfaced or rebuilt, which is approximately 10 per cent of the state highway network. The upcoming season, 2022 to 2023, is targeting 2,450 lane kilometres, which will be the largest ever single-season maintenance work programme on the state highway network,” says Mr Knackstedt.

There have also been changes to health and safety protocols around maintenance closures, which is why it is more common to see full detours rather than just reduced speeds around repairs. There are also more lanes closed with hard barriers rather than loose cones, which has added extra time and cost to the infrastructure process.

The climate and geography of New Zealand mean that most parts of our transport system are vulnerable to the impacts of natural hazards, such as severe weather and seismic activity. We can’t stop these events from occurring, but it is important to prepare

BY JAMES PAUL

for them and build resilience in the transport system.

Mr Knackstedt says climate change is seriously impacting the condition of the roading network, and believes that while the overall annual rainfall total has not increased by much, the intensity has, resulting in much higher numbers of intense rainfall events affecting both local roads and state highways.

“In addition to standard emergency works, there are much higher numbers of intense rainfall events. Long periods of drought followed by intense rainfall can have catastrophic effects, resulting in flooding, scouring and slips on state highways and on local roads.”

He adds that the cost of repairs and the required level of investment from the National Land Transport Fund to recover from these events is significant. Between 2018 and 2021, Waka Kotahi recorded seven events that have resulted in costs between $15 million and $50 million, compared with two such events on that scale between 2013 and 2017.

“Due to the unexpected nature of these events, resources and materials can be challenging to procure, creating a strain on local resources,” says Mr Knackstedt.

“Estimating costs and developing robust solutions in a dynamic situation can be very challenging, sometimes requiring changes to construction methods and designs. These complexities can all add to timeframes and extend the recovery period.

“Waka Kotahi is addressing the impacts of climate change in our emergency works programme, including mounting disruptions and expenditure, by developing a Climate Change Adaptation Plan as part of our resilience programme.

“The Plan will outline the priority actions and approaches Waka Kotahi will take to enable the land transport system to prepare for, and respond to, the effects of climate change.

“The resilience programme at Waka Kotahi has been running for several years with the aim of continuously improving the resilience of the land transport system. Through the National Land Transport Programme, we are investing in identified risk to help reduce the impacts of emergency works events in the future.”