Ia Ara Aotearoa Transporting New Zealand

Recent population data released by Statistics New Zealand should have made all employers in this country stand up and notice, including road transport operators. 

A couple of headline figures we should all be concerned about are that during the last year New Zealand’s working age population shrank by 0.2 percent, with a massive 3.1 percent reduction in the number of people in their 20s. The number of 20 to 39-year-olds was down 0.7 percent and those aged 25 to 29 dropped a whopping 4 percent.

All this was in the year up to March 2022, a year where the borders were mostly closed and there was heightened uncertainty around international travel. Now that borders have reo...

Livestock transport has always been a hard business. The work is stressful, the animal welfare responsibilities huge and the margins often very tight. Traditionally, livestock operators have also had the thin end of the wedge when it comes to the chain of responsibility – much of it falling on the poor old truckie.

Ia Ara Aotearoa Transporting New Zealand is seeking to change this situation and is working through our sector group, the National Livestock Transport & Safety Group, to spread the load across the whole supply chain and address some of the key challenges and risks faced by operators.

The proposal, which the industry has spent the last year-or-so formulating, is ...

There is absolutely no doubt that New Zealand is in for some tough economic times over the next year or so. High inflation and disruptions caused by the pandemic and war in Ukraine are contributing to significant pressures on businesses and households. 

Some may have missed it, but back in late March ASB Bank released forecasting that indicated that New Zealand households would see an on-average increase in weekly costs in the vicinity of $150. I must admit, I was staggered by that figure even though I understand the impact that higher interest rates and rising consumer prices are having. 

$150 is a lot of money for Kiwi families to find and for most, it is proba...

Cynically released on a Saturday morning and buried amongst blanket news coverage of Auckland’s Delta outbreak was the Government’s announcement that they had scrapped the bike bridge over the Waitemata Harbour as part of Auckland’s Northern Pathway Project.  

Despite already spending an almost unbelievable $51million on planning for the bridge, I guess it is good news that, at last, the Government has listened to public feedback and abandoned what was little more than a $800m vanity project. Remaining funding will instead be reallocated to other transport projects in the city that reduce emissions and traffic congestion. When it comes to Auckland’s transport woes, there is...

Since March 2020, COVID-19, lockdowns and supply chain pressures have caused unprecedented disruption for the road freight transport industry here in Aotearoa. 

During this time, drivers have stepped up and ensured the delivery of essential goods across the country – vital supplies to keep our supermarkets, petrol stations, businesses and hospitals fully stocked. 

Workers in the road freight transport industry do the hard mahi every day, placing themselves on the front line to keep the supply chain moving and support our economic recovery. I know the recent Delta outbreak has put even more pressure on and I would like to thank everyone in the sector who is contin...