Statement of the Nature and Magnitude of the Problem and the Need for Government Action
The current framework for the use of road, rail and motorway corridors by utility providers (electricity, telecommunications, water, sewerage, drains, gas) has evolved in an ad hoc manner, over a number of statutes. There is no party charged with the overall responsibility for planning and coordinating works in the road, in the public interest, and no provision for enforceable national standards or codes of practice. Some utility operators are empowered to place "reasonable conditions" on the proposed works of others utilities in the vicinity, raising questions of anti-competitive practices. The 75 road controlling authorities (RCAs) have established differing requirements for works in the road, resulting in increased costs and uncertainty of compliance for regional and national utility providers.
There are significant inconsistencies in the treatment of different utility sectors including: the definition of "road"; notification requirements prior to works commencing; the allocation of costs when installations are moved or damaged; and the ability to place "reasonable conditions" on the works of other parties. One effect of the differing definitions of "road" is that telecommunications utilities have access rights to public spaces that are not roads under the jurisdiction of a local authority. The Ministry of Transport advises that the current level of fatal and serious injuries as a result of hitting a roadside hazard is not acceptable (50% of rural and 27% of urban crashes involve a roadside hazard/obstacle). The ability of RCAs to change the location of utility poles that are now considered a hazard is affected by lack of agreement with utility providers over cost sharing.
The lack of overall coordination and management results in wasteful re-work, poor use of the valuable and limited space, avoidable damage to both the road surface and utility installations, and associated service disruptions. As the intensity of use of the corridors increases, the likelihood of one network compromising the performance of another also increases (e.g. when telecommunication cable are co-located with power cables), requiring enhanced planning and management.
The right of access to private land was removed in 1987 for telecommunications utilities and 1992 for electricity, increasing the pressure on transport corridors. Utilities have a statutory right of access to roads (subject to "reasonable conditions"), but not to motorway or rail corridors. There are complaints of insufficient, costly and delayed approvals for access along and across rail and motorway corridors.
The volume of utility works is considerable. For example North Shore City averaged over five road works per kilometre of road in 2004/05. Of these, only 66% of the works reinstated the road to a condition acceptable to the RCA. It costs in the order of $250,000 per lane kilometre to fully reinstate a road surface following works. Local Government New Zealand's high-level estimate of the national cost of road re-work and repairs associated with utility works is $40 million per annum ($30 million in direct repairs and $10 million in lost service potential due to utility works reducing the life of the affected road surface by up to 33%).
Government action is necessary because the current inadequate framework is established in legislation. The problems are escalating due to growing demand for utility services; competing providers and networks; and the roll-out of new technologies. Improvements in the responsiveness, quality and reliability of utility infrastructure are crucial to New Zealand's productive capacity and growth prospects. Businesses rely on availability of infrastructure and efficient transport.
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