Public transport programmes

Introduction

Approved Organisations that receive funding assistance from the National Land Transport Fund for delivering public transport services need to develop public transport programmes to cover the three years of the next National Land Transport Programme Interrelated and complementary combination of activities that, when delivered in a coordinated manner, produce synergies – can span more than one work category and more than one activity class, e.g. a programme could include a road improvement and public transport improvement activities. (NLTP A National Land Transport Programme Interrelated and complementary combination of activities that, when delivered in a coordinated manner, produce synergies – can span more than one work category and more than one activity class, e.g. a programme could include a road improvement and public transport improvement activities. adopted by the NZTA under section 19 of the LTMA, as from time to time amended or varied ).

Qualifying work categories

Qualifying work should be included in the following service and operational related work categories:

• Work category 511 – Bus services
• Work category 512 – Passenger ferry services
• Work category 515 – Passenger rail services
• Work category 514 – Public transport facilities operations and maintenance
• Work category 517 – Total mobility services
• Work category 519 – Total Mobility wheelchair hoists and ramps
• Work category 521 – Total mobility wheelchair hoist use payments
• Work category 524 - Public transport information supply, operations and maintenance

For further detail on these work categories refer to the links provided above.

Exclusions

A public transport programme shall not include the following work categories or activity types:

• Work category 522 – SuperGold card concessions (funded outside of the National Land Transport Fund)
• Work category 531 - Public transport infrastructure, facilities major renewals and improvements
• improvements related to service and operations work categories (funded as distinct activities under the qualifying work categories listed above).

Definition of a Public transport programme of existing services

A Public transport programme consists of existing, ongoing services and operations. It includes minor variations and service reconfigurations that result in no increase in the annualised cost for the specific activity (via an increase in level of service provision), or for the programme in total (across all activities, across the three year NLTP A National Land Transport Programme Interrelated and complementary combination of activities that, when delivered in a coordinated manner, produce synergies – can span more than one work category and more than one activity class, e.g. a programme could include a road improvement and public transport improvement activities. adopted by the NZTA under section 19 of the LTMA, as from time to time amended or varied period). Existing services are the services in place in the financial year immediately prior to the first year of the NLTP under development. Existing services may include changes to those services, such as:

• variations consistent with the public transport units in the currently adopted Regional Public Transport Plan (RPTP A plan which specifies how the regional council intends to give effect to the public transport service components of the regional land transport plan that applies to the region. As of June 2013, the contents and management of the plan is defined by Part 5 of the Land Transport Management Act 2003. ), and 
• reconfigured routes and networks, including new services, where the  annualised cost of the total service provision does not exceed the approved funding level of the year prior to the first year of the NLTP A National Land Transport Programme Interrelated and complementary combination of activities that, when delivered in a coordinated manner, produce synergies – can span more than one work category and more than one activity class, e.g. a programme could include a road improvement and public transport improvement activities. adopted by the NZTA under section 19 of the LTMA, as from time to time amended or varied under development.

The Public transport programme  business case and general guidance

The Transport Agency expects Approved Organisations to follow the Transport Agency’s Planning and Investment Principles  in developing and delivering their public transport programmes.

The Public transport programme needs to be supported by a programme business case. The RPTP A plan which specifies how the regional council intends to give effect to the public transport service components of the regional land transport plan that applies to the region. As of June 2013, the contents and management of the plan is defined by Part 5 of the Land Transport Management Act 2003. should use the principles of the business case approach and this, together with supporting plans and strategic documents, would consitutute the programme business case.

Each programme should include sufficient information to support the service level and funding levels proposed, and set out the results to be achieved from investment.

Transport Agency’s expectations on costs

The programme submission for funding in an NLTP A National Land Transport Programme Interrelated and complementary combination of activities that, when delivered in a coordinated manner, produce synergies – can span more than one work category and more than one activity class, e.g. a programme could include a road improvement and public transport improvement activities. adopted by the NZTA under section 19 of the LTMA, as from time to time amended or varied will demonstrate that the  investment in public transport services provides value for money Selecting the right things to do, implementing them in the right way, at the right time and for the right price. and that the activities in the programme contribute to the Government Policy Statement on Land Transport (GPS A Government Policy Statement on Land Transport Funding issued under section 86 of the LTMA ) results.

The cost of providing the programme will be directly or indirectly influenced by such factors as:

• the number of public transport units identified  to deliver services across the public transport network, and variations around these,
• the competitive pricing of units,
• significant retendering within the three year period,
• changes in input costs, such as cost escalation due to fuel movements, labour cost increases, etc.,
• fare setting and farebox recovery, and
• operational costs or cost variables associated with the service costs as included in the submitted programme.

These factors will affect costs to different degrees in different parts of the country.

The Transport Agency expects that organisations will apply robust procurement and management principles in managing their costs to stay within their allocated funding levels.

Transport Investment Online application

Two key components exist in a public transport programme funding application via Transport Investment Online (TIO The NZTA's web-based funding allocation system. ):

• public transport statistics, which include network forecasts for boardings, passenger kilometres The total number of passengers carried over the relevant period multiplied by their average distance travelled on that service. , in-service vehicle kilometres and fare revenue, (required across the forward ten year period)
• public transport expenditure, which includes forecasts in programme expenditure for – services, operations and maintenance of facilities, and minor changes; (required for each work category A type of activity – not confined to a particular activity class, e.g. new roads (work category 323) appears in:
  
  * activity class 12 – local road improvements
  * activity class 13 – state highways improvements requesting funding across the forward NLTP A National Land Transport Programme Interrelated and complementary combination of activities that, when delivered in a coordinated manner, produce synergies – can span more than one work category and more than one activity class, e.g. a programme could include a road improvement and public transport improvement activities. adopted by the NZTA under section 19 of the LTMA, as from time to time amended or varied and across the forward ten year period at a programme level).

Each Approved Organisation must submit information to support its public transport programme for the next 10 years as part of its TIO The NZTA's web-based funding allocation system. application.

Public transport statistics

Estimated targets for passenger boardings, passenger kilometres The total number of passengers carried over the relevant period multiplied by their average distance travelled on that service. , in-service vehicle kilometres and farebox revenue need to be provided for each mode in the public transport programme for the three years of the NLTP A National Land Transport Programme Interrelated and complementary combination of activities that, when delivered in a coordinated manner, produce synergies – can span more than one work category and more than one activity class, e.g. a programme could include a road improvement and public transport improvement activities. adopted by the NZTA under section 19 of the LTMA, as from time to time amended or varied , and an estimate for the next seven years beyond this, i.e. a forecast of 10 years in total.

 There are two methods that may be used to determine passenger kilometres The total number of passengers carried over the relevant period multiplied by their average distance travelled on that service. :

• actual passenger kilometre data from tag-on tag-off electronic ticketing systems, adjusted appropriately to take into account cash fare sales and any estimations required to capture these additional passenger kilometres The total number of passengers carried over the relevant period multiplied by their average distance travelled on that service. travelled, or
• estimation of passenger kilometres The total number of passengers carried over the relevant period multiplied by their average distance travelled on that service. travelled, calculated by multiplying the total number of boardings on a route by the average trip length for passengers on that route.  Average trip length can be estimated from an on-board survey, or directly through a tag-on, tag-off integrated ticketing system.

Approved Organisations must use one of these methods unless the Transport Agency’s prior approval has been obtained for an alternative method.

Estimates of these statistics also need to be provided for the balance of the ten year forecast that is a requirement under the Land Transport Management Act.

The Transport Agency expects these statistics to align with the Regional Public Transport Plan (RPTP A plan which specifies how the regional council intends to give effect to the public transport service components of the regional land transport plan that applies to the region. As of June 2013, the contents and management of the plan is defined by Part 5 of the Land Transport Management Act 2003. ) or any other key planning documents where this information is provided.

Use of public transport datasets (statistics and expenditure)

The Transport Agency will use the public transport statistics, together with expenditure detail submitted to:

• analyse the submitted public transport programme and identify the likely forward funding requirements for public transport in the region,
• help identify contributions of programmes to GPS A Government Policy Statement on Land Transport Funding issued under section 86 of the LTMA results,
• benchmarking Benchmarking is undertaken when the NZTA makes comparisons against similar regions and the national average. A lack of information supporting differences from regional and national averages may result in changes to the efficiency rating for public transport or maintenance programme or a requirement for a study as a condition of investment approval. Trends in these measures over time are used rather than just annual values. of comparative network performance by generation of key indicators to assist in determining the Investment Assessment profile of the network, and
• set national estimates for end-of-year comparison with actual achieved.

Approved Organisations also need to refer to the provisions in the Transport Agency's Procurement The purchase of works, goods or services. Manual (Chapter 11.7 Public Transport Service Key Performance measures) to ensure that the data collection and reporting requirements are included as part of the provision their public transport programmes.

Funding decisions delegated within allocation

The Transport Agency delegates programme management decisions on the activities contained in a public transport programme to the Approved Organisation within an approved allocation that covers each of the three years of the NLTP A National Land Transport Programme Interrelated and complementary combination of activities that, when delivered in a coordinated manner, produce synergies – can span more than one work category and more than one activity class, e.g. a programme could include a road improvement and public transport improvement activities. adopted by the NZTA under section 19 of the LTMA, as from time to time amended or varied .

Approved Organisations may carry over unspent funds from one year to the next where justified. Transport Agency regional staff will verify that the carryover is justified and may reduce the level of carryover if not fully justified. At the end of the NLTP A National Land Transport Programme Interrelated and complementary combination of activities that, when delivered in a coordinated manner, produce synergies – can span more than one work category and more than one activity class, e.g. a programme could include a road improvement and public transport improvement activities. adopted by the NZTA under section 19 of the LTMA, as from time to time amended or varied there will be no carryover of unspent funds left in the allocation to the following NLTP.

Approved Organisations are expected to manage their programmes to maintain expenditure within approved funding allocations for the three year NLTP A National Land Transport Programme Interrelated and complementary combination of activities that, when delivered in a coordinated manner, produce synergies – can span more than one work category and more than one activity class, e.g. a programme could include a road improvement and public transport improvement activities. adopted by the NZTA under section 19 of the LTMA, as from time to time amended or varied .