Land transport Crown investment packages Te mahi haumi a te Karauna mō te waka whenua

On 29 January 2020, the Government announced the NZD$12 billion New Zealand Upgrade Programme, which includes NZD$6.8 billion of Crown investment across 24 land transport projects in rail, roads, public transport and walking and cycling infrastructure across New Zealand.

The transport component of the programme is the single largest transport investment directly funded by the Crown. It reflects the Government’s commitment to addressing our nation’s infrastructure needs, while also providing a vital economic stimulus to firms and households in response to the impacts of COVID-19.

The transport investment focuses on supporting priorities of safety and access in our main growth areas — Auckland, Waikato, Bay of Plenty, Wellington, Canterbury and Queenstown.

The transport projects will be delivered by Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency and KiwiRail, and are overseen by the Minister of Transport and the Minister of Finance.

New Zealand Upgrade Programme – Transport(external link)

We have a monitoring, assurance, oversight and reporting role across the transport projects in the programme.

In November 2017, the Government announced the Provincial Growth Fund (PGF), an NZD$3 billion, 3-year investment focused on regional economic development in New Zealand.

The key priorities of the PGF are to:

• enhance economic development opportunities
• create sustainable jobs
• enable Māori to reach their full potential
• boost social inclusion and participation
• build resilient communities, and
• help meet New Zealand’s climate change targets.

The PGF is administered by the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment’s Provincial Development Unit and is overseen by a core group of Regional Economic Development Ministers — the Ministers for Finance, Regional Economic Development, Economic Development and Transport. We have an advisory, monitoring, and reporting role over PGF transport projects.

The current total amount of PGF funding approved for land transport is approximately NZD$630 million as at 30 July 2020.

The Grow Regions website has further information.

The Provincial Growth Fund(external link)

In August 2014, the Government established the NZD$100 million Urban Cycleways Fund, which led to the NZD$333 million Urban Cycleways Programme being delivered. The purpose of the programme was to improve how cycling infrastructure was set up in the main urban centres.

The programme was dedicated to improving urban cycling infrastructure between 2014/15 and 2017/18 and was developed based on recommendations from the Urban Cycleway Investment Panel.

The programme provided increased investment to accelerate the delivery of cycling networks in New Zealand’s main urban centres. The Crown provided a greater share of funding to incentivise local councils to increase their investment in cycling and walking projects.

Waka Kotahi led the programme, which has now closed. However, some projects remain underway as the delivery timeframe for Waka Kotahi and Local Government has been extended.

Urban cycleways programme(external link)

In June 2014, the Government announced Crown funding to accelerate a number of regionally important state highway projects that would be rolled out in 3 tranches across the country.

This funding would enable Waka Kotahi to lead the investigation, consenting or design of 14 transport infrastructure projects across New Zealand. The tranches included:

• Tranche 1: Up to NZD$80 million was allocated to construct 5 critically important regional projects in Northland, Gisborne, Taranaki, Canterbury and Otago. These are:
  • Kawarau Falls Bridge(external link)
  • Mingha Bluff to Rough Creek Realignment(external link)
  • Akerama Curves Realignment and Passing Lane(external link)
  • State Highway 35 Slow Vehicle Bays(external link)
  • Normanby Overbridge Realignment(external link)
• Tranche 2: Up to NZD$5 million was allocated to finalise investigation and consenting for projects in Northland, Gisborne, Taranaki, Horowhenua, Marlborough and the West Coast. Up to NZD$115 million was committed for construction, depending on whether Waka Kotahi’s investigations found the projects were needed. These are:
  • Motu Bridge Replacement(external link)
  • Ōpaoa Bridge Replacement(external link)
  • Whirokino Trestle Bridge Replacement(external link)
  • Taramakau Rail Bridge(external link)
  • Loop Road North Safety Improvements(external link)
  • Mt Messenger and Awakino Gorge projects (external link)
• Tranche 3: Up to NZD$12 million was committed to investigate and design 3 large projects in Hawkes Bay, Nelson and the Bay of Plenty. These are:
  • Napier Port Access Package — funding was to develop the package, which is now complete, with individual projects identified.
  • Nelson Future Access Project(external link)
  • Rotorua Eastern Arterial(external link)

Waka Kotahi’s website has further information about the individual projects.

Projects(external link) 

On 4 June 2021, the Government confirmed the direction and funding commitment to deliver the NZ Upgrade Programme (NZUP). 

In January 2020, the Government announced the NZD$12 billion New Zealand Upgrade Programme, which included NZD$6.8 billion of Crown investment across 24 land transport projects in rail, roads, public transport and walking and cycling infrastructure across New Zealand. 

As a result of some of the project costs increasing, the Ministry worked with The Treasury, Waka Kotahi and KiwiRail on a baselining exercise to assess and confirm the costs, scopes and schedules for the original projects. Ministers then requested a re-prioritisation of NZUP projects to support emissions reduction goals, urban growth objectives, and to manage costs in a responsible manner. 

The Government has now announced additional investment to support the transport projects in NZ Upgrade Programme. The Government has set aside an additional $1.9 billion in the multi-year capital allowance to support the targeted investments. In addition, some of the projects with the largest cost increases identified through the baselining exercise have been re-scoped to manage costs, while still delivering on the Government’s objectives for the original projects. 

The transport investment focuses on supporting priorities of safety and unlocking new housing opportunities in our main growth areas — Auckland, Waikato, Bay of Plenty, Wellington, Canterbury and Queenstown.

The transport component of NZUP represents the single largest transport investment directly funded by the Crown. It reflects the Government’s commitment to addressing our nation’s infrastructure needs, while also providing a vital economic stimulus in response to the impacts of COVID-19. 

The transport projects are being delivered by Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency and KiwiRail, and are overseen by the Minister of Finance and the Minister of Transport.

NZ Upgrade Programme kept on track | Beehive.govt.nz(external link)

More information on NZUP can be found on Waka Kotahi's website(external link)