Introduction - Understanding Transport Costs and Charges Phase One Summary Report

1. Understanding transport costs and charges is critical to developing effective transport policies aimed at enabling the transport industry to operate efficiently, and minimise potential economic, environmental and social impacts on society. 
    
2. Costs and charges information is required to facilitate policy development that aims to increase the potential for transport modes to be efficiently integrated. Once completed, the UTCC project will be a significant resource for transport planners and policy practitioners. Such information will enable us to gain a better understanding of the full costs of the different modes of transport and will become an important data source that transport professions can use to consider various impacts associated with transport activities. Costs and charges information will also assist evaluation of the effectiveness of government policy against pre-determined targets. 
    
3. The three objectives for phase 1 of this project are:
   • to provide a broad understanding of pricing, charging and funding arrangements in the maritime, road and rail transport modes 
   • to analyse the gap between costs and charges information requirements and the information that is either currently available or soon become available 
   • to provide a recommended work plan for estimating and collecting the relevant costs and charges information.
      
4. Phase 1 of this project was commissioned to Hyder Consulting (NZ) Limited, in partnerships with Ian Wallis Associates Limited, Murray King and Francis Small Consultancy Limited and IPC & Associates Limited.
    
5. A mix of workshops and face-to-face and telephone interviews were carried out to identify costs and charges information gaps and priorities. The consultation process involved discussing the demand for costs and charges information for transport policy stakeholders given the current and forecast work programme. This information was then synthesised to form the overall priorities for collection.

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