Chris Bishop: Transport Minister on the state of the Government's Roads of National Significance project

A promise the Government's working as quickly as possible on roading projects - but an admission some will take a long time.

The Transport Minister says he's trying to make expectations clear.

Officials estimate petrol tax and road user charges would need to be hiked 70 percent - to deliver all the $56 billion Roads of National Significance - within two decades.

Chris Bishop says the Government is committed, but these are very big projects.

"So I'm just saying, it's about a long-term pipeline over many, many years."

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
The Transport Minister has outlined a real problem for the
Roads of National Significance program we might not have the
money for it. In a speech to the Future Roads
Conference yesterday, Christmiship pointed out that the National Land Transport
Fund is massively oversubscribed. That's what we normally use to
pay for roads PPPs. Yeah, sure they help, but they
just delay the bill rather than paying for it. And
we do not have a big enough population for tolls

(00:21):
to fund projects by themselves. So let's talk to Chris
Bishop about this.

Speaker 2 (00:24):
High Bish, Good afternoon.

Speaker 1 (00:26):
So what are you saying here that we are not
going to get all the Roads of National Significance or
we're just going to have to wait longer for them.

Speaker 2 (00:33):
I'm just trying to do a bit of expectation management.
You know, the Roads of National Significance that the government's
going to deliver are popular, and they are you know,
big investments in the future of New Zealand. From a
growth point of view, from freight, from getting around. All
of those things are true and they're right. I'm just
simply making the point that they're expensive, that there are
trade offs with other priorities, and that they can't all

(00:53):
be delivered at once. So I'm just trying to do
a bit of expectation management. This is about a long
term pipeline, Okay. I just don't want people to think that,
you know, there's going to be like fifteen big major
roads all built at the same time around the country,
all at the same time. That's not going to happen.
To be honest, our construction market can't cope with that anyway, right.
We just literally do not have the workers, all the
capacity to do that, and it will drive up inflation

(01:15):
even if we did. So, I'm just saying it's about
a long term pipeline over many, many years to get
these roads.

Speaker 1 (01:20):
Well, it's long term.

Speaker 2 (01:22):
Well, we're going to set out, you know, soon a
bit of a sequence and a bit of a pipeline
over the next fifteen to twenty years around not just
the roads of national significance, but also some of the
other important projects like the Northwest Busway for example, in
Auckland Airport to Botany Busway. There's a whole range of
other projects that we need to give it.

Speaker 1 (01:42):
So are you saying that all of the roads of
national significance that we are expecting will get started within
the next fifteen to twenty years.

Speaker 2 (01:52):
I want to give you that commitment today, but you
will see a bit of a plan and a sequence
and a pipeline over the next twenty years. As to
the pro we want to build, I'm just simply making
the point. But committed to these projects. They are really important.
We will get on. We will get on with them.
But they can't all be done at the same time.

Speaker 1 (02:08):
Should we expect, though, that some of them will not
be started within the twenty year.

Speaker 2 (02:12):
Period, No, I wouldn't. That wouldn't be my expectation. My
expectations would be that they will start in the twenty years,
but they can't all be you know, they can't all
be delivered. I mean, the problem be if we don't
have the capacity to do it.

Speaker 1 (02:23):
The problem being, of course, that anything that you guys
don't get started in your time in office may never
get started because the next lot don't love roads, right,
That's the reality.

Speaker 2 (02:34):
Well, all of that is a very strong driver for
people to party vote National to make sure we get
on with building the infrastructure that New DEALA needs for
the future.

Speaker 1 (02:42):
That is that is realistic, right, Anything that doesn't that,
that is why we are fixated on getting you guys
to get spades in the ground, because the next lot
may never do it if you don't do it.

Speaker 2 (02:51):
Yeah, and ultimately they'll have to account for themselves. As
to all of that, we can set out our policies
and our intentions, and we're working as quickly as pos
to get started on these projects because they are really
important for his zealand we're just to turn that. We
start a construction on the Hawks Bakespressway just last week
and that's underway now, the four laneing of seven kilometers
of that very congested section of the road, and it will
be more, be more next year.

Speaker 1 (03:12):
Is it not realistic to simply raise the tolls just
just make it more expensive to drive on the new roads? Yeah.

Speaker 2 (03:19):
So what's one of the points I made in the
speech that gave yesterday or day before, which is that,
you know, one of the one of the things people
do need to think about is if we delivered all
of the seventeen roads that we want to deliver, that
if that would that would be paid for or could
be paid for by forty nine cents per leter increase
in fuel tax. Now, there's probably a bunch of people

(03:40):
listening going, well, bug of that. I don't want to
fifty cent you know, a leader increase in fuel texs
are paying off as it is. But that's kind of
my point, right, is that roads do actually ultimately have
to be paid for, and they paid for through petrol
tax yep are tolls are a thing, and obviously they help,
but you know, will people really pay twenty five bucks
drive on a new road. I'd say probably not. In fact,

(04:02):
they probably just take the alternative route. So that's just
something to my point. I'm just trying to get expectations
set a bit. That's all. Now.

Speaker 1 (04:08):
Listen, do you think the Prime Minister is doing a
good job.

Speaker 2 (04:13):
Yes, I think he's doing an excellent job and difficult circumstances.
I think he's doing good job, so he should keep
the job. Yeah, he's doing a good job. We're obviously
in a difficult economic environment and the government's working as
hard as we can to turn the corner on that
and we've got some green shoots of change coming through
and I think next year will be better than this year.
But you know, clearly it's a difficult time for everybody

(04:33):
and it's a difficult Jeo political environment as well.

Speaker 1 (04:35):
Have you read Audrey's piece today.

Speaker 2 (04:39):
No, I haven't read Audrey's piece. I'm sure you're about
to tell me.

Speaker 1 (04:41):
I am, and I can't wait. Audrey's piece says that
you are getting targeted by labor. You have a target
on your back because you are the most likely person
to take over from Chris Luxon.

Speaker 2 (04:53):
Oh that's interesting. I think they're just having a go
at me because they've got nothing else to go on
the government, and they've dreamed up some you know, tim
pop little story about you know, making sure that you
know the government delivers for the people, the good people
of the hut South.

Speaker 1 (05:09):
Hey, listen, scale of one to ten. How disappointed are
you that you weren't at Metallica last.

Speaker 2 (05:13):
Night or ten and a half?

Speaker 1 (05:16):
Yeah, but it's what happened.

Speaker 2 (05:17):
Sad, but well it's a sad but true reality. Do
you see what I did there?

Speaker 1 (05:22):
Yeah? No, I don't know any Metallica songs. Bish.

Speaker 2 (05:25):
Oh well, nothing else matters than I got the Parliament. Yeah, okay, yeah, yeah,
but it's just down here writing the lightning at Parliament.
So it's all good.

Speaker 1 (05:33):
You're so lame. Hey, thank you overy What was that?

Speaker 2 (05:41):
Laugh? Lord?

Speaker 1 (05:42):
Bish? Thank you very much. Chris Bishop Transport Minister, Transport Minister,
metal head not rolling Chris Lackson apparently. For more from
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