My ire was raised this morning when I read a pile of PR drivel from acting PM Winston Peters about the Interislander. If he wanted to be useful looking at “critical part of our infrastructure” – then there are number of better things he could usefully do – rather than chasing headlines.
Truck drivers are being to told to refuel outside of the Auckland regional fuel tax. Hopefully this will also mean that more of the excessively subsidised road destroying heavy vehicles will stay outside of our precious Auckland roads. But raising the Road User Charges in accordance to the general 4th power law would be more direct and have a better economic effect.
National has been sucking billions of dollars out of the provincial road maintenance budgets to throw into “Roads of Significance only to National” since 2009. In the latest round, maintenance costs for roads mostly used by trucks will drop to an average of 52%, with the small populations of ratepayers expected to subsidize trucking firms. Is it any wonder that they’re looking at National’s token gesture over the weekend with disdain and anger. Meanwhile the urban centres aren’t getting the public transport they need.
