
Road Freight Association Backs Time Of Use Charging Bill, But Flags Cost Concerns
National road freight association Transporting New Zealand has backed congestion charging legislation, but says that amendments are necessary to maximise savings for consumers and businesses.
In its 27 April submission to the Transport and Infrastructure Select Committee, Transporting New Zealand has proposed four improvements to the draft legislation that would help maximise network efficiency and incentivise buy-in from the road freight sector and their customers:
1. Exempting freight and public transport vehicles from liability to pay time of use charges.
2. Charging light and heavy vehicles at the same rate, rather than penalising larger, more efficient vehicles.
3. Requiring time of use charging scheme assessments to include the expected impacts on the supply chain and freight movement.
4. Allowing short-term trials ahead of confirming a time of use charging scheme proposal.
Transporting New Zealand Head of Policy & Advocacy Billy Clemens says that these recommendations reflect the fact that road freight demand is inflexible - driven by customers' 'capacity to receive'.
"We know from international experience that congestion charges do not result in material changes in freight vehicles travelling at peak times.
"Without appropriate protections in the legislation, congestion charges act as unavoidable taxes on freight operators, raising costs for businesses and consumers without meaningfully improving traffic gridlock.
"Our members don't want to have to pass these charges onto their customers, and deal with the associated administration costs.
Clemens said that congestion charging was a contentious issue in the road freight industry, with a diverse range of views being captured in their 2025 Road Freight Survey, due to be released tomorrow (1 May 2025).
"42 per cent of road freight operators surveyed in the 2025 Road Freight Survey stated they supported or strongly supported the use of congestion charging, 23 per cent were neutral and 32 per cent disagreed or strongly disagreed. The remaining 3 per cent indicated they were unsure.
"78 per cent of operators agreed that road freight should be exempt from congestion charging, with 16 per cent being neutral and 6 per cent disagreeing.
Transporting New Zealand had also reviewed the submission of Auckland Council, and agreed with their statement that time of use charging must work for Auckland, as the city most likely to put in place a time of use charging scheme.
"The Council has made some important points around governance and revenue provisions, and complementary measures such as public transport improvements. We hope the Committee will give them careful consideration so we get workable legislation passed."
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Saying Yes To More Housing
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'It doesn't make sense that we have single story houses on quarter acre sections a stone's throw away from stations that, in a year or so, will see trains every few minutes. 'The Government and the Council are investing billions in CRL and have a shared vision for stations that become hubs for public transport, mixed use development and new housing. 'Successive Governments and Councils have failed to grasp this opportunity for economic growth in New Zealand's largest city. This is how modern, growing cities all around the world operate, and now it's Auckland's turn.' 'Today's announcements are a result of Auckland Council and the Government working together to deliver a plan for more housing that works for Auckland. The Bill now has the effect of abolishing the Medium Density Residential Standards (MDRS) in Auckland while requiring more housing density around key public transport corridors – a common sense solution for Auckland,' Auckland Minister Simeon Brown says. 'Auckland must grow to fully meet its potential as a world-leading city. The one sized-fits-all approach of the MDRS was not appropriate for Auckland. Today's announcement will ensure our city grows where it makes the most sense and maximise on the significant investment made in the City Rail Link.' 'I want to thank Auckland Council, particularly Mayor Brown and Councillor Richard Hills, for their pragmatic approach to solving these complex challenges over many months,' Mr Bishop says. 'Mayor Brown has previously described this situation as 'RMA gymnastics' and he is right, but I am confident that these arrangements align with our shared vison of density and development in places that work for Aucklanders.' Removing ability to opt-out of the MDRS 'The Bill as introduced provided councils with the flexibility to opt out of the MDRS, if they could show they had provided for 30 years of housing growth in their district and unitary plans,' Mr Bishop says. 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Additional changes 'In addition to these changes, the Environment Select Committee has recommended a suite of changes to improve the workability of the Bill and help unlock growth in infrastructure and energy, farming and the primary sector,' Mr Bishop says. The Resource Management (Consenting and Other System Changes) Amendment Bill will have its second reading in the coming weeks and is expected to pass into law in mid-2025.'


Scoop
a day ago
- Scoop
Saying Yes To More Housing
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These are some of the most significant changes to the shape of Auckland since the Auckland Unitary Plan,' Mr Bishop says. 'It doesn't make sense that we have single story houses on quarter acre sections a stone's throw away from stations that, in a year or so, will see trains every few minutes. 'The Government and the Council are investing billions in CRL and have a shared vision for stations that become hubs for public transport, mixed use development and new housing. 'Successive Governments and Councils have failed to grasp this opportunity for economic growth in New Zealand's largest city. This is how modern, growing cities all around the world operate, and now it's Auckland's turn.' 'Today's announcements are a result of Auckland Council and the Government working together to deliver a plan for more housing that works for Auckland. The Bill now has the effect of abolishing the Medium Density Residential Standards (MDRS) in Auckland while requiring more housing density around key public transport corridors – a common sense solution for Auckland,' Auckland Minister Simeon Brown says. 'Auckland must grow to fully meet its potential as a world-leading city. The one sized-fits-all approach of the MDRS was not appropriate for Auckland. Today's announcement will ensure our city grows where it makes the most sense and maximise on the significant investment made in the City Rail Link.' 'I want to thank Auckland Council, particularly Mayor Brown and Councillor Richard Hills, for their pragmatic approach to solving these complex challenges over many months,' Mr Bishop says. 'Mayor Brown has previously described this situation as 'RMA gymnastics' and he is right, but I am confident that these arrangements align with our shared vison of density and development in places that work for Aucklanders.' Removing ability to opt-out of the MDRS 'The Bill as introduced provided councils with the flexibility to opt out of the MDRS, if they could show they had provided for 30 years of housing growth in their district and unitary plans,' Mr Bishop says. 'Councils have been going through plan changes for years in order to incorporate the MDRS. Most councils have already substantially completed their plan changes through this process, with just three (Auckland, Christchurch and Waimakariri) yet to finish. 'The practical reality is that if councils did vote to 'opt out' of the MDRS, they would have to pass a new plan change to do so, and due to the length of time this typically takes under the RMA, by the time this was complete, the Government's new planning system is expected to be in place. 'Fundamentally, it would have achieved nothing, but cost ratepayers a lot. 'The Government has therefore taken the pragmatic view that it would be sensible to remove the ability for councils to opt out of the MDRS and to work on bespoke legislative solutions for Auckland and Christchurch instead.' New plan change for Auckland 'Auckland's intensification plan change, PC78, has been underway since 2022. Progress has been slow for many reasons, including the Auckland floods. The intensification plan change process does not allow Auckland to 'downzone' certain areas due to natural hazard risk – only to 'upzone' them – and the Council wrote to the government asking them to fix this problem,' Mr Bishop says. 'The Government has therefore agreed to change the Bill to allow Auckland to withdraw PC78. However, the government is determined to unlock housing capacity in Auckland and fix our housing crisis and has taken steps to ensure this is achieved. 'Earlier in the year I directed Auckland Council to bring forward decisions on the parts of PC78 that relate to the city centre, requiring final decisions to be made by the end of May. Auckland Council met this requirement, finalising this part of PC78 on 22 May 2025. 'These decisions made by the council are a step forward in increasing development capacity in Auckland's CBD, but there is more work to be done. 'The Bill as reported back from the committee now allows Auckland Council to remove the remaining parts of PC78, but requires them to process a new plan change urgently. This plan change must be notified by 10 October this year, and must enable housing capacity equal to or greater than that enabled by PC78. 'As I've indicated, the Government is keen to see greater density around public transport, particularly City Rail Link stations. The Bill therefore now also requires Auckland to allow for greater density around the key CRL stations of Maungawhau (Mount Eden), Kingsland, and Morningside. 'Auckland Council must enable within a walkable distance from these stations heights and densities reflective of the higher demand for housing and business in these areas. This requirement goes further than the existing requirements under the NPS-UD, and I expect heights and densities that ensure we make the most of the opportunities offered by this transformational transport project. 'The government is also considering whether further amendments to the Bill to fully maximise development opportunities around other CRL stations as necessary, and I will have more to say in due course.' 30 years of growth for Christchurch 'Christchurch City Council also requires a bespoke solution, as they have made a number of decisions on their plan change to implement the MDRS and NPS-UD, known as PC14, but have yet to complete it,' Mr Bishop says. 'Last week I released my decisions on the recommendations from the Council on parts of PC14. These decisions will enable a greater level of development in and around Christchurch City's urban centres. 'Christchurch City Council is currently required to finalise the MDRS components of PC14 by December 2025. The Bill will allow Christchurch to withdraw the MDRS parts of PC14 provided they allow for 30 years of housing growth at the same time. Assessment of that target will be made by me based on advice from officials.' Additional changes 'In addition to these changes, the Environment Select Committee has recommended a suite of changes to improve the workability of the Bill and help unlock growth in infrastructure and energy, farming and the primary sector,' Mr Bishop says. The Resource Management (Consenting and Other System Changes) Amendment Bill will have its second reading in the coming weeks and is expected to pass into law in mid-2025.'

RNZ News
a day ago
- RNZ News
What Muriwai's surprise CV increase can tell us about rates and valuations
Auckland's Muriwai Beach. File photo Photo: RNZ / Tom Taylor Some residents in Auckland's Muriwai were shocked this week to discover that, while the city as a whole had house values decline 9 percent on average in the latest council valuations, theirs increased 12 percent. Muriwai Community Association co-chair Clare Bradley told RNZ it was tough for the "tiny" suburb, which had been significantly changed by the council buying out properties damaged by 2023's storm. She said about 80 of the roughly 700 homes in the suburb had been bought by council. Their house values having lifted while the rest of the city's fell means they are likely to pay a proportionately higher amount of rates. Commentators say the situation may be a good example of the many moving parts that go into the complex system of valuing properties. Read more: What goes into a council valuation, anyway? Auckland Council chief financial officer Ross Tucker said the council went through a robust process to determine valuations. "It's a really defined methodology that looks at all the data, and has that reviewed by qualified valuers. There's a full audit process around it." He said it was systematic and "not a question of just looking at some sales data and putting it in a spreadsheet". The council would use two points in time - 2021 when the last valuations were issued, and 2024, when the new ones were updated. The valuation is made up of capital value, the price the property was likely to sell for on the market on that day, the land value the land would attract if it was sold bare, and the improvement value, which was the difference. So why is Muriwai so different from its neighbours? Tucker said the valuation process would not consider the transactions in which council had bought properties in Muriwai. "It's only pure market transactions. So what we've seen is in 2021 the average residential CV was about $1.2 million, $200,000 less than the Auckland average… now we look at 2024 and the market sales at that point, we haven't seen any individual sales over that relevant time period, not a single sale, that's gone for less than the 2021 CV. Everything has been above CV. "If people are talking about a decrease from the current CVs, there's no evidence for us to support that." Muriwai's values had increased from a little below the Auckland average to slightly above, potentially boosted by more people working remotely. There was also not a lot of vacant land in Muriwai, he said, so even rundown baches were valuable because of their land. "The only way to get in there and build a fantastic Muriwai dream house is to buy one of those old baches." Many people who had received money from council for their properties were also trying to buy in the area, he said. "There are very few properties on the market, people are holding on. People aren't selling." Does the size of the market matter? Bradley expressed surprise that Muriwai was dealt with as a separate market, given its size. Tucker said the number of sales was relatively small compared to many other suburbs in Auckland. "We have to work with the sales data that's there. In Mount Eden or in other bigger areas, Howick, there's lots of sales data you can more easily look at the trends and you've got a bigger statistical base." Cotality's chief property economist Kelvin Davidson said that made it trickier to find comparable sales for properties. It would not be hard to find something to compare a typical three-bedroom home in Grey Lynn to, he said, but Muriwai's diverse housing stock with fewer sales made it harder to do that. Davidson said by CoreLogic's measure, Muriwai's values were down about 2 percent. Tucker said while that data was different, council valuations had to rely on its own methodology, evidence and processes. "It's about an auditable verifiable objective method and it's really important we do that to make sure we're setting rates objectively and there's a fair comparison… it's doing the best we can with the data set. "The different data sets will give different outcome. But if you look at the individual sales, none of them have been below CV so even with a small data set it's extremely unlike that the market values are below the old CVs in Muriwai." But why does the value of your home affect the rates you pay? The total rates bill the council decides to collect from homeowners each year is split across all the properties in the city. But the split is not even - more expensive places tend to pay more in rates. Whether you pay the same proportion of the total bill as you did in the last valuation round depends on how your property's valuation moves compared to everyone else's. If you own an Auckland property that has dropped in value by more than 9 percent, you will probably have less of an increase in rates than people whose property has increased in value by dropped by less than 9 percent, or even increased. Davidson said that could be a point of contention for Muriwai ratepayers but they could challenge the valuations if they wanted to. Why don't rates bills drop when values do? The valuations don't set the overall council rates bill, just how it's apportioned out. Councils decide how much they need to collect and that can (and usually does) increase even if the value of properties in their area is flat or falling. Do values affect sales prices? Not really. The valuations in Auckland, for example, are almost a year old now. They might have provided a good indication of what a place was worth at this time last year, but things have changed since then. CoreLogic's data shows that most parts of Auckland have had further prices falls since 2024. Davidson said people who were in the market for a home would pay attention to CVs but it was generally a better idea to look for more recent sales to get an idea of what the market was doing. "It's about establishing a fair value now, not what the property might have sold for a year ago when the CVs were 'set'." Sometimes you can get an idea of how far generally property prices are from their CV in a certain area, but that would still only be a guide. Is there a better way? Davidson's colleague Nick Goodall told Nine to Noon there was merit in the idea of shifting away from a dollar-based valuation to a system where properties were grouped into deciles. Tucker said the current process did require a lot of work, a lot of time and a lot of cost to get to its outcome. "I'm always keen to find you know ways to do things cheaper for ratepayers, to do things faster, … [but] you've got to make sure that any system is fair and objective, so Aucklanders have confidence that their rates are being sent fairly." What can you do if you're not happy? People who think their valuation is incorrect can object. Tucker said last time there were about 9000 objections across 630,000 ratepaying properties. "It's a pretty small proportion." He said people who wanted to object needed to be able to show that the number was wrong in May last year, rather than now. "People go 'well you know something sold in my street just last month at a much different price'. It's not something we can consider for an objection process." He said people who were struggling to pay their rates should get in touch with council. As of 1 July, SuperGold cardholders with rates higher than $2000 a year and income up to $45,000 will be able to receive the maximum rates rebate of $805.