WC 532: Low cost, low risk public transport improvements

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

• small scale new services or service trials (with a whole of life cost of no more than $1,000,000)
• construction of new shelter(s) or existing shelter upgrades
• construction of new station/station halt or existing station/station halt upgrades,
• construction of concrete arrival/departure pads for buses
• construction of bus parking facilities (layover area)
• bus or transit lane/priority improvements, and busways
• construction/upgrade/relocation of driver/passenger toilet facilities
• platform extension, replacement and upgrade
• minor new asset purchases for PT facilities (eg rubbish bins, canopies, seating, etc)
• roof, canopy, guttering or lighting upgrades
• signage, timetable or screen display installation or upgrade
• CCTV installation or upgrade
• new or upgraded replacement of IT equipment or systems, including ticketing machines and transponders, customer APPS specifically related to PT
• screen display installation or upgrade
• safety and security improvements (including CCTV installation or upgrade)
• construction / upgrade of existing ferry berth (including ferry freeboard or floating pontoon) existing ferry mooring / berthing piles/ sullage facility
• passenger waiting area/ queuing improvements (ferry)
• installation of cycle racks on buses
• vehicle and cycle parking installation or upgrade at a bus stop / interchange or station.

Other potential activities not shown above should be discussed with Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency for eligibility.

The work category excludes:

• any local improvement project funded with a FAR other than the approved organisation’s normal FAR, eg activities funded from the Urban Cycleway fund or under targeted enhanced FARs, and
• any improvement project with an estimated total cost for approval (after deducting third party/supplementary funding from the total cost) of over $1,000,000 – these must be developed as individual improvement projects under the appropriate work category.

Each Low cost, low risk improvements programme must be supported by a list of projects using Waka Kotahi's public transport improvements template (which can be downloaded from Transport Investment Online(external link) (TIO), as set out below.

If an approved organisation does put a project forward with an estimated total cost of over $1,000,000 as a low cost, low risk improvement, Waka Kotahi will only financially assist such a project to a cap of $1,000,000 and any amount over this cap will be treated as third party/supplementary funding, which the approved organisation must fund itself. For example, a project of $1,200,000 total cost will be assumed to have $200,000 third party/supplementary funding and Waka Kotahi will assist funding only to the $1,000,000 total cost for approval maximum.

The $1,000,000 total cost for approval maximum includes professional services, property and construction/implementation costs.

A low cost, low risk public transport improvement project cost must not be split or claimed over multiple work categories and activity classes. It must be claimed only under Work Category 532.

A project must not be split into more than one low cost, low risk improvement project to circumvent the $1,000,000 total cost for approval cap.

The total cost for approval of any multi-party funded Low cost, low risk improvement project must not exceed the $1,000,000 cap across all funding parties.

If the tender price for a planned low cost, low risk improvement project means that its total cost exceeds the $1,000,000 limit, either it is withdrawn as a low cost, low risk improvement and resubmitted as a stand-alone project in Transport Investment Online or it remains as a low cost, low risk improvement and any amount over the limit will be treated as third party/supplementary funding, which the approved organisation must fund itself.

Where the actual outturn total cost for approval exceeds the tendered cost and exceeds the $1,000,000 limit, the project may remain as a low cost, low risk improvement and receive funding assistance against all of the total cost for approval, provided Waka Kotahi representative relevant to the approved organisation agrees that the reasons for the increased cost are justified and that the increase is reasonable.

Funding approval for low cost, low risk programme at the start of the new NLTP is conditional on each Low risk, low risk improvements programme being supported by a list of projects and on the cash-flows of these projects being captured in the Low cost, low risk public transport improvements template (which can be downloaded from Transport Investment Online(external link) (TIO).

The template list is expected to be maintained and updated regularly. A condition precedent also exists for claiming in the new financial year, specifically the template must be updated by 31 August of each year. This means:

• by 31 August of the first year of the new NLTP the template related to the previous NLTP must be updated with final cash-flows for individual projects;
• by 31 August for each of the second and third years the current NLTP the Low cost, low risk template must be updated to reflect actual project expenditure in the previous year and cash-flows for committed activities and projects planned to commence in the balance of the NLTP period .

Claiming for low cost, low risk programmes will be placed on hold until the conditions above are met.

Waka Kotahi template (which can be downloaded from Transport Investment Online(external link) (TIO) must be used for all proposed Low cost, low risk improvements programmes. This template has been created in Excel 2007 and that the 'Summary of Activities' worksheet will show #NAME? errors if opened in Excel 2003.