50 Victoria Street
Private Bag 6995
Wellington 6141
New Zealand
T 64 4 894 5400
F 64 4 894 6100
www.nzta.govt.nz
17 August 2022
Darren Conway
[FYI request #19800 email]
REF: OIA-10453
Dear Darren
Request made under the Official Information Act 1982
Thank you for your email of 1 July 2022 requesting the following information under the Official
Information Act 1982 (the Act):
This request is for the RACI matrix for the current management of the Riverlink Project or an
organisation tree diagram that depicts the structure and hierarchy of the current project
management team for the Riverlink Project
For each role and the current incumbent, the following information is requested:
The role name
The name of the person filling that role
Their authority to : (whether the authority has been exercised or not)
issue drawings for construction
approve any project related documentation for release
direct that design changes be made
direct that design reviews be undertaken
undertake design reviews or audits
direct that review or audits of any part of the project are undertaken
undertake reviews or audits of project management
allocate resources including funding, staff or contractors (whether or not they hold a DFA),
sign contracts,
manage contracts
Their authority to act as a representative of the Riverlink Project or NZTA when:
communicating with the media,
communicating with individuals or groups of the public,
drafting or releasing statements on any social media platform,
appearing before a Court.
Also requested are the names of the holders of Delegated Financial Authority (DFA) for the
Riverlink Project. Note, no information is requested on the limits of any DFA.
The same information is requested for personnel who are working for or with the Riverlink
Project as:
advisors,
consultants or,
contractors.
On 29 July 2022, Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency wrote to you to advise that your request was
being extended by 15 working days to allow for consultation with the other Riverlink partners.
Please find enclosed with this response the current Riverlink Operating Model and the most recent
Riverlink Governance Structure for the Riverlink partnership which fall in scope of your request. These
are attached as follows:
• Attachment 1 – Riverlink Operating Model
• Attachment 2 – Riverlink Governance Structure
I also note that the project partners are currently in the process of updating the governance structure
to reflect the operating model. This means that attachment 2 will be superseded by an updated
structure in the near future. This work is under development and a new structure has not yet been
confirmed.
Under the Act, Waka Kotahi is not obliged to create information in response to requests made under
the Act. As such, this response provides the documents and information that currently exist, as your
request for specific details not found in the enclosed documents would require a significant manual
process to compile the information into a unique document, as per your request.
Similarly, the names of each person filling the roles listed in the operating model and governance
structure are not provided as no document exists which has collated those names together for the
purpose of an organisational tree or RACI matrix, given by the nature of the project the staff involved
are spread across multiple organisations.
I will address the main parts of your request in turn below and provide contextual information for each
topic.
General authorities of project roles and each project partner
You have asked for information which details the authorities each role has for the project, including for
project documents, design changes and reviews/audits, project changes and reviews/audits,
resourcing, and contractual arrangements.
The project is not yet at the stage where the project drawings and designs are underway, so no
authorities for the issuing, auditing, reviewing or any other amendment or change to drawings,
designs, and the project itself, have been assigned. Riverlink is not yet at the point of entering the
procurement phase and approval to do so sits with the Ministers with responsibility for the NZ Upgrade
Programme and the relevant Councils.
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Authority to communicate with the public and the courts
Authority to communicate with the public generally sits with the Project Communications Manager,
who works with the communication leads from each Partner organisation prior to engagement.
As the governance structure notes, Buddle Findlay provides legal services to the project and would be
responsible for representing the Riverlink Board in legal proceedings.
Delegated Financial Authorities
At a high level, Delegated Financial Authorities (DFAs) for funding sit with the following parties:
• Waka Kotahi – New Zealand Upgrade Programme (NZUP) joint Ministers
• Hutt City Council – Council committee
• Greater Wellington Regional Council – Council committee
Provided spend is under the budget approved by the above parties, the RiverLink Board has the
delegation to endorse contracts. Following Board endorsement, the contracting entity will follow their
internal DFAs for signing of the contract.
Roles and authorities for contactors and consultants
While a number of individuals and organisation work with Riverlink as contractors and consultants, the
Riverlink Board, Programme Director, and Programme Leadership Team maintain overall authority for
the management and operation of the project, including DFAs.
Various advisors, contractors and consultants have been engaged to provide specialist advice; these
parties do not have any delegated authorities.
Project advisors include but are not limited to – Alchimie, Align, Baked Design, BondCM, Buddle
Findlay, Cardno/Stantec, CI Consulting, Commute, Damwatch, Darren Cash Associates, EID
Consultancy, GHD, Jacobs, Jigsaw Property, Kahanui Ventures, McHale Group, MSO Design,
Resolve, The Property Group, Traffic Planning Consultants, Wikaira Consulting, WT Partnerships.
Under section 28 of the Act, you have the right to ask the Ombudsman to review my decision to refuse
this request. The contact details for the Ombudsman can be located at
www.ombudsman.parliament.nz.
If you would like to discuss this reply with Waka Kotahi, please contact Ministerial Services by email at
[NZTA request email].
Yours sincerely
Robyn Elston
National Manager, System Design
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