Congestion tax plan back on the agenda

Rodney Hide. Photo / Brett Phibbs

Aucklanders may be levied to drive through increasingly congested streets in the absence of Government funding of the region's "strategic aspirations".

A paper released by Local Government Minister Rodney Hide before Auckland's first spatial plan due out in 11 days suggests raising revenue by charging motorists to drive around the Super City at peak times.

"Current legislation permits tolling of new roads to provide revenue for their construction - in the long term, changes could be made to enable road pricing or tolling of existing as well as new roads," it says.

The idea was parked up after Aucklanders rejected several Ministry of Transport suggestions for "congestion pricing" five years ago, and the Government was quick to abolish a regional fuel tax proposed by the former Auckland Regional Council to pay for electric trains and other public transport needs.

But another paper issued by Mr Hide says the Crown's fiscal position and strategy means "there is unlikely to be additional central government funding for delivering on Auckland's strategic aspirations beyond that already signalled for investment".

In a nudge towards asset sales, it suggests the Auckland Council consider following the Government's lead in examining its balance sheet "to determine whether capital can be reprioritised to higher-value uses".

The other paper includes an attack on Auckland's existing regional land transport strategy for its emphasis on strong public transport growth and only modest spending on roads.

It says funding levels proposed by the strategy for the next 30 years, including a 42 per cent share for public transport and 53 per cent for roads, "do not align well with existing use and would involve a major shift in current [Government] policy".

Predicting that the spatial plan is likely to focus heavily on developing the Super City's central business district, it says only 14 per cent of Aucklanders work there and it will be important to ensure other parts of the city are looked after as well.