Community groups are relying on donors and sponsors to meet rising traffic management costs for Santa parades. Photo: RNZ / Polly Nichols
By Polly Nichols
Community groups are spending thousands of dollars on traffic management for Santa parades and relying on donors and sponsors to cover budget shortfalls.
Depending on the size of the event, they must pay companies for traffic controllers, road cones and signage for family Christmas festivities to comply with road regulations.
Organisers of Auckland's Onehunga Christmas Parade expected to traffic management to cost $9000 - almost half of their $20,000 budget.
Onehunga Business Association manager Amanda Wellgreen said the event could not go ahead if one of their grant applications for parade funding was denied.
"The most expensive cost is closing the road. If we don't get support for that, then it's impossible for us to host the event," she said.
In Christchurch, New Brighton Project coordinator Martha Baxendell said traffic management for the not-for-profit organisation's parade had jumped from $874 in 2014 to more than $8000 this year.
She said that accounted for about 75 percent of the Santa parade's budget.
Volunteers prepare floats for the Christchurch Christmas Show Parade. Photo: RNZ / Polly Nichols
"I think at the time, we were just like 'well, we haven't got a choice. We still just gotta pay it. So we're just gonna get on with it'," she said.
Baxendell said New Brighton Project was facing a $2000 budget shortfall until a different traffic management company stepped in to help cover remaining costs.
The donor has now offered to provide traffic management for free next year.
Christchurch's Christmas Show Parade was held at the Canterbury A&P Showgrounds but organisers were still spending $20,000 on traffic management because the event affected the normal use of local roads.
The money also covered the costs of manufacturing event signage and transporting floats from New Brighton to the showgrounds at a speed of just 20 kilometres per hour.
Organisers of the Christchurch Christmas Show Parade saw traffic management costs jump $5000 the week before event. Photo: RNZ / Polly Nichols
A Kaiapoi Santa Parade organiser said a traffic management company had sponsored its event since 2021 but they would have to resort to other funding options without its support.
Christchurch City Council transport operations manager Stephen Wright said legislative changes were partly to blame for the price hikes.
"We are unable to surmise why costs from TTM [temporary traffic management] companies have risen, however there is a growing awareness of risk due to changes in legislation within the last eight years which require organisers to make sure that they take reasonably practicable steps to not cause harm or injury to anyone as a result of their activities," he said in a statement.
Waka Kotahi road works safety programme director Ryan Cooney said traffic management costs depended on the scale of the event.
"If an event does not change the normal operating conditions of the road, temporary traffic management is likely to be cheaper," he said.
Nova Traffic branch manager Sam Duncan encouraged charitable groups to talk to traffic management companies to get the best deal for their cause, saying he was a "big fan of the little guy".