Executive Summary
2. In October 2006 I proposed policies to address issues raised by utilities (supplying electricity, gas and telecommunications services), local authorities (who also supply water services), Transit New Zealand and Ontrack around utility access to transport corridors (CBC Min (06) 17/27 refers).
3. Cabinet "approved in principle, subject to further development, the proposed policy framework for reducing the costs and inefficiencies of utility access to the road, motorway and rail corridors, and enhancing the sustainable management and multi-use of transport corridors".
4. The recommended framework includes the development of a proposal by key stakeholders to collaborate to create a national Code of practice as the main mechanism to advance the aim for better management of the competing demands on the transport corridor. This replaces the previous proposal to create an explicit governance role for road controlling authorities and statutory responsibility for managing and co-ordinating sustainable multi-purpose use of roads. The Code of practice has become the vehicle for some of the previous policy proposals to be given effect.
5. To enable the code to have legal status, I propose powers for the Minister for Economic Development, in consultation with the Ministers of Transport and Local Government, to approve, administer, amend and notify the code. I also propose legislation includes regulation-making powers for a regulated Code of practice if stakeholders fail to produce one that meets the mandatory requirements.
6. The recommended framework also makes consistent the allocation of costs when local authorities need to move utility infrastructure, and the timeframe for notification and response processes between utilities and local authorities. It also proposes a legislated timeframe for Transit and Ontrack to respond to utilities requests for access to the motorway and rail corridors.
Background
7. Cabinet (CBC Min (06) 17/27 refers) noted that following a review and associated consultation on reducing costs and inefficiencies of utility access to the road, motorway and rail corridors, and enhancing the sustainable management and multi-use of transport corridors, officials prepared a policy position paper "Utilities and the Road, Motorway and Rail Corridors" (the position paper) attached to the Cabinet paper CBC (06) 246. Report back date was 30th April 2007.
8. Cabinet approved in principle this policy framework, subject to a further report back, and invited the Minister for Economic Development to continue to develop the framework to a level that would enable drafting instructions for any resulting changes to legislation to be prepared.
9. Cabinet noted that the main policy proposals of the position paper included:
- an explicit governance role for road controlling authorities and statutory responsibility for managing and co-ordinating sustainable multi-purpose use of roads;
- establishment of nationally consistent and enforceable codes of practice (for managing access to transport corridors) and standards for cost allocation, technical issues and reasonable conditions;
- a consistent mediation step for dispute resolution (generally about the setting of reasonable conditions) added to all legislation;
- harmonisation of key definitions, processes and timeframes throughout utility and local government legislation;
- a consistent regime for notification of affected parties for all utilities and locations (the road, rail and motorway corridors); and
- access rights of utilities to roads maintained and access rights of utilities to rail and motorway corridors enhanced.
10. The 2006 policy framework noted above has been revised following further consultation, In particular, the governance role under paragraph 9 (a) will not be advanced. This paper sets out the reasons for the revisions and proposes the amendments to legislation to give effect to the revised policies.
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