Hi Friend,

I'm Austin, a Policy Analyst here at the Taxpayers' Union.

Over summer, like most families, you probably packed the car, queued up a playlist, and hit the road. 

But you probably didn’t budget for tolls. You didn’t need to; there are only three toll roads in the whole of New Zealand (all in the North Island).  

But that's about to change. The Land Transport (Revenue) Amendment Bill moving through Parliament is about to significantly expand where and how tolls can be used across the country.  

Now that summer is over and Parliament is back at work, we need your support – sign the petition calling on the Minister of Transport to fix this Bill before it becomes law.

What fair tolling looks like and why this Bill is a problem

While tolling hasn't been used much in New Zealand, since the Muldoon-era it has always followed some core principles:

• First, tolling has always been targeted to motorists who benefit from a new road – i.e. those who use a toll road are paying for that particular road. No tolls are applied to existing roads (i.e. those already paid for).
  
  
• Second, people are only charged when they actually use the new road.
  
  
• Third, toll-free routes (usually the old road) remain available – allowing motorists to choose between new/tolled routes, and slower/untolled alternatives. 

Friend, the Government is proposing to effectively abandon all three of these principles! 

We're asking our supporters to sign the petition asking for changes to the Bill.

Unless changed, the Bill will allow future Governments to use tolls as general road taxes (eg. use tolls from one road to fund maintenance of another).

It will also allow tolling of existing roads, and even give ministers the power to force motorists to use tolled roads (and remove the right to use free alternatives).

We say that's unfair, and I'm asking for your support to tell the Government that.

Devil in the detail 🔎

Under the Bill, Transport ministers can approve tolls on existing roads simply because they sit within the same transport corridor as a new project. The Bill does not clearly define what a corridor is – which represents a real risk to your wallet.

In practice, so-called corridor tolling will likely mean paying a toll even if you never use the new infrastructure being funded. You may just be travelling somewhere along the same or adjacent general area.

For example, a new interchange could be built along a major highway to serve a growing area. Drivers who never take that exit could still be required to help pay for it, simply because they travel along the same "corridor".

The Bill then goes a step further by allowing toll money to be used on maintaining the (toll-free) routes people take instead of the toll road.

In plain terms, a driver could pay a toll to use a new road, only to have part of that money redirected to fix or maintain a different road they are not driving on at all.

Once people are charged for infrastructure they do not directly benefit from, tolling stops being user pays. It becomes yet another general tax on motorists.

Charging motorists twice 🛑

By removing the ring-fencing of toll revenue and allowing tolls to pay for maintenance of old/existing roads, it will see motorists pay twice.

Motorists already pay for road maintenance through Fuel Excise Duty and Road User Charges. Those charges are specifically meant to cover the upkeep of the roads we already use.

Using toll money for the same purpose means motorists would be paying twice for the same roads.

If you agree that's not fair and not transparent, please take a moment to sign the petition.

The power to force vehicles to use toll routes 🛻

The Bill goes even further by allowing the Minister of Transport to restrict certain vehicles from using untolled alternative routes.

That means some freight operators could be forced onto toll roads whether they want to use them or not. When trucks have no choice but to pay tolls, the cost of moving goods goes up.

Those extra costs do not stay with trucking companies. They are built into the price of food, building materials, household goods, and services. Over time, even small increases in transport costs add up at the checkout.

At a time when families are already stretched, and the cost of living remains front of mind, this is the wrong direction.

Let's fix the Bill, ✅

The Taxpayers’ Union are calling on the Government to amend the Bill by:

• Clearly defining what a “corridor” is, so toll revenue is only applied to the actual road being used and tolled
  
  
• Ensuring toll revenue is not used for existing road maintenance or alternative routes, which creates double charging
  
  
• Keeping alternative routes available so tolling remains a true 'user-charge' initiative

As you travel around the country this summer, the last thing you should worry about is being charged for roads you never use or already paid for the upkeep of through other taxes.

We need your voice. Sign the petition calling on the Government to fix this Bill before it becomes law. 

✍️ > Sign the petition < ✍️

Tolling only works if it is fair, transparent, and true to user-pays. Once that principle is broken, drivers lose trust in the system.

I hope you'll support us on this issue,

Austin Ellingham-Banks Policy Analyst New Zealand Taxpayers’ Union www.taxpayers.org.nz