Work category 231: Associated improvements

Introduction

This work category provides for:

• minor drainage and seal width improvements carried out in conjunction with road renewals
• widening of existing seal, where this is the least-cost maintenance treatment, and
• installation of new minor traffic management equipment and facilities.

Examples of qualifying activities

Examples of qualifying activities include, but not be limited to:

• Installation of culverts (having a cross-sectional area less than 3.4 square metres), water channels, subsoil drainage, or Kerb and Channel, where this is shown to be necessary:
  • to protect adjacent property from run-off from the road surface
  • to protect the pavement.
• Extensions to Approved Organisations’ drainage systems in built-up areas, where such improved drainage is necessary for the protection of the road – costs should generally be apportioned according to the respective volumes of runoff from contributing areas of roadway and other land.
• Increases to seal width to overcome maintenance problems, up to the seal width accepted by the NZ Transport Agency for the traffic mix and volume on that section of road.
• Installation of new signs and traffic management equipment and facilities, or upgrading these to the current standard, up to a limit of $10,000.
• The cost of drainage and seal width improvements carried out in conjunction with renewal work must not exceed 20 percent of the cost of the basic road renewal work.

 

Other potential activities that are not in the above list should be discussed with the NZ Transport Agency for eligibility.

Exclusions

This work category excludes:

• Extensions to Approved Organisations’ or the NZTA’s (state highways) drainage systems in excess of the above qualifying activities – these are not eligible for funding assistance.
• Other proposed work in excess of the above qualifying activities, such as geometric improvements or seal widening for safety reasons – these are funded under the following work categories, unless specifically approved by the NZ Transport Agency:
  • Work category 341: Minor improvements
  • Work category 321: New traffic management facilities
  • Work category 324: Road improvements.

Funding assistance rate

The usual funding assistance rate is:

• the Approved Organisation’s base rate
• the Approved Organisation’s special purpose roads rate, and
• 100 percent for the NZTA (state highways).

References

For detail about:

• signs and traffic management equipment, see Traffic systems and road safety.

Evaluation of activities

Approved Organisations and the NZTA (state highways) must be able to show that provision of the improvement in conjunction with the renewal work is necessary and economically efficient.

The Approved Organisation and the NZTA (state highways) must undertake economic efficiency evaluations for the following activities and make copies of the evaluations available as requested by the NZ Transport Agency:

• individual seal widening projects
• new drainage facilities, such as culverts, water channels and kerb and channel, and
• new kerb and channel project evaluations.

These projects must be the long-term, least-cost option for the Approved Organisation and the NZTA (state highways), calculated in terms of present value (PV).

References

For detail about:

• signs and traffic management equipment, see Traffic systems and road safety.
• over-width carriageways, see Application of network documents
• A simplified economic efficiency procedure is provided for seal widening in the Economic Evaluation Manual (Jan 2016) – see SP1.