Labour says the government’s axed road
cone hotline – designed to report excessive and
unnecessary traffic cone use – was an “absurd” waste of
public money.
A WorkSafe
review found excessive use of cones at just 6 percent of
the 250 sites inspected.
Labour transport spokesperson
Tangi Utikere said nearly $150,000 was spent on a project
that was “clearly not going to be required in the first
place”.
“I mean, we’re talking about huge amounts of
public money that could be prioritised to address real
concerns that the public is feeling right now.”
The
digital hotline was launched last year as part of the
government’s wider health and safety
reforms.
Workplace Relations and Safety Minister
Brooke van Velden directed WorkSafe to place more emphasis
on guidance
and education, rather than enforcement.
The
hotline allowed members of the public to report what they
believed was excessive
or unnecessary use of traffic cones and other temporary
traffic management devices.
Advertisement – scroll to continue reading
The government shut down
its hotline on 19 December, six months ahead of schedule. By
then, WorkSafe had received more than 1300
notifications.
Reports peaked at 641 in June, before
dropping
to 217 in July.
“This pilot has done exactly what
we needed it to do,” Van Velden said at the time. “It gave
the public a voice, identified the root causes of concern
and clarified WorkSafe’s role in temporary traffic
management.”
WorkSafe chief executive Sharon Thompson
said the review showed the main issue was not widespread
non-compliance, but inconsistent use of NZTA’s newer,
risk-based guidance by councils.
“As a result, cone
use was often consistent with council-approved plans, even
if it appeared excessive to the public.”
Labour had
previously described the initiative as a “performative
battle”.
Utikere noted that by September, the
government had spent $148,545 on the hotline – $136.15 for
“every one of the 1091 complaints logged to that
point”.
As of November 2025, there was an average of
fewer than 20 valid complaints per week nationwide, he
said.
New Zealand’s public broadcaster, providing comprehensive NZ news and current affairs, specialist audio features and documentaries.
Radio New Zealand is a Crown entity established under the Radio New Zealand Act 1995. Radio New Zealand News are vital elements in our programming, providing impartial news and information to New Zealanders every day. Radio New Zealand (RNZ) provides listeners with exciting and independent radio programmes in accordance with the Radio New Zealand Charter.
