National has pledged to establish a half billion-dollar "pothole repair fund" if the party is elected in October, as transport shapes up to be a key election issue.
The party's transport spokesperson Simeon Brown said the $500 million for the fund would come from re-prioritising spending from existing initiatives.
He said the money would come from de-funding "blanket speed limit reductions and excessive speed bump installations" and "the failed Road to Zero advertising campaign".
However, Transport Minister David Parker has hit back on the new policy — claiming that the opposition party was simply creating a "giant pothole" in the transport budget.
Brown said today: "The cost of the Pothole Repair Fund will be met from re-prioritising spending within the National Land Transport Programme towards investment in safer roads which are properly maintained."
The proposed fund would see the new $500 million fund allocated over three years towards repairs on Waka Kotahi state highways and local roads controlled by councils.
There would also be a "new directive to NZTA to double the current rate of roading renewals," according to National.
Brown continued: "Potholes are a safety hazard and have been causing significant damage and disruption to freight and motorists all over the country.
"National will also introduce new rules for pothole repair on state highways, including halving the standard response time for pothole repair from 48 to 24 hours, and introducing a requirement for NZTA to undertake renewal and rehabilitation work on at least 2% of the roading network each year, more than double the current rate."
National to blame for 'road maintenance crisis' - minister
Incoming Transport Minister David Parker said National had previously underinvested in roading infrastructure, leading to a "crisis" that the Government inherited.
"The current state highway maintenance budget is $2.8 billion for 2021/24 – that’s a 65% increase on the $1.7 billion that National spent during 2015/18, when it was last in office," he said in a media release.
"To be clear, Waka Kotahi is fixing a record number of potholes across the state highway network. It repaired 54,544 potholes in calendar 2022, compared with 39,652 in 2018.
"This Government inherited a road maintenance crisis. National chose to freeze road maintenance funding during its time in office in order fund high-profile new highways.
"As a result, roads were resurfaced at less than half the rate they should have been."
Parker claimed National's proposal to defund other transport initiatives, like safety initiatives, would result in fewer frontline police checks and other safety infrastructure.
"Simeon Brown says he would use Waka Kotahi’s public awareness campaign funding, but that is only $38.7 million this financial year."
AA Road Safety spokesperson Dylan Thomsen spoke to Seven Sharp about ways to avoid those pesky pits, and when you may be eligible for compensation. (Source: Seven Sharp)
Taking a different tone, the trucking lobby gave its "thumbs up" to the new policy pledge instead, in a media release that was published shortly after National's announcement.
National Road Carriers Association chief executive Justin Tighe-Umbers claimed road maintenance had "slipped" amid a focus on public transport, railways, and road safety.
"The focus on getting the basics right — road maintenance — has clearly slipped. The National Party's policy gives clear direction to NZTA to focus on the table stakes essential for drivable roads," he said.
"It is critical that we not only keep up with the 2% run rate needed each year to replace the roading asset, but that we actually do more to recover the decades we've been falling behind."
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