Subscribe to RSSGreens Step Up Campaign Against Bigger Trucks
The Greens is continuing its attack on the government decision to allow bigger longer trucks.
It says the taxpayer is already subsidising overweight trucks.
The Greens has been asking parliamentary questions about the issue, as follows:
Jeanette Fitzsimons to the Minister of Transport: What were the total costs nationally, if any, of administering the permit system for overweight vehicle loads for the last three years?
Steven Joyce: I am advised that currently, overweight and overdimension permits are issued for indivisible loads such as cranes or the transportation of large single items, such as generators. Permits are issued for one-off or in some cases continuous use to accommodate the transportation of these sorts of loads. The cost to the NZ Transport Agency is approximately $600,000 per annum. This is partially recovered by the fees charged by the NZ Transport Agency.
Jeanette Fitzsimons: What were the total revenues raised annually from issuing permits to vehicles for overweight loads for the last three years?
Steven Joyce : I am advised that income from permit fees for overweight loads was approximately $200,000 per annum over the last three years.
Greens’ transport spokesperson says this shows that the government is “overlooking the inefficiencies in the permit system for overweight trucks, and taxpayers are picking up the trucking companies tab.”
“The cost of administering permits to overweight vehicles is three times greater than the revenues raised. In other words, the taxpayer is currently subsidising permits for truckies to drive overweight vehicles on the roads, to the tune of $400,000 a year,” said Mr Hughes.
He is urging those who oppose the move to contact their councils to voice their concerns about allowing bigger oversize vehicles on their local roads.
6 Comments
The trucking industry is the most draining business group on the New Zealand taxpayer and ratepayers.
Joyce, Key and Rodney Hide should front up to Kiwi’s and tell us why we should subsidise the trucking companies. For Hide, why should local Govt aka ratepayers fund any part of roads for private truck companies.
The Road Transport Forum must be laughing - they make huge profits at the ratepayers and taxpayers expense.
If you ask the truckies, they will tell you that the “subsidy” is not their fault, its just that government is so inefficient in administering a simple permit system that they need 600,000 for it. If Government would only privatise the permits business…
Hmmm who to e-mail after Nov, the unaccountable CEO of Auckland Transport appointed by Steven Joyce..? Yeah they’ll care…
Where’s the petition against this? Heaps would sign.
I don’t actually think this is a bad move, as long as the permit system becomes more efficient and the costs are appropraitely ammended, if it means getting a bigger load on one truck rather than needing to take two trucks it lowers congestion.
The main problem is the cost, we need the truck companies to fund the maintenace required by them running, and this is the perfect time to adjust the costs they pay for using our roads. We increase these costs it could also make train freight more viable.
Joshua, a 53 ton truck cannot take two 44 trucks of the road as you say. You might gain slightly by having four heavier instead of five trucks (barely going to make a dent in congestion) But the damage they will do will outlast the advantages, because those four trucks will do 4 x 2.1 = the damage of 8.4 trucks. So in terms of road maintenance, you actually increase the truck loads on the roads by three trucks (details in earlier posts on this).
And this is just another move to make freight even more road-centric. Where are the initiatives - in investment or operations - to make rail freight more competitive?