NZTA agrees to cover $100m of Sounds roads recovery

BY MAIA HART/LDR REPORTER

Repair work in the Marlborough Sounds will “accelerate” after the NZTA board approved $100m in funding, although not everything the council asked for has been signed off.

Mark Owen, New Zealand Transport Agency Waka Kotahi regional manager for the top south, said the board approved funding for the next phase of storm works in the outer sounds.

The Marlborough District Council had made an application to the board for $141.4m, which the board agreed to fund 71% of, or $100.4m.

Marlborough mayor Nadine Taylor welcomed the news. “This is the confirmation we needed to accelerate work on the road repairs required,” Taylor said.

Taylor said the priority was to get Kenepuru Rd open to a state where there was full public access, and trucks could be allowed through. “We know the Kenepuru community has been waiting for a long time for this certainty. Because of the cost of the repairs, we needed the NZTA funding confirmed to proceed with confidence to get the work done and let residents and businesses in the area to get back to normal.”

The estimated repair bill for the roads badly damaged in storm events in July 2021 and August 2022, was $230m. Some of this included road improvement costs, which the NZTA board said was subject to further detailed design work.

Taylor said the council would continue to work with NZTA to confirm the appropriate business case approach for the road improvements and the expected timeline for that work.

Taylor said the council “of course” had hoped the entire business case for the roads was approved.

“But if we have a little bit further to travel to secure the remaining funds required for road improvements, then that is what we will do on behalf of our affected communities. This is not only about roads – it is about real people who are at the heart of Marlborough’s largest recovery project. I hope today’s decision brings some comfort to those affected that we can now proceed with confidence to repair these roads.”

It comes after the Marlborough District Council finalised how it would pay its $104m share of the repair bill for the flood-damaged roads at a meeting in June, following consultation with the community through its long-term plan.

After considering hundreds of submissions, the final cost to ratepayers was tweaked from the council’s draft plan released for consultation in April.
It drastically reduced how much Kenepuru ratepayers would pay by slightly increasing the charges to non-Sounds zones. Kenepuru had the largest repair bill out of the five Marlborough Sounds zones.

However, most ratepayers had an overall decrease in the amount they would pay towards the repairs, because the council abandoned its $40m marine infrastructure upgrade plans. A $500,000 marine study was still in the budget.
On top of their rates, which have in Marlborough increased by 13.6%, an average Kenepuru property owner would pay $34 in 2025, and $131 in 2026, but they would ramp up over the years, reaching $705 by 2034 – far less than the original proposal of $1224.

Queen Charlotte ratepayers would pay $16 in 2025. By 2034, this would be $344 - about $11 more on average than first proposed, because the zone had already had priority repairs.

An average non-Sounds ratepayer would pay $9 in 2025 and $35 in 2026 towards the roads, ramping up to $187 on average by 2034 – a decrease of $60 from the first proposal.