Steering Group Terms of Reference.pdf

Ngauranga to Airport Steering Group
Terms of Reference

Greater  Wellington  Regional  Council,  Wellington  City  Council  and  the  New  Zealand
Transport  Agency  are  working  collaboratively  to  deliver  activities  under  the  Ngauranga  to
Airport Corridor Strategy.
A  Memorandum  of  Understanding  has  been  signed  between  the  three  parties  and  a
governance  group  and  steering  group  have  been  established.  This  Terms  of  Reference
applies to the Steering Group.
Purpose of the Steering Group
1.  The purpose of the Steering Group is to align and drive delivery of the transport and land
use  activities  in  the  Ngauranga  to  Airport  Strategy  so  that  they  support  the  strategic
principles outlined in the Strategy and achieve the following benefits:
a.  Economic growth supported – efficient and reliable access to and through the
CBD  and  central  Wellington  City  as  a  crucial  employment  centre  for  the
region and to other key destinations for freight  and tourism such as the port
and international airport.
b.  Integrated  transport  and  land  use  –  efficient  and  effective  travel  options  to
support the current and future urban growth areas in the city, including inner
city living and intensification along the spine from Johnsonville to Kilbirnie.
c.  Accessible  and  liveable  city  –  the  central  city  street  network  provides  good
access  for  all  transport  modes  (including  freight)  while  providing  a  safe,
pleasant  and  attractive  environment  for  shopping,  education  and  leisure
activities.
2.  The Steering Group does this by building trust amongst the parties by being transparent
and actively sharing information that is relevant to the efficient delivery of N2A activities
in a timely  way, monitoring progress of activities  and risks, and ensuring resources are
provided to enable alignment and integration of N2A activities.
3.  The Steering Group is also responsible for providing advice to the Governance Group.
Role of the Steering Group
4.  The role of the Steering Group is to:
a.  Review  the  scope  of  N2A  activities  for  alignment  with  the  strategic  principles
and  responses  in  the  N2A  Corridor  Strategy  and  delivery  of  the  desired
benefits
b.  Manage changes in scope as emergent issues force changes to be considered
c.  Steer/drive progress towards milestones
d.  Provide guidance and direction to the N2A Workstream Project Managers
e.  Reconcile  differences  in  opinion  and  approach,  and  provide  direction  on
management of conflicts/trade-offs between the various N2A activities
f.  Assist  with  resolving  any  issues  and  managing  and  mitigating  any  risks  that
have major implications for alignment and delivery of N2A activities
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g.  Keep  the  customer  front  of  mind,  and  review  and  advise  on  planned
communications  and  engagement  activities  associated  with  N2A  activities  to
ensure alignment and consistency of communication messages
h.  Ensure resources are allocated to enable programme management of the N2A
Strategy
i.  Provide  regular  updates  on  progress,  advice  and  make  recommendations  to
the Governance Group as required/appropriate.
5.  The role of the Steering Group is not to:
a.  Assume  accountability  for  decisions  or  make  decisions  on  N2A  activities  that
are  the  responsibility  of  GWRC,  WCC,  or  NZTA  either  singly  or  jointly.  Each
organisation has its own decision-making processes and the Steering Group is
not a substitute for these existing processes.
Roles and responsibilities
6.  Role of the Steering Group Member:
a.  Communicate in an open, honest and respectful manner
b.  Be trusted and not share confidential information
c.  Consider ideas and issues raised and contribute to discussion
d.  Help balance conflicting priorities and resources
e.  Be  committed  to,  and  actively  involved  in  pursuing  the  N2A  Corridor  Strategy
strategic principles and responses
f.  Actively  consider  the  customer  user  groups  in  providing  guidance  on  N2A
activities
g.  Represent  the  decision-makers  of  each’s  respective  organisation  and  be
responsible  for  communicating  back  any  salient  points/decisions  raised  or
agreed to decision-makers
h.  Appreciate  the  significance  of  other  organisations’  drivers  and  operating
context, and the strengths they bring to the Group
i.  Have a broad understanding of project management issues and best practice
j.  Check adherence of N2A activities to standards of best practice, both within the
Member’s respective organisation and across N2A activities
BRT workstream specific delegated authority
7.  Recognising that BRT is a project established jointly across GWRC, WCC and the NZTA
and reporting directly to the Steering Group, the Steering Group is delegated authority to:
a.  Take on the responsibilities of the Project  Board specific to BRT, to  own the
project and be accountable for its results
b.  Approve  project  management  documentation  at  project  initiation,  stage
boundaries and project closure
c.  Provide  resources  to  enable  the  Project  Manager  to  deliver  the  project.
Members of the Steering Group should have a high enough level of authority
to assign necessary project resources as they are required
d.  Assess whether the BRT Project is meeting its agreed goals
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e.  Make decisions concerning the viability of the BRT Project, and subsequently
release  resources  to  the  Project  Manager  as  viability  is  established,  to
proceed to the next block of work in the project life cycle
f.  Serve  as  an  information  resource  to  the  Project  Manager  (particularly  with
regard to activities and issues beyond the Project Manager's 'field of vision'),
and provide guidance on dealing with project issues, when requested
g.  Review  and  respond  to  all  project  threat  issues  presented  by  the  Project
Manager
h.  Agree on whether and how funding of risk mitigation should occur
i.  Serve as the official voice of the BRT Project to members’ organisations.
Membership
8.  The  Steering  Group  shall  be  comprised  of  the  following  representatives  of  each
organisation:
a.  WCC: Anthony Wilson, Geoff Swainson
b.  GWRC: Jane Davis, Wayne Hastie
c.  NZTA: Lyndon Hammond, Selwyn Blackmore
9.  The  Steering  Group  will  be  attended  by  the  Workstream  Projects  Managers,  who  will
present the monthly project reports and update the members on current project issues:
a.  BRT: Chrissie Little
b.  Local roads: Geoff Swainson
c.  State highways: Stewart McKenzie
Chair
10. The Chair shall convene the Steering Group meetings.
11. The  Chair  position  will  be  rotated  every  6  months,  unless  the  Steering  Group  agrees
otherwise.
12. If  the  designated  Chair  is  not  available  an  Acting  Chair  can  be  appointed  and  is
responsible for informing the Chair as to the salient points/decisions raised or agreed to
at that meeting.
13. The Chair reserves the right to cancel a meeting in advance of the scheduled date if the
Chair receives notice that a Quorum is not able to be achieved.
14. The Chair shall ensure the Steering Group:
a.  Keeps focus on its role and functions
b.  Actively and respectfully engages
c.  Concludes all the items on the agenda
d.  Allocates follow-up tasks and timetables for completion
e.  Agrees decision-making procedures that will operate between meetings
f.  Alerts those present to issues to be addressed at a future meeting
g.  Summarises all decisions taken
h.  Ends at the pre-agreed time
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Role of N2A Workstream Project Managers
15. Role of Project Managers
a.  Provide transparent status reporting on N2A workstreams
b.  Raise issues and risks for guidance and direction from the Steering Group
c.  Raise specific agenda items to the Chair for discussion at the Steering Group
d.  Complete Workstream status reports and provide them to the Chair at least 2
working days before the scheduled Steering Group meeting
Secretariat
16. The  Secretariat  shall  take  minutes  of  and  actions  arising  from  the  meeting,  and  shall
maintain an action register.
17. The Secretariat shall circulate agendas and material for the Steering Group meeting as
requested by the Chair.
18. The Secretariat position will be rotated every 6 months.
Agenda Items
19. All  Steering  Group  agenda  items  and  meeting  papers  must  be  forwarded  to  the
Secretariat by Close of Business 4 working days prior to the next scheduled meeting.
20. The Steering Group agenda, with attached meeting papers will be distributed at least 2
working days prior to the next scheduled meeting.
21. The  Chair  does  not  have  the  right  to  refuse  to  list  an  item  on  the  formal  agenda,  and
members may raise an item under ‘Other Business' if necessary and as time permits.
Minutes and Meeting Papers
22. The  minutes  of  each  Steering  Group  meeting  will  be  recorded  and  distributed  by  the
Secretariat.
23. Full copies of the minutes, including attachments, shall be provided to all Steering Group
members no later than 2 working days following each meeting.
24. By  agreement  of  the  Committee,  out-of-session  decisions  will  be  deemed  acceptable.
Where agreed, all out-of-session decisions shall be recorded in the minutes of the next
scheduled Steering Group meeting.
25. The  minutes  of  each  Project  Board  meeting  will  be  monitored  and  maintained  by  the
Secretariat as a complete record as required by the Project Management Standards.
Proxies to Meetings
26. Members  of  the  Steering  Group  shall  nominate  a  proxy  to  attend  a  meeting  if  the
member is unable to attend.
27. The  Chair  will  be  informed  of  the  substitution  at  least  2  working  days  prior  to  the
scheduled nominated meeting.
28. The  nominated  proxy  shall  provide  relevant  comments  of  the  Steering  Group  member
they are representing to the attended meeting.
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29. The  nominated  proxy  shall  have  the  same  rights  as  the  Steering  Group members. The
nominated  proxy  will  be  responsible  for  reporting  back  to  the  Steering  Group  member
they are representing, any salient points/decisions raised or agreed to at that meeting.
Quorum Requirements
30. A  minimum  of  3  Steering  Group  members  (excluding  any  proxies)  is  required  for  the
meeting  to  be  recognised  as  an  authorised  meeting  for  the  recommendations  or
resolutions to be valid.
31. The  quorum  must  contain  at  least  1  Steering  Group  member  (excluding  proxies)  from
each organisation.
32. The Chair reserves the right to cancel a meeting in advance of the scheduled date if the
Chair receives notice that a Quorum is not able to be achieved.
Review of Terms of Reference and Chair
33. This  Terms  of  Reference  will  be  reviewed  every  6  months  by  the  Steering  Group
members.
34. The Steering Group may collectively decide to review the Terms of Reference at a date
earlier  than  6  months  if  changes  arise,  which  impact  on  the  management  of  N2A
activities and result in the Terms of Reference becoming outdated.
35. The position of Chair will be reviewed every 6 months and a new Chair confirmed.
36. The  new  Chair  will  be  responsible  for  ensuring  that  a  revised  Terms  of  Reference  is
circulated to all members.
Managing conflicts
37. Conflicts  of  interest  that  are  unable  to  be  resolved  at  the  Steering  Group  should  be
escalated to Chief Executives of GWRC and WCC and the Regional Director of NZTA,
and if they remain unresolved to the Governance Group as appropriate.
Appendix
38. There is one appendix to these Terms of Reference:
a.  Ngauranga  to  Airport  Corridor  Strategy  (extract  from  the  2015-21  Regional
Land Transport Plan)

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APPENDIX A: NGAURANGA TO AIRPORT CORRIDOR STRATEGY

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