Hawke’s Bay Regional Council
Regional
Transport Committee
15 March
2024
Subject: Regional Land Transport Plan
adoption for consultation
Reason for report
1. This item presents the
draft Regional Land Transport Plan (RLTP) 2024 – 2034 to approve for
public consultation.
Officers’
recommendations
2. Staff recommend that the
draft Regional Land Transport Plan 2024 – 2034 and supporting
consultation document are adopted by the Committee for public consultation as
proposed, with consultation planned to commence on Monday 18 March 2024.
Executive
summary
3. This report seeks the
Committee’s approval of the draft 2021-31 RLTP and consultation document
for public consultation.
4. The draft Regional Land
Transport Plan is provided as attachment 1.
Background
/Discussion
5. The RLTP is a statutory
document that must be prepared by the Regional Transport Committee (the
Committee) every six years and reviewed every three years as required by the
Land Transport Management Act 2003 (LTMA). The Regional Council developed the
current RLTP in 2021.
6. The RLTP comprises three
key parts:
6.1. The strategic framework
section which has the desired future state with a 30-year vision, objectives,
headline targets, policies, implementation measures and long-term results.
6.2. The transport investment
programme, which responds to the three main transport priorities over the next
decade, helping our region to realise the 30-year vision. The detailed
10-year transport priorities set out sub-priorities that set out the
challenges, evidence, and proposed investment to overcome the barrier or
challenge.
6.3. Regional Programmes which
set out the land transport activities for the next 3-6 years and provides a
10-year expenditure and revenue forecast.
7. The RLTP (Attachment 1)
must be prepared by the Committee and adopted by the Regional Council and
submitted to Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency by 14 June 2024. This timeline
enables Waka Kotahi to adopt the National Land Transport Programme by end
August 2024, setting out the activities to be funded/anticipated to be funded
from the National Land Transport Fund for the next 3 years (as per LTMA s19C
requirements).
8. The 2024 RLTP review used a
template developed by the Transport Special Interest Group alongside the NZ
Transport Agency. The purpose of the template was to bring about greater
consistency of RLTPs across all regions and ensure that all legislative requirements
are met. In using this template, Hawke’s Bay has closely incorporated
impacts of Cyclone Gabrielle and formed the investment narrative around what
our transport system now needs, which may deviate in some ways from the
template. These are limited to the narrative, not statutory requirements.
9. The 2024 RLTP process has
included workshops and ongoing discussions with Committee members, key
stakeholders, the Technical Advisory Group, and the Regional Recovery Agency to
define issues and opportunities, develop the 10-year transport priorities and
accompanying investment programme, and set the strategic direction of the next
RLTP.
10. The Committee agreed and
adopted the 30-year strategic vision, objectives, policies, and 10-year
transport priorities at the 4 August 2023 Committee meeting.
11. The Committee agreed the
prioritisation of the Capital works programme and the Significance Policy at
the 3 November 2023 Committee meeting.
12. At the time of writing, the
draft RLTP is complete, including monitoring frameworks and headline targets.
However, due to the incoming government’s review of the Government
Position Statement (GPS) and the announcement of the draft GPS being made on 4
March, there may need to be changes made to the RLTP in response and to any
submission points following the consultation process. Any changes will need to
be considered at the time of hearing submissions and deliberations by the RTC.
Draft Government Policy Statement
(GPS) on Land Transport 2024
13. The draft GPS on Land
Transport 2024 was due to be released in August 2023. With the change of
Government, the draft GPS was released on 4 March 2024. The draft GPS will
undergo a month-long consultation process, finishing on 1 April.
14. Staff have worked within a
limited timeframe to ensure there is alignment between the draft GPS and the
draft RLTP. Strategic direction alignment is clear. However, the limited time
did not allow for a fulsome review within the context of the draft GPS. Changes
can be made as part of the RLTP consultation period.
15. The four strategic
priorities for the draft GPS 2024 are:
15.1. Economic Growth and
Productivity
15.2. Increased Maintenance and
Resilience
15.3. Safety
15.4. Value for Money.
16. These strategic priorities
strongly align with the draft RLTP, particularly the strategic priorities
around Increased Maintenance and Resilience and Economic Growth and
Productivity.
17. Following the release of
the draft GPS, the State Highway Improvement Programme (SHIP) is likely to
change. This could materially alter the Capital Works programme in the draft
RLTP once the consultation process has closed. Any such changes will be dealt
with through the RLTP variation process.
Options
assessment
18. The preparation and review
of the Regional Land Transport Plan is a statutory requirement to complete the
Regional Land Transport Plan
19. Other transport network
management options were included in the consideration of relevant issues and
options during the development of the draft RLTP.
Strategic fit
20. The preparation and review
of the Regional Land Transport Plan is a statutory requirement to complete the
Regional Land Transport Plan
Significance
and Engagement Policy assessment
21. In terms of the
Council’s Significance and Engagement Policy, the matter of proceeding
with consultation on the draft Regional Land Transport Plan 2024-2034 is not
significant.
Climate
Change considerations
22. The regional transport
system contributes to climate change and our regional emissions footprint.
Transport emissions and the mitigation effects on the transport system were
major considerations in the development of the draft RLTP. This is reflected in
strategic priority 2 – Drive a low emissions transport system.
23. The draft RLTP addresses
transport emissions through a range of different proposed investments,
including a step-change in public transport services and investigating the
Green Hydrogen opportunity for Hawke’s Bay.
Considerations
of tangata whenua
24. The development of the RLTP
has included consideration of tangata whenua and their transport needs.
Tangata whenua are identified as vulnerable to transport network connectivity,
especially those in rural areas and in relation to objectives for road safety.
25. The RLTP includes policies
and initiatives that will enable targeting of at-risk communities and
behaviours as well as ongoing maintenance and improvements of rural roads.
26. The RLTP consultation
process and timeline, along with the intent of the draft RLTP were shared at
the 6 March Māori Committee meeting. Staff sought insight and advice on
how to best engage with tangata whenua during the consultation period.
Financial
and resource implications
27. The financial and resource
implications of the RLTP 2021-2031 have been accounted for in Long Term Plan
budgets by each Council in the region.
Consultation
28. The draft RLTP is being
considered by the Committee prior to release for public consultation, scheduled
for Monday 18 March – 14 April 2024, noting that some minor changes and
amendments may be made to it ahead of release.
29. The draft consultation
document is presented in attachment 2, noting that no further changes
to it can be made due to time constraints.
30. As noted previously, staff
have worked at pace to ensure there is alignment with the draft GPS on Land
Transport and, given both the RLTP and the GPS are in draft form for
consultation, changes may be required through the consultation process.
Other considerations
31. The RLTP contains the
direction for management and improvement of the transport networks and
associated transport services including public transport and road safety
programmes. The co-funding for these is provided for through the
authorising organisation’s Long Term Plan.
32. The final content of all
the activity tables in section 11 of the RLTP – including activities
approved but not completed and regionally significant expenditure from other
funding sources – are as complete as possible at the time of writing.
This is largely due to the dynamic environment the RLTP is currently operating
in.
Decision-making process
33. Council and its committees
are required to make every decision in accordance with the requirements of the
Local Government Act 2002 (the Act). Staff have assessed the requirements in
relation to this item and have concluded:
33.1. The decision does not
significantly alter the service provision or affect a strategic asset, nor is
it inconsistent with an existing policy or plan.
33.2. The consultation procedure
for the Regional Land Transport Plan is prescribed by section 18 of the Land
Transport Management Act 2003 and section 82 and 83 of the Local Government Act
2002. Public consultation will be held between 18 March and 14 April 2024.
33.3. The persons affected by
this decision are ratepayers and others with an interest in the region’s
transportation networks.
33.4. Given the nature and
significance of the issue to be considered and decided, and also the persons
likely to be affected by, or have an interest in the decisions made, the
Committee can exercise its discretion and make the required decisions without
consulting directly with the community.
Recommendations
That the Regional Transport Committee:
1. Receives and considers the Regional
Land Transport Plan adoption for consultation staff report.
2. Agrees that the decisions
to be made are not significant under the criteria contained in Council’s
adopted Significance and Engagement Policy, and that the Committee can exercise
its discretion and make decisions on this issue without conferring directly
with the community or persons likely to have an interest in the decision.
3. Releases the
draft Regional Land Transport Plan and consultation document for
consultation from 18 March 2024 for a period of 4 weeks ending on 14 April
2024, following minor amendments and formatting changes.
4. Appoints a Hearing Panel to
hear and make decisions on submissions on the draft Regional Land Transport
Plan in May 2024, comprising:
4.1. ...
4.2. …
4.3. …
4.4. …
4.5. …
5. Agrees that a submission on
the draft Government Policy Statement on Land Transport 2024 is to be made, and delegates staff and
two members of the Regional Transport Committee, being _______________ and
__________, to develop that submission.
Authored by:
|
Bryce Cullen
Transport Strategy & Policy
Analyst
|
Mark Allan
Transport Manager
|
Approved by:
|
Katrina Brunton
Group Manager Policy &
Regulation
|
|
Attachment/s
1 draft
Regional Land Transport Plan Under separate
cover
2 RLTP
consultation document Under
separate cover
Hawke’s Bay Regional
Council
Regional
Transport Committee
15 March
2024
Subject: MyWay Trial Evaluation
Reason for report
1. This report presents the
MyWay Trial Evaluation report to the Regional Transport Committee for
consideration.
Executive summary
2. The MyWay on-demand trial
commenced in the Hastings urban area in June 2022 as an app-based on-demand
public transport service. The trial replaced three under-performing fixed route
services that consistently had low patronage and poor fare revenue. The review
report is attachment 1 to this paper.
Background
3. The intent of the trial,
launched in June 2022, was to offer an on-demand public transport service for
the Hastings urban area to test whether it would increase patronage, create
greater access, and provide genuine transport choice.
4. Overall, throughout the
course of the trial the service experienced a noticeable uplift in patronage
when compared with the fixed-route services. At $2 per ride the service
provided an accessible means of transport for a range of people. However, the
trial did experience a range of challenges, such as technological inequity,
limited access, anti-social behavior issues and increased cost of delivery.
Discussion
5. MyWay is primarily an
app-based service, operating in a similar way to the Uber taxi service. The
service operates in the main urban area of Hastings, (not including Havelock or
Flaxmere) with a pickup point within 200m of the booking origin.
6. If a user does not have an
app-enabled cell phone, it is possible to book a MyWay ride via phone. This
call would come through to the Hawke’s Bay Regional Council call centre
where a team member would book the ride.
7. For customers without a
mobile device, several sites were identified during the trial development
process as either key spots to order a MyWay, such as the Hastings Library or
key drop off locations, such as McDonalds or Kmart.
8. The introduction of the
service was preceded by a soft launch with ‘user champions’. These
champions trialed the service for a number of weeks, providing feedback on the
planned service and what improvements might be required.
9. Although phone call
bookings were made possible, the service was more difficult to use for those
users and took up a significant amount of time for the Hawke’s Bay
Regional Council Customer Experience Team.
10. The table below sets out
the overall performance of the trial against the objectives. The three
fixed-route services that the MyWay trial was replacing carried approximately
25,000 passengers per annum. The actual numbers have been converted to a
percentage as some figures are commercially sensitive.
|
Metric
|
Target percentage change
|
Actual percentage change
|
|
Patronage
|
+ 70% on fixed route historic performance
|
+50% on fixed route historic performance
|
|
Annual gross operating costs
|
+104% compared with fixed route operating costs
|
+159% compared with fixed route operating costs
|
|
Fare revenue
|
+298% versus fixed route service
|
+140% against fixed route service
|
|
Subsidy per trip
|
+10% versus fixed route subsidy rate
|
+73% against fixed route subsidy rate
|
11. While the trial created
greater transport access, there were a range of users in the Hastings urban
area who relied heavily on the consistency and reliability of the fixed-route
services. These people did not have access to mobile devices and, in most
cases, also didn’t have a land line, so were unable to use the service.
With no other transport choice, this presented a potential isolation challenge.
12. The HBRC customer
experience (CX) team fielded a significant volume of MyWay calls on a daily
basis, taking up a significant amount of staff time. The CX team also
experienced a range of abuse from the public.
13. Overall, the service
experienced significant cost inflation, meaning that any further extension of
the service past the contracted date may become prohibitively expensive.
Next steps
14. MyWay will continue to run
until the end of the contracted period, expiring at the end of July 2025.
15. Staff will continue to
evaluate the place of on-demand public transport in any future public transport
network.
Decision-making process
16. Staff have assessed the
requirements of the Local Government Act 2002 in relation to this item and have
concluded that, as this report is for information only, the decision-making
provisions do not apply.
Recommendation
That
the Regional
Transport Committee receives and notes the MyWay trial evaluation report.
Authored by:
|
Bryce Cullen
Transport Strategy & Policy
Analyst
|
Mark Allan
Transport Manager
|
Approved by:
|
Katrina Brunton
Group Manager Policy &
Regulation
|
|
Attachment/s
|
1
|
On-Demand Trial Evaluation Report
|
|
Under Separate Cover
|
Hawke’s
Bay Regional Council
Regional
Transport Committee
15 March
2024
Subject: Regional Transport Programme
March 2024 update
Reason for report
1. This agenda item provides
an update on the progress on the Regional Transport Advisory Group (RTAG)
workstreams and updated Regional Transport Programme Tracker (attached).
Background
2. The Regional
Transport Programme Tracker was introduced in February 2023 and provides a
snapshot of the RTAG workstreams in addition to the commentary provided in this
paper.
Regional Land Transport Plan (RLTP)
3. The RLTP has
been drafted and is presented at the 15 March Committee meeting to be endorsed
for public consultation, scheduled to start on 18 March.
4. The draft RLTP
focuses on resilience, maintenance, connecting our communities, and our local /
rural roading network. The draft also outlines the new public transport
network, scheduled for mid-2025, setting out the step-change this will provide,
giving our community enhanced transport choice.
5. A draft
Government Position Statement (GPS) 2024 was released for consultation in
August 2023, pre-election. The new Government has undertaken a re-write
of the GPS as part of its 100-day plan and the GPS was released on 4 March 2024.
6. Staff have endeavoured to
ensure there is alignment between the draft GPS and the draft RLTP within the
limited time available. Strategic direction alignment is clear, however, a
fulsome review was not possible and changes may need to be made during the RLTP
consultation period.
Regional Speed Management Planning
7. This work has
been ceased by the Transport Minister. Existing plans for speed management
around schools and marae may proceed, but any further work must stop.
RoadSafe Hawke’s Bay
8. The Road Safety
Strategy development continues in collaboration with district and city councils
as staff resourcing and time allows.
9. Detailed
planning is underway for the Youth Road Safety Expo. This year it will be open
to students from years 11 – 13 from across the region, along with the
general public. This is a significant event on the RoadSafe Hawke’s Bay
calendar and runs for a week in early May.
10. Business as
usual activities continue across the region. Two subject matter expert
contractors have been engaged to assist with community initiatives,
capitalising on the rebrand, new messaging, and momentum that has been created.
Transport Emissions Reduction Plan
11. The draft
Transport Emissions Reduction chapter was endorsed by the Committee at the
3 November meeting. This has subsequently been built into the overall
Regional Emissions Reduction Plan, tabled with the Climate Action Joint
Committee. Several actions from the Transport chapter are in progress, for
example, a Green Hydrogen working group has been established with industry and
key stakeholders examining options for heavy freight decarbonisation.
Active Transport
12. Planned
Transport Choices projects will not proceed as planned. Funding for these
initiatives is no longer available.
13. Progress on the
Regional Active Transport Strategy has been slower than anticipated. Work will
continue throughout 2024.
Regional Public Transport Plan (RPTP) implementation
14. The RPTP was
adopted in September 2022 and will provide a step-change for public transport
services in the region.
15. Initial
planning continues for the new network with high level costing being developed
along with some initial engagement planning. An EOI process was completed in
January 2024 with a total of 5 suppliers expressing an interest. This will form
the basis of the next step, a formalized Request for Tender process.
16. The development
of a detailed business case is required.
17. Desktop
research and modelling has taken place on the CHB commuter express trial.
Engagement and detailed planning is ongoing with CHBDC officers.
Decision-making process
18. Staff have assessed the requirements
of the Local Government Act 2002 in relation to this item and have concluded
that, as this report is for information only, the decision-making provisions do
not apply.
Recommendation
That
the Regional
Transport Committee receives and notes the Regional Transport
Programme March 2024 update.
Authored by:
|
Bryce Cullen
Transport Strategy & Policy
Analyst
|
Mark Allan
Transport Manager
|
Approved by:
|
Katrina Brunton
Group Manager Policy &
Regulation
|
|
Attachment/s
|
1⇩
|
Transport TAG Programme tracker 15
March
|
|
|
