Potholes have plagued much of the country after recent storms. (File photo) Photo: Facebook/Northland Potholes
The New Plymouth Distrcit Council is spearheading an unusual attempt to draw attention to the nation's pothole-riddled highways.
It got approval from the Clerk of the House of Parliament for a poll asking whether "the government should fund maintenance at levels sufficient to reverse the current decline in the average age and condition of our national state highway network?"
If the poll captures the signatures of 10 percent of the electorate nationwide, it would trigger a non-binding citizens-initiated referenda on state highway maintenance.
Mayor Neil Holdom said governments of differing political stripes had systematically underfunded highway maintenance for decades.
He thought the politicians needed pointing in the right direction.
"It's really clear that perhaps the political parties need a steer from the people of New Zealand, because the people we are hearing from every day are comfortable investing in infrastructure as long as they can see the money is well spent and right now the money is not being well spent and our state highways are falling into decline."
Mayor Neil Holdom. Photo: RNZ / Robin Martin
Holdom favoured a combination of raising road-user charges and petrol excise taxes, and debt-funding for new projects to arrest that decline.
Transport Minister David Parker welcomed the poll but rejected the implication that the condition of the road network was going backwards.
"I would point out that the road maintenance budget under this government has increased for the three years 2021 to 2024 to $2.8 billion which is 65 percent more than the $1.7 billion in 2015 to 2018."
He said the previous National-led government froze road maintenance spending, meaning the current government inherited a road-resurfacing backlog.
Parker said more could always be done and this year's extreme weather hadn't helped, but he could not yet say whether petrol excise taxes or road user charges would increase in the next iteration of the Land Transport Fund.
Transport Minister David Parker. Photo: RNZ / David Parker
He was open to tolls for new roads as long as there was an alternative route.
The National Party recently announced a $500 million Pothole Repair Fund which would be paid for through scrapping ineffective road-safety programmes among other government initiatives.
Transport spokesperson Simeon Brown said the party's soon-to-be released transport policy would outline which projects it intended to build if in government after this year's election and how the party would fund them.
"At this stage it's our intention not to be increasing road user charges and fuel taxes," he said.
"We have been clear though that we do need to look at other new funding tools such as value capture for roads which unlock housing, increased use of tolling and we're also open to using private capital."
Green Party transport spokesperson Julie Anne Genter took aim at the pothole fund.
"Anytime Simeon Brown or anybody from the National Party claims that potholes today have anything to do with a government not focused on roads, it is just absolute rubbish because their government - the last National government - defunded road maintenance, they defunded local roads and spent the lion's share on a few motorways."
The Greens support congestion charging in the main centres and a slow, steady rise in fuel excise and road user charges to pay for building and maintaining roads.
ACT's transport spokesperson Simon Court said its policy was not to raise fuel excise taxes.
"The current system of relying on the government to maintain roads with your taxes clearly isn't working. I mean you're lucky to get a pothole fixed let alone a modern road built in your district or region."
ACT's transport spokesperson Simon Court. Photo: RNZ
He said road user charges could increase and expand to include electric vehicles.
ACT would also welcome private sector investment in roads and expected more tolling.
Te Pāti Māori co-leader Debbie Ngarewa-Packer said the entire system needed a shake-up.
"There needs to be a better approach and model applied to how the funding is allocated to the rural regions not necessarily just based on population but based on contribution to GDP."
She said a wealth tax and capital gains tax would help raise more money for roading.
The New Plymouth council hoped to get support from other councils around the country and have copies of the poll question on council counters inside a year.
From the date the poll was officially opened it would have 12 months to collect the signatures required for a citizens-initiated referendum.