Excluding motorcyclists from transport planning
Angus Barclay made this Official Information request to Wellington City Council
The request was successful.
From: Angus Barclay
I refer to the following two news articles:
www.stuff.co.nz/timaru-herald/business/9...
www.stuff.co.nz/motoring/95641994/motorc...
I note that Wellington City Council transport advisor Steve Spence is quoted in both of these news articles as stating that motorcycles are not included when the WCC consults for the purposes of transport planning. And I note that Mr Spence claims that safety is the main reason for not encouraging motorcycling.
Under section 10 of the Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act (LGOIMA), I hereby request any and all reports about the relative safety of motorcycling that Mr Spence and/or the WCC have used in coming the their reported conclusions about motorcycle safety.
Further, I refer to the consultation principles stated in section 14 of the Local Government Act, and the consultation requirements in section 78 and 79 of the Local Government Act, and the consultation principles stated in section 82 of the Local Government Act, and the Land Transport Management Amendment Act requirement to consult "representative groups of land transport users" and further to consult "affected communities," and paragraphs 105 to 106 and 127 to 130 of the following guidance from the Office of the Auditor General - www.oag.govt.nz/1998/public-consultation.... There are approximately 17,500 registered motorcycles in the Wellington region - http://www.transport.govt.nz/ourwork/tmi.... In light of the requirements and guidance referred to above, I hereby request under section 10 of LGOIMA that you specify which clauses of which Act, Regulation, Order or other legislative instrument Mr Spence and/or the WCC have used in deciding to exclude an identified group of transport users, who are also an affected community, from planning about transport?
I look forward to a prompt reply after no more than 20 working days.
Regards
Angus Barclay
From: BUS: IRO
Wellington City Council
Thank you for your email, sent to the Issues Resolution Office at Wellington City Council.
This email address is monitored throughout the day, and emails are actioned on a priority basis. Where required, you will be contacted in due course.
We appreciate your patience.
Wellington City Council Issues Resolution Office.
From: Chris Brown
Wellington City Council
Hello Mr Barclay,
Thank you for your email, received via FYI.org.nz, concerning motorcyclists and transport planning.
I have spoken with Steve Spence about it, and am able to provide you with the following comments, based on your questions:
The news articles you refer to made selective use of the contents of an internal email which was accidentally sent to them.
The fact is the Council has neither encouraged or discouraged motor cycling in its recent transport policies, and we work to make our roads as safe as we can for all road users.
We are committed to promoting safe riding to existing motorcycle and moped riders through promotion of the ACC Ride Forever and Scooter Survival training, regular safety checkpoints with our colleagues at NZ Police and support of regional safety events such as Shiny Side Up http://www.shinysideup.co.nz/ . We are currently in talks with some of our safety partners, including Bikers Rights Organisation of New Zealand (BRONZ) in how we can better address the needs of moped riders.
The reality is that whether the Council encourages motorcycling or not, will not necessarily impact on how people choose to travel. It is expected that we will continue to see growth in 2 wheel powered vehicles, including under 50cc scooters which have proliferated in recent years as many people find them to be a cost effective and convenient choice for their travel needs.
The Council accepts that people have every right to choose how they travel, however we do encourage/support cycling, public transport and walking on the basis they are more sustainable modes of transport. It’s worth pointing out that we don’t encourage single occupant work trips by car.
In the case of cycling, this is more hazardous than walking or using public transport, but the Government has concluded that the health benefits outweigh the safety downsides. That isn’t the case for two wheeled powered vehicles, although there may be counter arguments in relation to space utilisation and fossil fuel use compared with the car. (See http://www.saferjourneys.govt.nz/about-s...
In particular Page 37, and:
http://www.google.co.nz/url?sa=t&rct...
In particular Action 2
On the matter of consultation please refer to the Council’s Urban Development and Transport Strategy which was adopted by Councillors in June 2015 following a process of public engagement. This sets out the Council’s current priorities for transport.
https://wellington.govt.nz/your-council/...
I hope this helps with your queries.
Kind regards
Chris
Chris Brown | Assurance Advisor | Complaints & Information Assurance | Wellington City Council
P 04 803 8368
E [email address] | W Wellington.govt.nz | |
IMPORTANT: The information contained in this email may be confidential or legally privileged. It is intended solely for the recipient or recipients named in this message. Please note that if you are not the intended recipient you are not authorised to use, copy or distribute the email or any information contained in it. If you have received this email in error, please advise the sender immediately and destroy the original message and any attachments.
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From: Chris Brown
Wellington City Council
Hello Mr Barclay,
Further to our original response to your questions, the Council is in a position to provide some further context, as attached.
Please note that we have also expressed an apology to the Stuff.co.nz reporter for incorrectly challenging her reporting.
Kind regards
Chris
Chris Brown | Assurance Advisor | Complaints & Information Assurance | Wellington City Council
P 04 803 8368
E [email address] | W Wellington.govt.nz | |
IMPORTANT: The information contained in this email may be confidential or legally privileged. It is intended solely for the recipient or recipients named in this message. Please note that if you are not the intended recipient you are not authorised to use, copy or distribute the email or any information contained in it. If you have received this email in error, please advise the sender immediately and destroy the original message and any attachments.
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