June 6, 2024 • 3 mins
It's a much-needed record funding boost in pothole prevention.
The Transport Agency's confirmed it'll put just over $2 billion into prevention on state highways, and nearly $2 billion for local roads.
It'll cover resealing, rehabilitation, and drainage maintenance, with more than 62,000 holes recorded last year.
Infrastructure New Zealand chief executive Nick Leggett told Mike Hosking that the funding won't cover as much as it would've a few years ago because costs have risen.
He says larger investments and more consistency will result in better efficiency.
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Big bucks for potholes is what we're talking about. Four
billion to prevent in repair potholes across the country over
the next three years. Just over two billion for the
state highways, one point nine billion for the local roads.
Legat is Infrastructure New Zealand Boss, of course it and
is with us? Nick, very good morning to you. Is
he with us or no? We hang on? Maybe I've
done the wrong thing there as well. On Nick, my apologies.
How are you hi?
Speaker 2 (00:21):
Mike?
Speaker 1 (00:21):
You like it? We do?
Speaker 2 (00:24):
We do. Look, we've talked before and you know, people
listening will obviously be familiar with the fact that so
much of our infrastructure and the roading networks a classic case.
You know, we build it, we set it, we forget it,
and we don't invest in renewing and maintaining road services
as much as we should. And this is a long
(00:46):
term reduction in the amount spent. So over the last
sort of five to six years, it's cost us about
an extra thirty percent to maintain a kilometer of state highway.
So not only you know, have the increases not being
big enough, you know, we're actually spending less and we're
not getting as a bigger bang for our buck. So
(01:08):
I think that this is a really good indication. And
it's not just the state highway network obviously, which essentially doubles,
so you know, they call it pothole prevention. It's really
road surface improvements and people feel that, you know, the
damage their cars and just the general rundown nature of that,
but it's that those local roads as well. I'm breaking
(01:28):
it down by region. People will see that the extra
money that's going to go into maintaining local roads, and look,
it's better for resilience in the face of really more
extreme weather, safety and those guaranteed travel times, and it's
going to take a while. There'll be a lot of
road cones, I suspect, but it's a good boost for
(01:50):
an infrastructure industry that has been suffering because you know,
we're in tighter economic times and those small and medium
businesses will will get the benefit of being able to
work on roads. They're doing God's work in terms of
the country and they're they're keeping the head above.
Speaker 1 (02:05):
Water exactly just in thirty seconds or not. Do you reckon?
We get bang for buck and does that worry you?
I mean, it's all very wellt thying for big but
I mean you know how many holes.
Speaker 2 (02:14):
You're fee well, this is the thing. It's that's why
I made that point about that. You know, everything is
costomers more, isn't it, So you get it bigger, you
get a bigger injection like this, It isn't going to
go as far as it would have a few years ago,
but that's because everything's grown in price. So we do
have to watch that. But the more we invest and
the more we line this work up and we program
(02:35):
it properly, the better efficiency you know we're going to get.
And you know, you build a workforce, you get gear bought,
you get people trained, it makes it much easier it
to sort of program that work and that that's what
we need to be looking at across the infrastructure industry.
And it's not just obviously building positive new projects in infrastructure.
(02:56):
It's maintaining what we have. And there was an injection
in this budget as well for rail maintenance, so getting
getting those those tracks and Wellington and Auckland that slowed
out commuters, Getting that sort of it's all part of
the same picture and it's great to see that's been
grasped and so we will be looking for more of course,
but we're also looking for the you know, to look
(03:17):
back at the industry and say, well, how can we
get better bangs for UK, how can we get some
better efficiencies into them, because that's what people will be
looking for.
Speaker 1 (03:26):
I reckon, good on you, Nick, you have a good week.
I appreciate it very much. Nick Legget, who is Infrastructure
New Zealand Boss. For more from News Talks ed B
listen live on air or online, and keep our shows
with you wherever you go with our podcasts on IR
Radio
Big bucks for potholes is what we're talking about. Four
billion to prevent in repair potholes across the country over
the next three years. Just over two billion for the
state highways, one point nine billion for the local roads.
Legat is Infrastructure New Zealand Boss, of course it and
is with us? Nick, very good morning to you. Is
he with us or no? We hang on? Maybe I've
done the wrong thing there as well. On Nick, my apologies.
How are you hi?
Speaker 2 (00:21):
Mike?
Speaker 1 (00:21):
You like it? We do?
Speaker 2 (00:24):
We do. Look, we've talked before and you know, people
listening will obviously be familiar with the fact that so
much of our infrastructure and the roading networks a classic case.
You know, we build it, we set it, we forget it,
and we don't invest in renewing and maintaining road services
as much as we should. And this is a long
(00:46):
term reduction in the amount spent. So over the last
sort of five to six years, it's cost us about
an extra thirty percent to maintain a kilometer of state highway.
So not only you know, have the increases not being
big enough, you know, we're actually spending less and we're
not getting as a bigger bang for our buck. So
(01:08):
I think that this is a really good indication. And
it's not just the state highway network obviously, which essentially doubles,
so you know, they call it pothole prevention. It's really
road surface improvements and people feel that, you know, the
damage their cars and just the general rundown nature of that,
but it's that those local roads as well. I'm breaking
(01:28):
it down by region. People will see that the extra
money that's going to go into maintaining local roads, and look,
it's better for resilience in the face of really more
extreme weather, safety and those guaranteed travel times, and it's
going to take a while. There'll be a lot of
road cones, I suspect, but it's a good boost for
(01:50):
an infrastructure industry that has been suffering because you know,
we're in tighter economic times and those small and medium
businesses will will get the benefit of being able to
work on roads. They're doing God's work in terms of
the country and they're they're keeping the head above.
Speaker 1 (02:05):
Water exactly just in thirty seconds or not. Do you reckon?
We get bang for buck and does that worry you?
I mean, it's all very wellt thying for big but
I mean you know how many holes.
Speaker 2 (02:14):
You're fee well, this is the thing. It's that's why
I made that point about that. You know, everything is
costomers more, isn't it, So you get it bigger, you
get a bigger injection like this, It isn't going to
go as far as it would have a few years ago,
but that's because everything's grown in price. So we do
have to watch that. But the more we invest and
the more we line this work up and we program
(02:35):
it properly, the better efficiency you know we're going to get.
And you know, you build a workforce, you get gear bought,
you get people trained, it makes it much easier it
to sort of program that work and that that's what
we need to be looking at across the infrastructure industry.
And it's not just obviously building positive new projects in infrastructure.
(02:56):
It's maintaining what we have. And there was an injection
in this budget as well for rail maintenance, so getting
getting those those tracks and Wellington and Auckland that slowed
out commuters, Getting that sort of it's all part of
the same picture and it's great to see that's been
grasped and so we will be looking for more of course,
but we're also looking for the you know, to look
(03:17):
back at the industry and say, well, how can we
get better bangs for UK, how can we get some
better efficiencies into them, because that's what people will be
looking for.
Speaker 1 (03:26):
I reckon, good on you, Nick, you have a good week.
I appreciate it very much. Nick Legget, who is Infrastructure
New Zealand Boss. For more from News Talks ed B
listen live on air or online, and keep our shows
with you wherever you go with our podcasts on IR
Radio
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