OraTaiao thanks Te Manatū Waka Ministry of Transport for the opportunity to comment on the Indicative Strategic Priorities for the Government Policy Statement on Land Transport in 2024. Our brief feedback, prepared by OraTaiao Co-Convenor Dr Dermot Coffey, makes three recommendations to give GPS 2024 a stronger focus on a more rapid mode-shift to active transport and non-polluting forms of transport.
Click on the heading to see our feedback below.
From: OraTaiao Convenor <[email protected]>
Date: Fri, 3 Mar 2023 at 13:23
Subject: Indicative priorities for GPS 2024
To: <[email protected]>
Tēnā koe
On behalf of OraTaiao:NZ Climate and Health Council, I would like to thank you for the opportunity to comment on Te Manatū Waka’s engagement on developing the Government Policy Statement on Land Transport in 2024. We look forward to further contributing during the formal consultation period.
OraTaiao: NZ Climate and Health Council is an organisation calling for urgent, fair, and Tiriti-based climate action in Aotearoa; we recognise the important co-benefits to health, well-being and fairness from strong and welldesigned mitigative policies. We honour Māori aspirations, are committed to the principles of te Tiriti o Waitangi, and strive to reduce inequities between Māori and other New Zealanders. We are guided in our practice by the concepts of kaitiakitanga (guardianship), kotahitanga (unity), manaakitanga (caring), and whakatipuranga (future generations).
We would strongly recommend the following:
- We commend the clear and specific linking of health benefits to the primary outcome of environmental sustainability.
- We recommend the strategic priority of “safety” be widened to “optimising safety and health.” The majority of the adverse health impacts from our current private-car dominated transport system are not due to trauma, but to air pollution and contribution to physical inactivity. (This is briefly mentioned in the “sustainable urban development” heading but needs to become a main focus.
- We strongly recommend an increased stress on the health implications of transport-related air pollution. Recent research suggests that the number of premature deaths in Aotearoa is multiple times that relating to particulate air pollution alone. Ref: https://www.ehinz.ac.nz/indicators/air-quality/health-effects-of-air-pollution/#more-than-3300-deaths-from-human-made-air-pollution-in-2016
Incorporating these principles will imply a stronger focus on a more rapid mode-shift to active transport and non-polluting forms of transport than our climate commitments alone will require.
Ngā mihi nui
Dermot Coffey
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MB,MCh, BAO, FRNZCGP
Co-Convenor, OraTaiao: NZ Climate & Health Council