Auckland Council is set to be the first local authority the government will look to partner with when establishing the Land Transport Management (Time of Use Charging) Amendment Bill. Photo: RNZ / Lucy Xia
The Automobile Association says it supports the introduction of congestion charging in principle, but there are many questions about its implementation that need to be answered.
The legislation passed its third and final reading in Parliament on Tuesday and it will give NZTA and councils the power to bring in time-of-use charging.
Auckland Council is set to be the first local authority the government will look to partner with.
AA policy director Martin Glynn said they supported the legislation because congestion was such a big problem, particularly in Auckland and it would only get worse with population growth.
"It allows local councils and the NZTA to get together to develop proposals to charge people who drive on specific roads or in a specific area at times when roads are congested. So the aim is to encourage less congestion by encouraging people to drive at less busy times, switch to public transport if they can, or not drive at all."
Time-of-use charging was the only realistic way to address that, he said.
But in terms of whether AA supported the policy's implementation it would depend what was on the table, he said.
"Are people going to have options, you know how much time will they actually save if they pay the charge, there's a whole bunch of questions that need to be answered."
Public transport networks were particularly good out of Auckland and Wellington city centres but realistically, depending on where the congestion charging zone was, not everyone would have the option of using public transport.
In terms of public transport availability a good option would be to start with the Auckland CBD, he said.
"But that's not where the congestion problem is, the big congestion problem is of course on the motorway network, and that's where there's not good public transport options, so yeah it's a bit of a dilemma about where to start."
A potential issue with a congestion charge was that some people who could not delay their travel and who did not have public transport as an option could struggle to pay it, he said.
"The bill doesn't specifically provide for discounts, so we're particularly concerned to see how those needs are met."
It also did not provide exemptions for people like tradies or cleaners who had to come in and out of a city throughout the day, he said.
"Emergency services vehicles and buses are exempt in the legislation - nothing else."
He said Auckland had already begun preliminary work on a scheme and he hoped there would be some public engagement next year.
But the legislation did not come into effect for another year and it was quite explicit that there had to be comprehensive public consultation, he said.
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