OUR PROJECTS WEST COAST COMBINED TRANSPORT PLANNING

CLIENTS: Westland District Council, Grey District Council, Buller District Council
DATE: 2020-2021
STATUS: Directly contributed to increased transport funding for the West Coast

Since 2017, Rationale has been working with the three Council’s on New Zealand’s West Coast (Te Tai o Poutini) as they move along a continuum towards a greater level of regional transport collaboration around network and activity/ asset management.

This collaboration is in response to a range of issues and future challenges identified across the region, including ageing assets, unforgiving geography, severe weather, remote communities, and budgetary constraints. The Councils have also struggled historically to attract and retain staff with the right skillset and experience to deliver high quality network outcomes.

The last five years has been a period of continuous improvement, both for the planning and delivery of each council’s individual programmes and strengthening relationships and formal partnerships between the councils to deliver for their communities.

WHAT DID WE DO?

Working in partnership with the roading and infrastructure teams at each Council, Rationale developed a combined Programme Business Case and Activity Management Plan for the West Coast.

These were developed for the purpose of the 2021-24 National Land Transport Programme and each council’s Long Term Plan. The work has played a major role in making the case for, and then implementing, a change to a more collaborative approach around the delivery of transport programmes across the region.

Rationale guided the process and led delivery of the overall programme of improvement the three Council’s committed to collaborate on in the three years leading up to 2021. Our experienced team facilitated Investment Logic Map (ILM) workshops and engaged with staff at each council to understand key issues and opportunities for investment.

Community and stakeholder engagement were integral to the development of a robust Strategic Case and setting the direction of investment for the next 10 years. Rationale facilitated a series of stakeholder workshops and implemented a regional community transport survey to ensure that the experience and priorities of residents, businesses and visitors were embedded into the process.

Finally, Rationale led the writing of a joint West Coast Programme Business Case, and development of a Combined and District Activity Management Plan. These documents were the key submission for funding from the 2021-24 National Land Transport Programme.