REG Newsletter

• Note from Malcolm Alexander, REG member and Chief Executive of LGNZ
• Embedding the ONRC into the Transport Agency's investment decision-making criteria  
• Review and refresh your ONRC Transition Plan
• ONRC Performance Measures Reporting Tool
• REG Regional Workshops

Note from Malcolm Alexander, REG member and Chief Executive of LGNZ

Now that we’re well into the transition to the new classification and funding framework, it’s worth reminding ourselves why we’re on this journey.

We are moving to a maintenance and funding model which places road users – our customers – at the centre of our thinking. We are giving them certainty about the quality of the road network, and we are giving ourselves a robust method for assessing the quality of our roads and funding them accordingly. The collaboration we are building will bring innovation and savings, and lift our skills.

In the past, much road work was driven by squeaky wheels and embedded maintenance schedules.  Thinking about the user experience and placing that at the centre of the business model is a big culture shift for many, but it will ultimately lead to greater certainty and consistency in our work – and most importantly, better value and service for New Zealanders. 

Embedding the ONRC into the Transport Agency's investment decision-making criteria: update from Mark Yaxley (National Portfolio Manager Activity Management Planning)

NZ Transport Agency will release maintenance investment decision-making criteria for embedding the ONRC framework into its funding allocation processes for the 2018–2021 NLTP, by 30 ^th June 2016.

All approved organisations should be thinking about reviewing their Activity Management Plans, to ensure they are robust and informed by the ONRC.

Activity Management Plans will be a key source of supporting information for maintenance programmes submitted to the 2018-21 NLTP. Programme submissions should be based on a thorough analysis of need, a rigorous analysis of maintenance intervention strategies and costs against the ONRC and Customer Levels of Service, and reflect best practice for activity management planning and smart procurement.

Review and refresh your ONRC Transition Plan

It’s been nearly a year since RCAs completed transition plans. Now that you’ve had some experience of implementing yours, it’s time to check – is it still fit-for-purpose?  Are your actions on track?

It can help to think of your transition plan as a gap analysis.  Ask yourself, where are we meeting the customer’s needs?  Where is the customer falling through the cracks? Your transition plan will help you submit a customer-focused management plan for the next National Land Transport Plan (NLTP) in 2018. 

REG and EquiP’s RTU team can help with your review – drop us an email at roadefficiencygroup@nzta.govt.nz and we will be in touch.

ONRC Performance Measures Reporting Tool

The tool can now generate reports on 14 performance measures, if you have recorded your data in RAMM. We urge you to login, import your data, view your 14 measures, validate them, and take the time to understand what they mean for your work. As the performance measures are embedded into our approach nationally, your CEOs and elected representatives will increasingly use them to inform their expectations, and you need to be ready to answer their questions.

Reporting capability for five more input measures will go live in March – resilience (outcome measures 1&2), accessibility (outcome measures 1&2), and travel time reliability (performance measure 1).

If you need support using the tool, or you encounter any glitches, the 0800 number is running until April – that’s 0800-ONRCPM (0800-667-276).  Many thanks to those who have taken the trouble to report problems – they have been recorded and are being resolved, and data quality issues raised are guiding further work.

We are now developing capability for a benchmarking tool, which we hope will be functional mid-year, so you can compare your performance with your peers.

REG Regional Workshops

REG has engaged EquiP to facilitate and present a series of REG Workshops through to June 2018. EquiP is Local Government New Zealand’s Centre of Excellence, working with council staff, mayors and elected members to support governance and management excellence.   

The workshops are held approximately every two months and their focus is on the changes required to successfully deliver the 2018-21 NLTP/LTP. A particular focus will be re-framing Activity Management Plans to reflect the Better Business Case approach.

The workshops will cover:

• Point of Entry discussion
• ILM workshop(s)
• Developing a Strategic Case for investment which tells a strong investment story, supported by a clear evidence base drawn in part from the performance measures for your network
• Developing your Programme Business Case detailing specific investment requirements for each road management activity (NZTA work category)
• Ensuring your RAMM databases are well populated with the right data
• Understanding how to analyse your data to make good asset management decisions
• Becoming fully familiar and comfortable with your network’s new ONRC road classifications
• Understanding the new Customer Outcomes and Customer Levels of Service
• Understanding how we can measure these outcomes using REG’s performance measurement tool

 It may seem like a daunting task, but that’s why we are starting now and working together to achieve the end goal.

Three EquiP members present the workshops;

• David Fraser - North Island (top half)
• Chris Olsen - North Island (lower half)
• Erik Barnes - South Island

 Members of the REG leadership team will participate in the workshops and are available for discussion and support on the REG project. We are also establishing a network of REG Champions across all the regions, who can assist as we progress together on this journey. If you are interested in offering your support the REG team would love to hear from you.

REG has divided the country into ten Regional Support Groups, which we will deliver the workshops to:

A Metro Group has also been endorsed, comprising;

• Auckland 
• Hamilton 
• Tauranga
• Palmerston North
• Wellington
• Christchurch
• Dunedin

The REG Leadership Group recognises that implementing the ONRC in metropolitan areas presents its own challenges, and the best way to resolve them is for the metropolitans to wrestle with the issues together and come up with solutions they all agree will work for them.

Attendance at the regional workshops is expected from:

• Representatives from each of the Local Authorities
• A representative from the relevant Regional Council
• An NZTA P&I representative from the region
• An NZTA HNO representative from the region

 It is vitally important that representatives from all the above organisations attend the workshops in their region.

The REG Capability and Enabling subgroup is also working on the following projects:

• Development of a sector survey, in collaboration with IPWEA (RIMS), to identify training and support options to enhance our asset management decision making
• Providing more regular and improved communications between REG and the sector
• Working with the wide range of groups that serve the roading sector in NZ, such as NZTA, RCAF, IPWEA (RIMS / NAMS)Traffinz, REAAA, IPENZ etc, to see if collectively we can enhance the accessibility of the information and support provided to the sector
• Reviewing the availability of road asset management training, and developing opportunities that better support the sector in this area
• Exploring opportunities for the development of a future asset management competency framework specific to road management