Time Of Use Charging May Ease Auckland’s Chronic Road Congestion

National Road Carriers Association (NRC) says time of use charging may ease Auckland’s chronic road congestion estimated by a new Auckland Council white paper to cost $2.6 billion a year by 2026.

The Auckland’s Cost of Congestion white paper prepared by EY and ARUP with support from Auckland Transport says Auckland is the worst city in Australasia for congestion factoring in the cost of lost time, reduced business investment and consumer spending.

NRC CEO Justin Tighe-Umbers said the report confirms what road transport operators in Auckland have known for a long time - freight efficiency is in trouble in Auckland.

“It's not surprising that an average of 66 hours lost in traffic per year for commuters is the worst in Australasia. Truck drivers spend eight hours or more a day on the road – far beyond the average commuter - so they are losing a whole lot more.

“Time of use charging is a tool we need in the tool kit to win back some of these hours. It works in global cities with world class public transport and road network systems, and high population densities. We'd like to see it work in Auckland but are waiting to see evidence it will. The danger is if it doesn't relieve congestion then it simply becomes another tax for road users.

“Supply chain is the life blood of the city, and the arteries are clogged. This slows down manufacturing productivity in Auckland and makes the transporting of critical items such as food and groceries and medical supplies more expensive.”

Tighe-Umbers said while the $2.6b figure measures lost time, it doesn't include lost productivity such as fewer trips. "Trucks that could do four runs in a day get reduced to three due to traffic congestion. That is a major loss of productivity for the transport operator."

“NRC supports the objectives of time of use charging and has given it conditional endorsement providing it can be shown to improve overall travel times.

“Reducing congestion and increasing consistency of travel times across the network will help improve efficiencies across the supply chain.

Tighe-Umbers said for time of use charging to be effective:

· The impact on "off peak" travel times across the network must not deteriorate more than any saving "on peak"

· Travel time savings must provide financial savings equal to or more than the time of use charge.

“If these two factors are not achievable then time of use charging will simply be another cost on business that will be passed on to consumers.

“National Road Carriers looks forward to continuing the work needed to evaluate the appropriate settings and consequences to the freight network of any introduction of time of use charging.”

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