New report outlines freight sector priorities for Waikato and Bay of Plenty 

In News4 MinutesBy NZ Trucking magazineJune 23, 2022

Waikato economic development agency Te Waka has released a new report highlighting eight priority issues for the region to act on to support the continued growth and efficiency of the freight and logistics sector.

“The freight and logistics sector is already one of the key drivers of economic development in our region and we anticipate strong future growth as freight volumes increase and key industry investments come onstream in the coming months and years,” said Hamish Bell, chair of Te Waka.

“These investments are significant in their own right, and also create a platform for wider investment for other industries to grow,” he said.

“This is why we have identified the sector as a key platform for growth and why we’ve brought together industry leaders to develop a consensus view of the priority needs and actions. The end result is a unique and important perspective on freight, logistics and transport priorities.”

The eight priority actions identified in the The Waikato & Bay of Plenty Freight Action Plan report are to:

Advocate for and participate in a study that takes a system-wide view of capacity across the Waikato and Bay of Plenty regions, including key links to Auckland, with bottlenecks/constraints identified and prioritised.

Advocate for and participate in a study that assesses the resilience of critical network assets, and identifies mitigation plans to limit potential disruption, including the Kaimai Tunnel, and SH29 (Kaimai Ranges).

Encourage the completion of regionally significant road capital projects – including SH1, SH2, SH29 and the Southern Links projects.

Support the continuation of expenditure on road maintenance, to maintain the assets we currently have in the Waikato region.

Support the continuation of expenditure on road maintenance, to maintain the assets we currently have in the Bay of Plenty region.

Accelerate the Road to Success Programme for the Waikato and Bay of Plenty regions by socialising the programme and advocating for more funding / support.

Provide support for truck drivers to be on the New Zealand immigration skills shortage list for the Waikato / Bay of Plenty region.

Take a leadership position in the roll out of hydrogen infrastructure in New Zealand.

The report also identifies other issues of importance to the sector, but where consensus on solutions is currently lacking, including inland ports and other freight aggregators, seaports, and price competitiveness of rail.

Leonard Sampson, chief executive, Port of Tauranga, said, “A strong freight and logistics sector is key for the future resilience of New Zealand.

“The action plan highlights the crucial importance of investing in capacity and infrastructure to manage the forecast future growth in freight volumes,” he said.

Bell said Te Waka was mapping out the next steps for working on the priority actions.

“We will now work to bring industry together with local and central government stakeholders to deliver on these actions.”

Te Waka developed The Waikato & Bay of Plenty Freight Action Plan in partnership with Priority One, EY, Tainui Group Holdings, Fonterra, KiwiRail, Port of Tauranga, Netlogix and Mondiale.