Road infrastructure

Evaluation of road projects

The NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) is able to contribute funds for roading projects proposed by approved organisations. For 2009-2012, the amount of contribution and the application process is described in the Planning, programming and funding manual.

An application for funding must include an evaluation of the costs and benefits of the project. The evaluation of road projects is detailed in the Economic Evaluation Manual (EEM) - Volume 1 - 2008.

NZTA has developed separate procedures for evaluating the different types of road projects. The following table can help with the selection of the appropriate procedure:

Select the appropriate procedure

Project type Section 4.2 (reproduced here) indicates simplified procedure may be used if… Simplified procedure Full procedure
Road renewals, namely
  • Pavement rehabilitation
  • Drainage renewals
  • Seal widening
  • Preventive maintenance
 There are no geometric improvements included in the project SP1
(PDF 515 KB)		 EEM1, 5.1
Structural bridge replacement or renewal
  1. undiscounted cost is ≤$1,000,000 and the AADT is ≥50vpd
  2. undiscounted cost is ≤$500,000, the AADT is ≤50vpd and a ford is not an option
  3. undiscounted cost of providing a suitable concrete ford is ≥$30,000 cheaper than providing a replacement bridge and the AADT is ≤50vpd
 SP2
(PDF 515 KB)		 EEM1, 5.1
General road improvement Undiscounted cost is ≤$1,000,000 SP3
(PDF 515 KB)		 EEM1, 5.1
Seal extension   SP4
(PDF 515 KB)		 EEM1, 5.1
Isolated intersection improvement Undiscounted cost is ≤$500,000 SP5
(PDF 515 KB)		 EEM1, 5.1