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The New Zealand transport agency (NZTA), has confirmed that in the first 10 months of 2022 it received a record number of complaints about vehicle damage caused by potholes – 555 complaints compared with 421 in 2021.
The road maintenance crisis comes as government ministers have been asked by outgoing prime minister Jacinda Ardern to assess their spending priorities over the summer break.
Road transport trade association Transporting New Zealand is calling on the government to increase funding for road maintenance and new investment in state highways, despite the challenging economic conditions.
“The busy summer holiday period has highlighted just what an appalling state much of our roading network is in,” said Transporting New Zealand chief executive Nick Leggett.
“It’s not just about road maintenance. We also need the government to recommit to new roading capacity to ease the strain on our existing network.”
Leggett said the government is too focussed on pinning the blame on others, including previous governments, road users, and the weather, rather than making the necessary investment in the network.
“We acknowledge that there are a number of factors beyond the current government’s control impacting our road network, but the blame-game isn’t going to fix the potholes and stop people’s vehicles being damaged,” he said.
Transporting New Zealand has been angered by a recent tweet from transport minister Michael Wood which appeared to blame potholes on trucks.
In the tweet, the minister blamed the 2010 policy change which allowed so-called 50MAX trucks (weighing up to 53 tonnes) on the country’s roads.
“This accusation is completely inaccurate. Peer-reviewed studies referenced on NZTA’s own website confirm that 50MAX trucks have no more impact on pavement than a standard Class 1 vehicle due to their additional axle configuration,” said Leggett.
“Even if they did, New Zealand’s road-user charging system is calculated based on the vehicle’s impact on road surface, so trucks and heavy vehicles are more than paying their way.
“It’s unhelpful for the transport minister to be making these comments, especially as 50MAX trucks can reduce road freight carbon emissions on a tonne-per-kilometre basis by up to 35%,” said Leggett.
“The best way forward for New Zealand is to invest in infrastructure that supports our economy. New projects will help us grow our way out of our recessionary environment.
“Ninety-three per cent of all products in New Zealand are delivered by truck. Doing nothing about the state of our roads will literally bring the domestic economy to a standstill,” Leggett said.
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