Podcasts about nzta

Significant changes at WorkSafe as it moves from an enforcement focus and launches the road cone hotline. The agency will now engage early to support risk management, starting with today's opening of a tipline for excessive road cone usage. Parallaxx Traffic Control Training Chief Executive Dave Tilton told Ryan Bridge there are good elements to this announcement. He agrees with the collaborative risk-based approach, connecting WorkSafe, councils, and NZTA. But Tilton says there are incompatible components to the hotline itself. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Do you know what's really starts to rub me the wrong way? It's governments telling us to do more things. This morning, we've got the government coming out with yet another hotline. Sounds fancy. Sounds efficient. It's a hotline to report road cones. A road cone tipline. Sorry, but if the problem is that there are too many road cones on the road, and they're unnecessary for the work being carried out —which half of them appear to be— then why do you need us to tell you that? Surely if we just had better, clearer rules and less bullshit, we wouldn't need a road cone tipline. A pothole tipline. A 105 theft tipline. A beneficiary tipline. Either you know what you're doing and you've got smart people and smart systems, or you don't. And every time I hear of another tipline I realise, they have no idea. Tiplines are the equivalent of a safety calming measure. Those weird speed bumps or narrowing roads, designed to make people feel better when driving around. All they really do is piss people off and reveal how rubbish your road designs are to begin with. Just think about this: There's a bunch of road cones in a dumb place on a busy road. WorkSafe and NZTA and Council people drive past this busy spot every day. Barbara in her little Honda Civic, she drives past. She calls it in. Barry in his truck and trailer. He calls it in. Sally picks the kids up at 3pm from school every day. They all ring the tipline. They all report the same thing. It will then be somebody's job to sort through the tips. Somebody else will triage the tips. That's two jobs. In three weeks, Barry, Sally, and Barb get a letter. Because the post only runs two days a week. The letter says we're looking into the issue for you. Meanwhile, 100 government or council people have walked or driven past the road cone Armageddon and nothing's changed. Tiplines are plasters over grenades. The only time I want to ring a tipline is speak to the actual dump. In its first 156 days in office, the National-led government has set up 37 reviews, inquiries or advisory panels – some of which are being led by former ministers, including Bill English, Steven Joyce, Murray McCully and Roger Sowry.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Driving schools that offer lessons in high-tech car simulators are at odds with the transport agency over safety risks they could pose for learner drivers once they hit the road. The NZTA argues simulators could encourage over-confidence, putting new drivers at greater risk of crashing, but instructors insist they aren't dangerous. Joe Shaw reports.

In an ideal world, I would love us to have more trains. In an ideal world, I think it would be great if all our big cities had rail passenger services. Not just Auckland and Wellington that Transport Minister Chris Bishop was talking about when he announced this morning that there's $600 million in this week's Budget going into rail. I won't go all scratched record on it and start asking where the money is for the Greater Christchurch area, but I would love to see money going into commuter rail here. Because if we do think rail has a future in New Zealand —and I'm talking about passenger rail as well as sending freight by rail— I think it's more realistic to expect commuters to take the train than people going out of town on holiday. So that's one area where I'd put the money – into passenger trains. And that's probably my ideal world scenario, which I'll come back to. What I think is certainly more achievable though, is getting more freight shipped around the place on trains. Because we've shown how bad we are as a country at maintaining our roading network. And, if you believe the rail advocates, they'll tell you that the main problem is trucks. That they're responsible for chewing up the roads. And, when you travel down the east coast of the South Island, it does strike you how much of a donkey track State Highway 1 is in parts. Yet we seem to be quite happy for these trucks —designed in countries where they do have massive motorways— to go up and down that donkey track night and day, 365 days a year. So get more freight on trains first. And then, if we're going to do anything more with passenger trains, focus on getting people to work and school on a train instead of expecting them to go to Nelson for their holidays on a train. Because I've long thought how brilliant it would be if we had a rail service from Rangiora to the city and from Rolleston to the city. Imagine what the motorways would look like. Imagine getting into town on a train —not a bus, where you can get all the same disruptions as other vehicles— but you scream into town on the train, you don't have to worry about finding a park, and then get the train back home again in the evening. The Canterbury Regional Transport Committee obviously likes the sound of that too. This is the entity that involves all councils in the canterbury region —including ECAN— and NZTA. And the number one job of the regional transport committee is to implement the Canterbury Regional Transport Plan. In recent years, there's been talk of passenger rail services running from the city to Rolleston and as far north as Amberley. Reading the most recent regional transport plan, the enthusiasm that we were hearing a couple of years seems from the transport committee seems to have been tempered a bit. There is still political interest in a passenger rail service south of Christchurch but there are no timeframes and, of course, where the money comes from is the stumbling block. But there are positive signs if you're into the idea of rail, like I am. The regional transport plan sets a goal of increasing the amount of freight moved by train in Canterbury by 100% over the next eight or nine years. So that's good. But it also talks about the population of Selwyn growing by around 58,000 people over the next 20-and-a-bit years. And, in Waimakariri, the population is expected to go up by 25,000 people in the same period. Christchurch is expected to have another 66,000 people. So there's an extra 149,000 people living in the Greater Christchurch area, and we think the Northern Motorway and the Southern Motorway are going to be just fine? Dream on. And that's the argument right there for passenger rail services in the Greater Christchurch area. Which is why when I ask, should we be investing more in rail here in Canterbury, my answer is yes. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

“It's like making a silk purse out of a pig's ear.” That's a quote from the boss at Transporting New Zealand, which represents the transport sector, talking about Brougham Street in Christchurch. Because it's been revealed by NZTA that the $150 million revamp of Brougham Street, one of Christchurch's busiest streets, will include T2 transit lanes – which the truckies are brassed-off about because they won't be able to use them. And I'm with the truckies. I think it's nuts that on a street like Brougham Street —which is a pig's ear of a road if ever there was one— we're going to go all “rules are rules” on it and not do something that I think would make a genuine difference. As the truckies do as well. So these transit lanes, or T2 lanes, can only be used by vehicles carrying more than one person. They've been on the Northern Motorway since 2021. There is a stretch of T2 that trucks can use there, on the Tram Road on-ramp near the Waimakariri Bridge. It's probably just to make it easier for them to turn onto the motorway, but don't go telling us NZTA that you can't do the same on Brougham Street because it “might set a precedent”. So Dom Kalasih from Transporting New Zealand says Brougham Street is a pig of a road and Scott McAlister from logistics company Mackleys says traffic congestion there is “bad and getting worse”. He says: “All the improvements are focused on pedestrians and cyclists. That's fine. But it needs to conjointly be done with freight.” Tell that to some people living in the area though, who are happy that the T2 lanes will mean the trucks being closer to the middle of the road and not travelling so close to the footpath. I understand where they're coming from but the bigger picture, surely, has to be getting that stretch of road moving – especially the trucks. And I know rules are rules, but I reckon Brougham Street is a special case. And truckies should, of course, be allowed to use these transit lanes. It's a key link for freight and it makes no sense to keep them stuck in the slow lanes. Forty-five thousand vehicles use Brougham Street each day —trucks make up 10% percent of them— and the truckies are saying it adds 30 minutes to their trip. Which I think is a very compelling argument for bending the rules. If not bending the rules, then re-writing them. You only need to travel on a bus in one of those bus lanes to get an idea of how much quicker trucks could get through in a T2 lane. I know they would be sharing the lanes with other vehicles —unlike the buses which have the bus lanes to themselves— but it's worth a go, isn't it? The other part of this is that NZTA is going to have to make sure that these new transit lanes on Brougham Street are policed. You might have seen it reported earlier this week that the T2 lanes on the Northern Motorway haven't been policed since they opened four years ago. Which means people are sailing through when they shouldn't be. So there will need to be monitoring and enforcement on Brougham Street, otherwise the T2 lanes will be a complete waste of time. They'll also be a complete waste of time if trucks aren't allowed to use them. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Aucklanders air and water quality could be impacted after a fire broke out at an industrial business on the North Shore. People have been told to keep windows and doors closed and stay away from the area. Newstalk ZB reporter Emily Ansell talks to Tim Beveridge about the fire, issues with National's tax break promise and South Auckland's long awaited Mill Road project. LISTEN ABOVE. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Lawyers for a group seeking to pause the roll out of speed limit increases say the changes are ignoring NZTA's own safety findings. The group - called Movement - wants any changes to speed limits to wait until the outcome of a judicial review. But counsel for the Crown say millions of dollars are already commitment to putting the governments policy into effect. Bill Hickman has more.

A small Nelson school is fighting plans to increase the speed limit on the State Highway 6 that runs past its front gate. The government's reversing speed limit reductions, brought in by Labour, on local streets, arterial roads, and state highways by 1 July this year. NZTA announced it will now consult on changes to 16 sections of state highways that were due to automatically revert to faster speeds. Clifton Primary School in the Nelson suburb of Atawhai is on State Higway 6; about five years ago the speed limit on that stretch of road dropped from 80km/hr to 60km/hr. It's desperate to keep it that way and will now get a say. Clifton Terrace school principal Rob Wemyss spoke to Lisa Owen.

A new set of amendments looks to turbo charge major infrastructure projects. The Government's proposing changes to the Public Works Act to speed up acquiring land, including premium payments to private landowners. The Environment Court will be sidelined from the objections process. Infrastructure Minister Chris Bishop told Mike Hosking a lot of these are NZTA roading projects. He says they don't like taking land, but it's the reality if we want to build infrastructure in this country. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Three currently sealed roads in Southland could be turned back into gravel roads because of what the council says is a lack of funding from NZTA. Southland Mayor Rob Scott spoke to Corin Dann.

Drivers wanting to travel faster on State Highways around the country will soon get their wish. 38 sections of the roading network will be reversed back to their previous higher speed limits by NZTA over the next five months. It brings an end to speed reductions brought in under the last Labour Government. There are concerns that faster speeds could lead to more crashes on our roads, but the government insists the changes are safe. Nick James reports.

More roads could get faster - beyond the Government's planned changes to speed limits on 38 sections of road. The Government is reversing speed limit reductions on those stretches by July, with work set to start tonight. The Prime Minister believes it'll help people get to jobs faster, pushing economic growth. Transport Minister Chris Bishop says 49 roads deemed 'more complicated' will be consulted on. "There are some nasty sections of those roads - we're going to consult on them and it may be that NZTA says the default will go back up to 100, for example, but there will be bits where we keep the speed limit." LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

More roads could get faster - beyond the Government's planned changes to speed limits on 38 sections of road. The Government is reversing speed limit reductions on those stretches by July, with work set to start tonight. The Prime Minister believes it'll help people get to jobs faster, pushing economic growth. Transport Minister Chris Bishop says 49 roads deemed 'more complicated' will be consulted on. "There are some nasty sections of those roads - we're going to consult on them and it may be that NZTA says the default will go back up to 100, for example, but there will be bits where we keep the speed limit." LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The police have missed out on a $6 million funding incentive for failing to issue enough speeding tickets. The Transport Minister promised earlier in the year that police could expect to receive $72 million as part of their funding from NZTA - if certain road policing targets were met. AA Road Safety spokesperson Dylan Thomsen says police managed to exceed alcohol testing targets this quarter - which the association is pleased to see. "Really, this is just part of a huge push from the Government here to increase the amount of enforcement around alcohol and drugs and speeding." LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Transport agency Waka Kotahi has released its updated used car safety rating, including a crash avoidance rating to show how well a car can prevent or reduce crashes. Principal Advisor Vehicle Safety Todd Wylie spoke to Corin Dann.

The Transport Minister says councils have other options to increase revenue, not just through higher fares. NZTA's ordering councils take a higher revenue share and agree to new targets by December 19th. Public transport authorities have requested an urgent meeting, saying the targets would see bus, train, and ferry prices surge. But Simeon Brown told Mike Hosking it's a lazy approach to just increase fares. He says councils have a range of tools including increased advertising, sponsorships, corporate fare schemes, and renting out space at train stations. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If you like to hop on the bus or train to get around, then the fares you pay could be about to skyrocket in price. Waka Kotahi NZTA has sent letters to local councils and transport authorities asking them to increase their revenue from fares, sponsorship and advertising. Kate Green has the story.

Bus and train fares across New Zealand are set to rise with the transport agency asking councils to hit higher revenue targets. Public transport commentator Matt Lowrie spoke to Alexa Cook.

The Transport Agency is telling bus and train providers to take in more money, which could force fare hikes. Wellington's Regional Council is rejecting the call from NZTA. Transport Committee Chair Thomas Nash says it would mean unaffordable 70 percent fare increases during a cost of living crisis. "You'd end up just pushing people back into cars, more people will be on the road and it would be more congested - which I think is the opposite of what we need." LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The transport minister has revealed how much NZTA is spending on traffic management. Minister Simeon Brown spoke to Ingrid Hipkiss.

The Transport Agency's spending is in the spotlight. The Transport Minister's calling NZTA's costs “eye-watering” and excessive after revealing a near $800 million spend on traffic management over the past three years. Simeon Brown says a new framework is coming to reduce costs. Traffic Direct General Manager Dev Strause told Mike Hosking it will be made, but change doesn't happen overnight. He says it takes a bit of fine tuning to be able to redevelop and retrain all the workers, especially when some have been in the industry for over a decade. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Tonight on The Huddle, Jack Tame from ZB's Saturday Mornings and Q&A and Auckland Councillor Maurice Williamson joined in on a discussion about the following issues of the day - and more! Richard Chambers is set to take over as New Zealand's new Police Commissioner. Do we expect any new changes? Will we get more old-school policing under Chambers' watch. Should Auckland Transport stop fining people for parking in their own driveways? What do we make of this? It's been revealed NZTA spent $800 million on traffic management and road cones. Do we need to rein this spending in? New research says young people are drinking less - is this good news or cause for concern? LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Transport Agency has spent nearly $800 million on traffic management in the past three years, according to new reports. The Government has revealed the spend went to road cones, temporary traffic management, state highway maintenance and capital works. Transport Minister Simeon Brown says this is an 'exorbitant' sum and the spending needs to come down. "We need to see a much more efficient use of taxpayers' money when it comes to maintaining our roads and keeping road workers safe - we have to get that balance right." LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There's disappointment among some as State Highway 1 in the Central North Island will be closed for repairs for two months. The Desert Road is closing between Turangi and Waiouru from January 6 until the end of February. The detour will add half an hour and an extra 50 kilometres to journeys. NZTA's Roger Brady says the approach is well-planned - and the closure lets them squeeze in four months' worth of work into two. "So instead of having a long, drawn-out, ongoing inconvenience - yes, it's going to be inconvenient, but there'll be a limit to the inconvenience to two months." LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There's outrage from Auckland commuters, as a hīkoi working its way down to Parliament marched over the Harbour Bridge and added to traffic issues. NZTA was forced to close some lanes on the bridge and people were delayed in their morning commutes. Newstalk ZB senior political correspondent Barry Soper unpacks the political causes that inspired the hīkoi. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

State Highway 6 between Haast and Knights Point is likely to remain closed until later this week, after heavy rain caused slip damage and rockfall over the weekend. NZTA system manager for the area Mark Pinner spoke to Ingrid Hipkiss.

A signficant situation vacant is causing concern in the science world and beyond. The government won't say whether it's keeping role of Prime Minister's Chief science advisor; a job that has been empty since July. That's despite the coalition agreement saying "decisions will be based on data and evidence."Among other things the chief science advisor provides advice on specific topics to the PM and Ministers and information in a crisis like, the covid pandemic. However, past advice from Prime Ministerial science advisors on dealing with gangs, a rising prison population , and boot camps has run contrary to a number of policies the current government's adopted. The budget for the office has also been cut by half a million dollars. Simon Kingham was Chief Science advisor to the NZTA, up until May this year and spoke to Lisa Owen.

"Auckland's the problem child," when it comes to a blow out in wait times to sit licence tests, according the NZTA. Want to be drivers are having to wait up to a year for a spot. In desperation some are travelling to Thames, Matamata, and Te Awamutu 280 kilometres from Auckland. NZTA said demand for tests has gone up 60% and it's hurridly bolstering testing officer numbers. To help ease congestion, the government's agreed to extend the amount of time people can drive on over licences from 12 to 18 months. At the Glen Innes VTNZ centre in East Auckland, learner drivers say the long wait times are frustrating. NZTA's national manager regulatory system design Chris Rodley told Lisa Owen the wait times are unacceptable

After a 7 year wait, the highway connecting the eastern and western sides of the lower North Island is expected to open next year. But a last minute proposal move to add a toll to motorists using the highway has thrown locals into a tailspin. The New Zealand Transport Agency's idea of tolling Te Ahu a Turanga, the replacement highway for the closed Manawatu Gorge road is now open for public consultation, and as Jimmy Ellingham reports, even the council is mobilising against it.

A serious accident has closed State Highway One south of Auckland with all lanes closed in both directions. RNZ understands people have died and others have suffered critical injuries. A video posted online shows multiple cars, a van and a six wheeler truck were involved in the accident which happened just before two o'clock between Ramarama and Bombay. NZTA's Auckland System's manager Paul Geck speaks to Lisa Owen.

A Kapiti Coast driving school instructor says NZTA's disorganisation in training up extra testing officers has left her thousands of dollars out of pocket. First Up producer Mahvash Ikram reports

The recent warm weather may have fooled you into thinking Spring has sprung. But a cold easterly front has settled across the South Island, bringing heavy rain, ice, and snow. NZTA systems manager Mark Pinner spoke to Ingrid Hipkiss.

A regional expressway for Northland is number one on the Government's infrastructure priority list. The Transport Minister's agreed to accelerate things — letting NZTA move at pace on the route between Auckland and Whangarei. Locals have been growing irritated following repetitive road closures, making access to Northland difficult. Simeon Brown told Mike Hosking recent weather events highlighted how the work's importance. “This is something we have been working on all year — this announcement — because we know how critically important getting a fix for the Brynderwyns is.” LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

NZTA says extra measures are being put in place to help keep travellers safe on the icy roads. Waka Kotahi's South Island Manager Mark Pinner spoke to Ingrid Hipkiss.

NZTA Waka Kotahi is still warning drivers to take care while driving in icy conditions on State Highway 8 after two buses rolled in Mackenzie District on Thursday. New Zealand Institute of Driver Educators President Mark Revill-Johnson spoke to Ingrid Hipkiss.

As the government pushes on with plans to raise speed limits around the country, an NZTA survey has found strong support for lowering limits around schools. 

There's a belief changes to road cone use will help strike a better balance between safety and minimising disruption.   The Government's announced a new risk-based approach to temporary traffic management rather than requiring a certain number of cones per project.   NZTA will also have to publicly report on its total cone spending per quarter.   Temporary traffic management industry steering group chair Dave Tilton told Heather du Plessis-Allan this makes sense.  He said that for the most part the current system served its purpose, but it's been identified that it's not getting the right about of TTM, which is what its purpose is.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On the show today: Previewing the All Blacks v England game at Eden Park with Crusaders assistant coach James Marshall and John Day. Can England break the 30 year Eden Park hoodoo? Procrastination expert Tim Pychyl joins us for arguably our most fascinating interview ever. And where was I yesterday? NZTA have some explaining to do... See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On the Mike Hosking Breakfast with Andrew Dickens Full Show Podcast for Monday the 8th of July, how many of our new roads of national significance will be tolled? All of them says the Government, as long as the NZTA signs it off. An absolutely huge win for Lulu Sun in Wimbledon to continue her record breaking run for a Kiwi female tennis player as she advances into the quarterfinals. Speaking of sport, Andrew Saville and Guy Heveldt cover Razor's first All Blacks test in charge and the heartbreaking loss for the Warriors in the Commentary Box. Get the Mike Hosking Breakfast Full Show Podcast every weekday morning on iHeartRadio, or wherever you get your podcasts. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A project to upgrade the technology network crucial to highway safety and responding to crashes has hit such big problems it had to be redesigned and rebuilt The network has now gone live, but other weak tech safety systems at NZTA remain in limbo despite the "critical risk" from hacking or breaking down. And the agency is refusing to reveal much about its troubles on upgrading of the Intelligent Transport Systems Network ... RNZ's Phil Pennington spoke to Corin Dann.

The horrendous weather forced the closure of State Highway 2 from Napier into Wairoa today, Ray Edwards, NZTA-Waka Kotahi acting system manager for Hawkes Bay and Tairawhiti speaks to Lisa Owen.

Hundreds of people have been affected by flooding on the east coast of the North Island, with more rain expected over the next few days. Hawke's Bay and Tai Rawhiti were slammed with torrential rain on Tuesday night and Wednesday. More than 400 properties in Wairoa were inundated and roads in and out of the town were flooded, restricting access. NZTA's Rua Pani spoke to Ingrid Hipikiss about the affects of the severe weather on roads.

Drivers in Hawke's Bay and Gisborne are being warned to stay cautious as slips and flooding damaged road and highways. NZTA/Waka Kotahi Rua Pani spoke with Ingrid Hipikiss

Once again we ask the question: who is paying for the Waitangi Tribunal?  How much of it is what you would loosely call value for money?  There is a new urgent hearing this week. It is to do with the new Government's promise to have non-Māori Government departments use English for their name. Think the NZTA and the Ministry of Education.  The argument brought forward by a Tauranga iwi is this does harm to te reo.  A small irony so far, is it doesn't seem to many that the instruction had been sent out at all.  The waters were somewhat muddied when it was suggested that Oranga Tamariki might keep their name as well as Kainga Ora, given they were the names most of us knew the department by.  How they came up with that I don't know. I assume they meant that given those two departments in particular had spent a lot of time in the news, the commonality of the reference might have stuck.  Which, if you think about it, was sort of the idea in the first place.  Having the vast majority of us exposed to another language, especially an official language, may help the language live, breathe and expand.  But what also happened is Māori terms, names, and phrases got tossed about with mad abandon and muddied the waters of comprehension.  The media have, broadly speaking in a fit of wokeism, embarrassed themselves and in part further damaged their already damaged reputations by embracing the activity with an alacrity that has been humiliating.  Tokenism is not language, but tokenism is what you get in news bulletins; a peppering of Māori with the English that leads to nothing more than a trendy nod to a fad.  But it's a national crisis, apparently, so much taxpayer money must once again be dispersed to lawyers and full-time agitators to, once again, front the tribunal, who will write their usual report, which will be treated in the usual way.  What's the Māori word for bin?     See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Transport Minister's confident the pothole prevention funding boost will result in more roads being fixed.  The Transport Agency's confirmed it'll put more than $2 billion into prevention on state highways, and nearly $2 billion for local roads.  It'll cover resealing, rehabilitation, and drainage maintenance.  Simeon Brown told Mike Hosking that they're focused on getting the cost of traffic management down so more money goes towards actually fixing the infrastructure.  He says the Government's already been working with NZTA on this issue and found 145 of 800 traffic management sites were not needed.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

NZTA/Waka Kotahi chief executive Nicole Rosie speaks to Lisa Owen about the funding of the Te Huia train service.

Grey Power is calling for a change to elderly driver assessments, claiming the process for assessing driver capability is penalising some of the very people who need their licences the most. Grey Power acting vice president David Marshall says a nationwide survey of members has revealed a lack of practical driving assessors in the regions and also widespread use of cognitive tests - SIMARD-MD and Mini-ACE - to assess driver impairment. Canadian driving researcher Dr Alexander Crizzle, says there is no evidence to support the continued use of cognitive dementia tests to assess driver capability. In New Zealand, the driver licence renewal criteria require all licence holders to present a medical certificate confirming fitness to drive at age 75, then 80, and then every two years following. Waka Kotahi NZTA says it does not mandate cognitive tests for elderly drivers and maintains the use of such tools is left to the discretion of health practitioners. Draft guidelines on how to assess medical fitness to drive are currently under review and are expected to be released in June.

Police and NZTA is spending big on contractors and consultants as other core public sector agencies cut staff Phil Pennington spoke to Corin Dann.

A digital billboard poking fun at the transport authority has re-appeared in New Plymouth. This time the sign congratulates NZTA on recent roadworks on Breakwater Road, the main route to Port Taranaki, but poses the question: will it all have to be dug up again so council can work on underground services in the area? Taranaki Whanganui reporter Robin Martin has more.

Canadian Jonathan Roth, founder of Resource Wars, recently recorded an interview with the former Mossad Chief Efraim Halevy. He did not get the answers he was expecting. Roth maintains that "progress and wealth are impossible without resources. All empires rise and fall based upon access to resources. He provides perspectives on investing, global politics, technology and the future. We critique NZTA's plans to restrict citizen's rights to free movement, while simultaneously hitting us in the pocket. And we visit The Mailroom, with Mrs Producer. File your comments and complaints at Leighton@newstalkzb.co.nz Haven't listened to a podcast before? Check out our simple how-to guide. Listen here on iHeartRadio Leighton Smith's podcast also available on iTunes:To subscribe via iTunes click here See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.