Tasman District Mayor Tim King is welcoming the level of financial support from central government and its agencies to help pay the bill for roading repairs following the recent devastating back-to-back storms.

At one stage during the emergencies more than 600 kilometres of Tasman’s roading network were closed, with the ensuing damage costing tens of millions of dollars to fix. 

NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi (NZTA) has announced a bespoke Financial Assistance Rate (FAR) to assist in restoring local roads affected by the recent events.

Director of Regional Relationships Emma Speight says NZTA acknowledges the financial challenges Tasman District Council is facing and are committed to supporting councils in restoring local roads affected by these events.

The bespoke rates will be the normal FAR plus 40 percent, which means NZTA will cover 91 percent of costs for response activities such as the initial cleanup to get roads reopened after the emergency events.

For recovery activities after the events, which includes more permanent fixes like restoring drainage systems, building new retaining structures, road surfaces and erosion protection near bridges, NZTA will provide the normal FAR plus 30 percent which equates to an 81 percent of the costs. subsidy for activities that lead to permanent solutions.

There’s a regional cap of $50m for total costs for this event which covers both the Tasman District Council and Marlborough District Council roading repairs bespoke emergency FARs.

Tasman Mayor Tim King say this rapid funding decision is extremely pleasing.

He says there has been a lot of temporary work done to get roads reopened and communities reconnected so confirmation of these special financial arrangements will enable us to get on with planning and delivering permanent repair work. 

“I’d like to thank NZTA for their speed in deciding on the level of financial assistance for us, as we continue to get back on our feet following the big midwinter storms.”

Mayor King says it’s going to be a lengthy process getting all roads, bridges and associated infrastructure back to normal, but this level of support is a big boost.