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Associate Transport Minister Simon Bridges is urging road users to do their bit to be safe on the roads these holidays.

“The 2012 road toll is already higher than the 2011 toll and we still have the busiest holiday period of the year to come. The seven tragic deaths in the central north island yesterday remind us why extra vigilance is needed in the Christmas season.

“It can be tempting to rush to see loved ones or to get on holiday sooner but the consequences can be irreversibly devastating.

The Government will increase petrol excise duty by three cents a litre on 1 July 2013, 1 July 2014 and 1 July 2015, Transport Minister Gerry Brownlee says.

Road user charges will also be increased by an equivalent amount.

Mr Brownlee says the increases are required to deliver the Roads of National Significance (RoNS) programme and other roading projects to the timeline set out in the Government Policy Statement on Land Transport Funding 2012.

The Government is working hard across the board to promote and improve water safety, Associate Transport Minister Simon Bridges said today at the Folau Malu event at Auckland’s Mangere Bridge.

Folau Malu translates to “journey safely”, and is aimed at promoting safe boating to the Pacific community.

New rules come into force tomorrow requiring all adventure tourism operators to strengthen how they manage drug and alcohol-related safety risks in their operations.

“I welcome these tougher rules with the knowledge that tourists and New Zealanders alike will have greater assurance about the safety of adventure activities,” says Transport Minister Gerry Brownlee.

Acting Labour Minister Chris Finlayson says the new requirements will reduce risk and also help protect New Zealand’s reputation as a tourist destination.

Transport Minister Gerry Brownlee has today opened the South Island’s first Road of National Significance, the Christchurch Southern Motorway Stage 1.

The $140 million, eight kilometre four-lane motorway and 2.5 km upgrade of Halswell Junction Road, which runs between Collins Street and Halswell Junction Road and then along Halswell Junction Road, was completed within three years – ahead of schedule and on budget.

Transport Minister Gerry Brownlee says the Sinclair Knight Merz report “City Centre Future Access Study” released this afternoon by Auckland Mayor Len Brown is a useful addition to the debate on long term transport management in central Auckland.

“It also falls some way short of convincing the Government it should provide financial support to any fast tracking of the proposed City Rail Link (CRL),” Mr Brownlee says.

The Government agrees with the Productivity Commission that there are opportunities to lift the performance of the international freight system, and is taking action to make this happen, Transport Minister Gerry Brownlee says.

The Government has today released its response to the New Zealand Productivity Commission’s final report on international freight transport services.

“International trade is crucial for New Zealand’s economic success.

Associate Transport Minister Simon Bridges has welcomed new risk-ratings that show significant improvements in the safety of New Zealand’s state highway network, at the launch of the latest KiwiRAP road assessment results today in the Bay of Plenty.

KiwiRAP (New Zealand Road Assessment Programme) measures crash risk on nearly 11,000 kilometres of state highway, identifying high-risk roads to help target safety improvements.

Transport Minister Gerry Brownlee says Cabinet has approved an application from the NZ Transport Agency to pursue a Public-Private Partnership (PPP) to finance and build the Transmission Gully highway, part of the Wellington Northern Corridor Road of National Significance.

“A Board of Inquiry appointed by the Minister for the Environment approved the resource consents and notices required for this project in June, and in August I requested the NZTA to assess the suitability of using a PPP procurement model to design and build the highway,” Mr Brownlee says.

The Government has amended the 2007 Vehicle Exhaust Emissions Rule following public consultation, Associate Minister of Transport Simon Bridges has announced.

“It’s important for both people’s health and the safety of vehicles entering the fleet that this rule is updated.  In general, the newer the vehicle, the higher the standard of safety features.”

Associate Transport Minister Simon Bridges has thanked the public and the transport sector for their excellent response to the Government’s call for feedback on proposed changes to vehicle licensing systems.

“Approximately 4200 submissions were made during the six week public consultation period which ended yesterday," says Mr Bridges.

“This is a huge response to the ideas and options presented in the discussion document, demonstrating how much interest there is in our vehicle licensing systems.

Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Minister Gerry Brownlee has announced a new training and employment programme to attract workers into trade industries needed for the horizontal rebuild of greater Christchurch.

The programme is part of the Government’s wider infrastructure programme, which is set out in the Building Infrastructure progress report released today.

The Government wants to further test the viability of a ferry terminal at Clifford Bay in Marlborough, Transport Minister Gerry Brownlee has announced.

"Cabinet believes the business case we've been presented is strong enough to justify further testing the viability of this major change to New Zealand's transport infrastructure," Mr Brownlee says.

"I have asked the Ministry of Transport, along with the Treasury and the NZ Transport Agency to assemble a specialist project team to undertake this work.

Construction of the National War Memorial Park in Buckle Street was declared underway, following a sod-turning ceremony and blessing of the site on Buckle Street in Wellington, by Transport Minister Gerry Brownlee and Arts, Culture and Heritage Minister Christopher Finlayson.

The park is the Government’s key project to acknowledge the Centenary of the First World War, and is intended to be completed in time for the 100th anniversary of the Gallipoli landing on Anzac day 2015.

Transport Minister Gerry Brownlee has welcomed today's publication of the final report from the cross-sector Road Maintenance Task Force.

"We established the task force in July last year to drive value for money and seek opportunities to reduce costs for roading authorities around the country in the road maintenance, operations and renewals area," Mr Brownlee says.

People wanting to have their say on Vehicle Licensing Reform have one week left to make a submission before the 31 October deadline, says Associate Transport Minister Simon Bridges.

The Vehicle Licensing Reform project, jointly led by the Ministry of Transport and the NZ Transport Agency, is looking at ways to improve the following systems:

Associate Minister of Transport Simon Bridges is urging drivers to take care this holiday weekend.

“Labour Day weekend is traditionally a busy one so it’s important to remember that being safe on the roads is everyone’s responsibility.”

Last year’s toll was high – there were eight deaths, 17 serious injuries and 92 minor injuries.

“Most crashes are caused by preventable actions.  If drivers are focused, drive to the conditions and obey speed limits then our holiday roads will be much safer.”

Transport Minister Gerry Brownlee has marked a significant milestone this morning in the Government’s effort to improve Auckland’s motorway network.

The Minister gave the official signal at 10.15am to a crane operator at the Newmarket Viaduct Replacement project site to begin work removing the giant launching gantry affectionately known as ‘Big Blue’ from the construction site.

A new rule that raises the upper limit for the mandatory use of child restraints is a sensible move to help keep more of our children safe on the roads, says Associate Minister of Transport Simon Bridges.

“International and local research shows that in the event of a crash, young school age passengers are at considerable risk if they are only restrained by an adult seatbelt.

Transport Minister Gerry Brownlee has announced Cabinet approval for $4 million of funding for the design and construction of passing opportunities on State Highway 2 between Napier and Gisborne.

“I acknowledge concerns about getting freight in and out of the Gisborne region in the most cost effective way since the Napier to Gisborne rail line closed north of Wairoa in March following storm damage, and the subsequent decision by KiwiRail to mothball the line.

Transport Minister Gerry Brownlee says compensation agreements worth up to $38 million have been signed between the owners of the Rena and the Crown.

Under the agreements Daina Shipping will pay compensation of $27.6 million to the Crown for costs incurred in clean-up after the ship grounded off Tauranga last October.  A further $10.4 million will be paid if Daina Shipping and The Swedish Club (the Rena’s insurers) decide to apply for, are granted, and use a resource consent to leave part of the wreck in place, reflecting their reduced salvage costs.

Associate Transport Minister Simon Bridges is inviting people to have their say on options to make New Zealand’s vehicle licensing systems simpler and more efficient.

“The current systems have been in place for decades and affect every vehicle owner and driver so we need to be sure the rationale for all of these are still clear and justified.”

The Vehicle Licensing Reform project, jointly led by the Ministry of Transport and the NZ Transport Agency, is looking at ways to refine the following systems:

Twenty-five per cent of the motorists who have died on the roads so far this year were not wearing their safety belts, says Associate Transport Minister Simon Bridges.

“We know safety belts can be the difference between life and death, and many of these deaths will have been preventable. I urge road users to take responsibility for their safety – take this simple step to stay safe.”

The Marine Legislation Bill had its first reading in Parliament today.

The Bill makes amendments to the Maritime Transport Act 1994 across three main categories: implementing international maritime conventions; port, harbour and navigation safety; and miscellaneous provisions.

The Bill also amends the Exclusive Economic Zone and Continental Shelf (Environmental Effect) Act 2012 by the transfer of certain discharge and dumping of waste functions from Maritime New Zealand to the Environmental Protection Authority.