Status Quo and Problem
3. Legislative provision for the access to the road, rail and motorway corridors by utility providers (electricity, telecommunications, water, sewerage, drains, and gas) is inconsistent across statutes. Inconsistencies include the notification requirements prior to works commencing (different periods, notification responsibilities and processes); the allocation of costs when installations are moved; and the criteria for setting "reasonable conditions" on the works by those with jurisdiction over the transport corridor.
4. Utilities have a statutory right of access to roads (subject to "reasonable conditions"). The 75 local authorities have established differing requirements for works in the road, resulting in increased costs and uncertainty of compliance for regional and national utility providers. There is some voluntary use of a code of practice that improves the understanding of process and conditions between some utilities and local authorities, but there is more that one code and many areas do not use one at all. Some utility operators are empowered to impose "reasonable conditions" on the proposed works of others utilities in the vicinity, creating the risk of anti-competitive practices.
5. Utilities do not have a right of access to motorway or rail corridors, but can request it. They describe that considerations are delayed and costly and that there is insufficient access granted.
6. The Land Transport Management Act 2003 has one objective of an "integrated, safe, responsive and sustainable land transport system". The Ministry of Transport advises that the current level of fatal and serious injuries as a result of hitting a roadside hazard (e.g. a tree, ditch, and pole) is not acceptable (50% of rural and 27% of urban crashes involve a roadside hazard/obstacle). When local authorities wish to change the location of, for example, a utility pole that is now considered a hazard, or need to move utility assets in the road (because the road has been realigned) there are issues arising from the costs of this.
7. The Local Government Act (LGA) 2002 requires councils "to promote the social, economic, environmental, and cultural well-being of communities, in the present and for the future" (section 10) but utilities allege that councils are setting "unreasonable" access conditions based on amenity criteria that councils consider aligns with their LGA objective. There is contention over the increased cost that for example under grounding imposes on utility companies.
8. The volume of utility works is considerable. For example, the Auckland region processes around 8,000 requests per year. 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%).
9. Government action is necessary to make legislation consistent where appropriate and to enable a statutory process for the approval, administration, amendment and notification of a stakeholder-developed Code of practice.
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