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Transport – Auckland congestion costing freight companies and customers millions

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Source: Ia Ara Aotearoa Transporting New Zealand

Transporting New Zealand Chief Executive Dom Kalasih says reducing congestion will have big benefits for freight efficiency, labour productivity, and emissions reduction.
“The report estimates that congestion in Auckland is costing our trucking members $130 million dollars per year – costs that end up impacting businesses and consumers across the country.
“Congestion reduces the number of trips that freight operators can complete, puts pressure on drivers who are only legally permitted to work a certain number of hours per day, and pressures freight companies to put more, less efficient vehicles on the road.”
Kalasih hopes there will broad cross-party support for sending the Government’s Time of Use Charging Bill to the select committee stage so it can consider improvements to the proposed legislation around freight and supply chain implications and exemptions.
“Getting congestion charging settings right is really challenging, and essential to getting enduring schemes put in place. Only a handful of cities operate comprehensive congestion charging schemes, and there have been many proposals that haven’t gone ahead due to concerns about cost implications and implementation.”
The latest New York time-of-use scheme is currently subject to legal action by the Trucking Association of New York, alleging that trucks are being disproportionately charged.
Kalasih says that Transporting New Zealand would like to see exemptions for freight and goods vehicles permitted by the legislation.
“Transporting New Zealand is concerned that the proposed legislation limits exemptions to emergency vehicles. This is bad news for bus users and road freight businesses who will have to pass costs on to consumers. Overseas schemes allow for wider exemptions that maximise savings for consumers and businesses.”
“Around half of all vehicles in the London charge area are exempt or qualify for a discount.”
Kalasih says ruling exemptions out entirely will prevent an evidence-based assessment being done where schemes operate on key freight routes or around freight or passenger hubs.
He says that Transporting New Zealand will be consulting with its membership on the legislation and making a major submission at any select committee considering the legislation.
About Ia Ara Aotearoa Transporting New Zealand
Ia Ara Aotearoa Transporting New Zealand is the peak national membership association representing the road freight transport industry. Our members operate urban, rural and inter- regional commercial freight transport services throughout the country.
Road is the dominant freight mode in New Zealand, transporting 92.8% of the freight task on a tonnage basis, and 75.1% on a tonne-km basis. The road freight transport industry employs over 34,000 people across more than 4700 businesses, with an annual turnover of $6 billion.

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Local News – Porirua celebrating 60 years as a city

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Source: Porirua City Council

Porirua city is turning 60 this year. We officially became a city on Saturday 2 October 1965 when our population hit 20,000, meeting the threshold (at the time) to become a city.
Today Porirua is home to more than 62,000 people and our city is growing and changing all the time.
It is a vibrant, diverse and welcoming place that is expected to grow to be home to more than 83,000 people by 2054, with an extra 10,000 homes needed.
Porirua Mayor Anita Baker says it’s a privilege to represent Porirua during this milestone year.
“While Porirua has a long and rich history, the period we have been a city is relatively short. Porirua became a borough in 1961 and a city four years later in 1965.
“I was born in Porirua and have lived all but 10 years here. For me, it’s where I live and work and is a place I am proud to call my home.
“A 60th celebration is usually called a diamond anniversary but for me Te Awarua-o-Porirua Harbour is the jewel in our crown. We haven’t always looked after it as well as we could or should, but the recent signing of Te Wai Ora o Parirua – the Porirua Harbour Accord shows a shared commitment to restoring the special taonga, which our city is centred around,” she says.
We will be marking our city’s actual birthday more formally nearer to the date. In the lead-up to our 60th birthday we’re spotlighting photos of notable events and places in Porirua’s recent history in a #60for60 campaign.
You can see the photos – which are published at least weekly – on our Facebook page or check out our dedicated web page, which gets updated as the photos get published: poriruacity.govt.nz/60for60

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Local News – Porirua Grand Traverse hits milestone

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Source: Porirua City Council

Michael Jacques is far too busy to think about popping champagne to mark a significant birthday for one of the region’s most popular multisport events.
When first run in 2006, Porirua Grand Traverse (PGT) had 240 participants testing themselves over, in and around Porirua’s hills, forests, coastlines and waterways. By 2020 the numbers had swelled to more than 1000.
Twenty years after its first iteration, PGT has gone from being a major challenge for serious multisporters to a true festival of fitness and a major community occasion, says current event manager Michael Jacques.
“Porirua Grand Traverse was founded by a group of people who thought the city’s awesome outdoor resources would be a perfect way to showcase the region and encourage locals to explore their back yard,” he says.
“With the fun run, the fun bike, multisport and duathlon races, mountain biking and mountain running, it caters for everyone and we’ve been lucky to enjoy plenty of local support – from Porirua City Council to local volunteer groups, sponsors and families.
“Our motto is ‘all ages, all abilities, all amazing’ – we want PGT to be one of the most inclusive endurance events in the country.”
Local Deb Lynch, a three-time PGT winner, recently took out the iconic Coast to Coast event in the South Island for the first time. Michael proudly says Olympic and world champions have also regularly taken part in Porirua’s big day.
Based at Whitireia Polytechnic, Michael says about 120 volunteers are needed to make PGT run smoothly on the day. Over 20 years, the amazing people who have helped make it so successful is a “staggering” number, with total volunteers numbering well over 1000, he says.
The trust that organises PGT might enjoy a celebratory drink post-race, but for now there’s too much to do before this year’s big day, Sunday 6 April, Michael says.
“Anniversary years are always popular and right now we’re tracking well ahead of previous events.”

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Animal Welfare – SAFE calls for halt on fish farm developments and urgent industry review

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Source: SAFE For Animals

SAFE is condemning the Government’s $11.72 million investment into salmon farming and demanding an urgent review into endemic animal welfare breaches.
SAFE Campaign Manager Emily Hall says the funding allocated via the Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) is a concerning misdirection of Government resources.
“Fish farms are quite simply under water factory farms, and this is an unregulated industry with no meaningful oversight of animal welfare.”
SAFE also warns that intensive fish farming poses serious environmental risks including declining water quality and antibiotic pollution, making this use of Government sustainability funding profoundly misguided.
“Rather than channelling money from the Sustainable Food and Fibres Futures fund
into the expansion of salmon farming, this funding should be directed to initiatives with genuine sustainability outcomes.”
SAFE says all fishes confined to cages on land or at sea are prevented from exhibiting their normal patterns of behaviour, directly breaching their legal rights under the Animal Welfare Act, adding the National Animal Welfare Advisory Committee (NAWAC) is well overdue in producing a code of welfare for farmed fishes.
“Codes of welfare are ratified guidelines which all animal-related industries are expected to abide by, however a code to ensure the fish farming industry operates in line with our Animal Welfare Act has not yet transpired” says Hall.
SAFE says this week’s funding announcement also highlights a significant conflict of interest, with MPI being responsible for both the growth of intensive farming industries and animal welfare compliance.
“The fishes bred in these underwater cages subject to terrible conditions, including overcrowding, poor water quality, skeletal deformities, skin lesions, and heat stress.”
“It is deeply concerning to see MPI dishing out funding to an industry rife with animal welfare concerns, given they are responsible for monitoring the welfare of farmed animals.”
SAFE is calling for an immediate halt on all fish farm expansion until the Government has conducted a thorough review of what is currently an unregulated industry.
“Without urgent action, fishes will continue to suffer in tragic conditions with no meaningful protection. The Government must step up and fix this” says Hall.  

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Government News – Chief Ombudsman releases report into secure aged care facilities

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Source: Office of the Ombudsman

The Chief Ombudsman Peter Boshier is concerned that people can be placed in secure aged care facilities in New Zealand without the proper legal authority.
Mr Boshier has today released a report on his inspections and visits to 148 secure residential aged care facilities across the country from 2021-2024.
“The COVID-19 pandemic saw many restrictions imposed in these types of facilities. As part of my regular visiting programme I wanted to check whether these restrictions had been lifted or at least minimised. I am pleased to say that most of the restrictions I saw during the pandemic had been lifted.
“I also identified some areas that need to be addressed, including the lack of independent and centralised oversight around the legal basis for a person’s placement in secure care.
“In the vast majority of facilities I found that at least one resident didn’t have a legal basis for being placed there and at a small number of facilities, almost half of the residents didn’t have the proper paperwork.
“I have observed varying levels of understanding on the part of facility management, medical professionals, and whānau around what is legally required and why it is required for someone to be placed in a secure aged care facility.
“I consider there would be significant benefit in establishing a centralised register for Enduring Power of Attorney to help with these issues.”
Mr Boshier says a number of other improvements could be made including in the area of restraint.
“It alarmed me to find that restraint policies were not always followed.
“Restraint comes in many forms, including staff using their own body to limit residents’ movement, using equipment to limit residents’ movement, and locking doors to prevent free movement between different areas.
“Residents receiving psychogeriatric care are at increased risk of being subjected to excessive restrictions or restraint.
“In many instances it was clear that staff did not fully understand how certain actions result in residents being restrained, for example, restraint applies to residents who are left in recliner chairs with their legs elevated, where they are clearly unable to move from that position.”
Mr Boshier also identified issues around the treatment of residents with dementia.
“I was very concerned that a small minority of facility staff and management felt that because residents had dementia they were not capable of making complaints.
“Residents are the experts on their experience of care. All residents have the right to share their opinions and be heard. They need ways to let someone know if they feel unsafe or they are dissatisfied with their care.”
Other issues Mr Boshier found were an over-reliance on whānau to provide advocacy and support for residents, resourcing pressures across most facilities and staff who were close to burnout.
“I am pleased, however, to see a range of improvements have been made by a number of the facilities I visited. These are still happening and I encourage all facilities to continue making improvements. I wish to acknowledge the commitment shown by staff I met and observed to delivering the best treatment and conditions to people living in secure aged care facilities.
“It is vital that the human rights of all residents in our country’s secure aged care facilities are safeguarded and maintained.”
Explanatory note: The Chief Ombudsman examines the conditions and treatment of people in places where they may not be free to leave at will. This includes people who may be in secure dementia level care and specialised hospital level care (psychogeriatric level care).

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Transport – National Freight Survey is Live!

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Source: Ia Ara Aotearoa Transporting New Zealand

March is a big month for the road freight industry with the largest survey in a decade being held to find out what are the key issues for transport operators and all the industry players.
The 2025 National Road Freight Survey has been organised by national road freight organisation Transporting New Zealand.
CEO Dom Kalasih says the online survey, which is being run by independent surveying firm Research New Zealand, is designed to help all parts of the industry share their priorities with policy makers and regulators.
“There are over 30,000 people working in the road freight sector across more than 5,000 business entities, carrying 93 percent of the national freight task,” Kalasih says.
“We want to get a clearer picture of what their leading concerns are, what opportunities they see for improvement, and what might be lesser priorities.”
“There are plenty of big issues in the industry such as staff shortages, operating conditions, tolling and congestion charging, the Cook Strait ferries and road policing to name a few.”
“If it is important to the people in the industry, we want to hear about it.”
Some of the other groups supporting the survey are the New Zealand Heavy Haulage Association and Groundspread NZ.
Jonathan Bhana-Thomson, the CEO of Heavy Haulage, says it is a great initiative for the industry and he’s sure the industry will provide plenty of great responses.
The survey is to get feedback from transport companies, no matter their size, or whether they are member of an industry association or not.
Rose Hyslop, the Executive Officer for Groundspread NZ, is also right behind the survey. She is looking forward to seeing the results which will be shared with all the groups that make up the transport and freight sectors.
Kalasih says that Research NZ has kept the survey short, multi-choice and accessible, with the option to provide more in-depth answers if they have more detailed feedback.
“We’ve also thrown in a $500 travel voucher from the House of Travel for one lucky person to win. Just as a bit of a sweetener.”
The survey runs till March 28.
The survey is at:

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Promoting Pacific languages in New Zealand

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Source: New Zealand Government

Minister for Pacific Peoples Dr Shane Reti says the Pacific language week series continues to celebrate our diverse Pacific languages, with exciting updates for 2025 and 2026, including the first-ever addition of Bislama, the national language of Vanuatu. 

“Last year, the Pacific language week series saw an incredible response, with thousands of New Zealanders participating in events and activities,” says Dr Reti. 

“From cultural performances and storytelling sessions to engaging social media campaigns viewed over 3 million times, the celebrations highlighted the powerful role language plays in connecting and inspiring communities.

“I have heard firsthand how important the language week series is to Pacific communities and how it affirms the relationships we have with Pacific island nations. 

“Each community embraces their Pacific language week in unique ways. As they say in Bislama, wan toktok hem i neva enaf – one language is never enough. We’re excited to celebrate Bislama for the first time in 2025, bringing the total number of language weeks to 12 this year.

“I am also pleased to confirm the dates for 2025 and 2026 ahead of time, to reinforce our commitment to preserving these cultural treasures for future generations,” Dr Reti says. 

The Ministry for Pacific Peoples invites all New Zealanders to embrace the Pacific language week series. Learning materials, online challenges, and tutorials will be available throughout the year, alongside events fostering cultural connection and understanding. 

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Home consents up in the month of January 2025 – Stats NZ media and information release: Building consents issued: January 2025

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Source: Statistics New Zealand

Home consents up in the month of January 2025 – 4 March 2025 – There were 2,203 new homes consented in January 2025, up 11 percent compared with January 2024, according to figures released by Stats NZ today.

“While January 2025 saw an increase in homes consented compared to January 2024, it still remains below the levels seen in January 2022 and 2023,” economic indicators spokesperson Michael Heslop said.

Of the 2,203 new homes consented, there were 1,077 stand-alone houses consented, up 20 percent compared with January 2024, and 1,126 multi-unit homes consented, up 3.1 percent.

Multi-unit homes include townhouses, apartments, retirement village units, and flats.

Files:

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Local News – Feedback sought on naming policy – Porirua City

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Source: Porirua City Council
Names are important – they represent who we are as a city, and reflect our cultures, our histories and our connections to the environment around us and to each other.
Porirua City is updating its Naming Policy to replace the Street and Road Naming Policy and Process that was introduced in 2006, and we want to hear what residents think.
The policy will cover how new streets, facilities, parks and reserves in Porirua will be named.
“It’s important that we get feedback from our community on this updated policy and partner with Ngāti Toa to ensure any new streets, parks or Council facilities built in Porirua are named in a way that reflect this city’s diverse cultures, identities and shared history,” says Porirua Mayor Anita Baker.
“The policy isn’t about renaming existing streets or places, it’s setting out themes for new names as the city grows.”
The three suggested naming principles include celebrating names of significance to Porirua’s communities.
Council is also seeking feedback on including historical people or events and noteworthy members of the community to its new policy. These are people or events who might have had an association with a specific part of Porirua or the whole city.
Another suggested principle is the names of significant geographical features, landscapes, and flora and fauna associated with different parts of Porirua.
Some of these principles are included in the existing policy for certain Porirua suburbs.
Council’s partnership with Ngāti Toa means the iwi can suggest and/or endorse names for the city that honour local Māori history and connections to the whenua/land.
The 11-question survey is currently live on Porirua City’s consultation page and will close at 5pm on Tuesday 11 March.

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Investing in natural disaster research partnerships

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Source: New Zealand Government

The Government continues to invest in research which will deliver tangible benefits to New Zealanders, Science, Innovation and Technology Minister Dr Shane Reti announced today. 

Three New Zealand research teams have been granted funding to partner with Japanese research organisations on projects that aim to make New Zealand more prepared and resilient when natural disasters strike.

“This Government is focused on putting funding where it will make the biggest difference. Natural disasters pose a significant risk in New Zealand – a good reminder of that is the recent elevation of alert levels at Whakaari White Island,” says Dr Reti. 

“Collaboration with like-minded nations and sharing research infrastructure enables our researchers to lead and participate in world-class science, innovation and technology that benefits New Zealand. 

“Building relationships with international partners is critical to developing a vibrant science and innovation sector, which is a core part of our plan to deliver economic growth.

“New Zealand and Japan share similar risks when it comes to earthquakes, tsunamis and volcanic activity. By working together in these projects, we can better understand risks and potential mitigate options for future events. 

“Working together with Japan also enables our researchers to access invaluable resources and experience such as their Marine Seismic Vessel Research Vessel Kaimei, proprietary modelling software, and access to structural laboratories. I look forward to seeing the outcomes of this research and the benefits it brings.” 

The University of Canterbury will work with Tohoku University on a structural retrofitting system to enhance the resilience of buildings in seismic events while reducing the cost of traditional retrofitting with a new modular infill system. 

GNS Science will work Japan’s National Research Institute for Earth Science and Disaster Resilience (NIED) on tolerable levels of ashfall following volcanic events. 

GNS Science will also work with the Japan Agency for Marine Earth Science and Technology (JAMSTEC) for a seismic study of the Hikurangi subduction zone – New Zealand’s largest threat for tsunamis. 

The research teams will each receive $300,000 from the Government’s Catalyst Fund. Japanese research teams will receive equivalent funding from our Japanese partner – the Japan Science and Technology Agency.

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