12. DAVID BENNETT (National—Hamilton East) Link to this
to the Minister of Transport
What progress has been made on the transport stimulus projects announced last February?
Hon STEVEN JOYCE (Minister of Transport) Link to this
I am pleased to report that all five medium to large transport stimulus projects announced last year, plus the Victoria Park project, are now under construction. They are well on their way to improving transport efficiency and boosting growth. They are together employing around 500 New Zealanders in construction jobs, not to mention the additional jobs created downstream in the supply of services and materials. These 500 jobs are all in addition to the significant construction activity already under way across New Zealand.
Both the Contractors Federation and Roading New Zealand have indicated that they are pleased with the responsiveness of both the Government and the New Zealand Transport Agency. The New Zealand Transport Agency has brought forward a further $10 million worth of work this construction season, further helping contractors through the tail end of the recession. With work on roads of national significance now also developing quickly, the sector has a substantial pipeline of Government projects to look forward to.
Hon Darren Hughes Link to this
What areas of New Zealand received the money in last February’s announcement by the Minister for road maintenance and road renewal, given that so many regional mayors around New Zealand have voiced concern about the safety of New Zealand roads, the budgets for which they say have been effectively cut?
I do not want to take up the House’s time reading out every single one of the 87 different local authorities that were allocated funds in the last round; they are, of course, available on the New Zealand Transport Agency website. I point out to the member that the funding increased by around 17 percent across the country for the next 3 years over the last 3 years. That 17 percent increase is shared across a range of territorial local authorities.