OC230751
14 September 2023
Zac Ringrose
[FYI request #23586 email]
Tēnā koe Zac
I refer to your request dated 25 July 2023, transferred from Waka Kotahi to Te Manatū Waka
Ministry of Transport on 21 August 2023, requesting the following under the Official
Information Act 1982 (the Act):
Could I get the projections / forecasting that would substantiate the quote of the Climate
Change Minister "This increase in funding will help us to take cars off the road while
cutting pollution that goes into the atmosphere. More people using public transport is
critical to reducing our climate emissions and to increasing our wellbeing."
I have interpreted your request to include projections and forecasting of the impact of
extending the Community Connect scheme to provide half price fares for people under 25
years and free fares for children. The following documents fall within the scope of your request
and are enclosed:
•
Community Connect for different age combos.xlsx; and
•
Extending Community Connect to under 25s methodology documentation.
The spreadsheet was developed to estimate the potential increase in public transport
patronage, the potential reduction in emissions, and the possible funding needed to extend
Community Connect to various age groups under 25 years.
To support the testing of a range of policy scenarios, the spreadsheet has settings that allow
the user to switch between different sets of assumptions or change the policy settings, such
as the targeted age groups and the subsidy applied to them. The accompanying word
document titled
Extending Community Connect to under 25s methodological documentation
explains the inputs, assumptions, and workings.
Using this model, the Ministry estimates the extension to the Community Connect scheme
will reduce car trips by approximately 6.9 million for the years 2023/24 to 2026/27. The
estimated emissions reduction for the same period is between 2.4 and 15.3 Kt CO2e
(kilotonne of carbon dioxide emissions).
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Nāku noa, nā
Matt Skinner
Manager Mobility and Safety