A Review of Highway Agencies in the South Asia Region

A Review of Highway Agencies in the South Asia Region
The Nation Building Program has the following core components relating to roads:
A defined national network of important road infrastructure links that is part of the
National Land Transport Network; a single integrated network of land transport
linkages of strategic national importance, which is funded by federal, state and territory
governments;
The National Land Transport Plan which outlines the Government’s approach to
improving and integrating the national network and the investments it will make;
A single funding regime for the national network (details are set out under national
projects); and
Funding for local and regional transport improvements including:
Roads to recovery
Black spot treatment
Under Australia’s Constitution, the states and territories are largely responsible for
regulating road transport. Each state and territory has traditionally made its own laws in
such areas as road rules, vehicle standards and driver licensing. The National Road Transport
Commission (NRTC) was established in 1991 to develop uniform arrangements for vehicle
regulation and operation, national arrangements for the carriage of dangerous goods, and
consistent charging principles for vehicle registration.
State Level
Since Australia has a federal government, states and territories have considerable freedom
to develop and implement their own policies. Consequently, all states and territories have
a department involved in transport and road infrastructure. This report covers the state of
NSW and the situation with regards to highway administration there.
Transport NSW is the lead agency of the NSW transport portfolio, with primary
responsibility for:
Transport coordination;
Transport policy and planning;
Transport services; and
Transport infrastructure.
One of the agencies within the NSW transport portfolio is the Roads and Traffic Authority.
The New South Wales State Plan is its overall long-term policy and development plan
addressing eight strategic pillars ranging from better transport and liveable cities to
supporting business and jobs, and better education. It sets 34 policy priorities across all
policy fields, which have been allocated across NSW agencies and each lead agency works
with key partners to achieve priorities. All lead agencies are required to deliver, measure and
report on their success.
Under the direction of the State Plan, the RTA is the lead agency for safer roads and a
partner agency for:
Cleaner air and progress on greenhouse gas reductions;
Improving the efficiency of the road network;
Increasing share of peak hour journeys on a safe and reliable public transport system;
Maintaining and investing in infrastructure; and
Increased customer satisfaction with government services.
In addition, the RTA has a key role in contributing to the implementation of other state
government plans, priorities and strategies, including the State Infrastructure Strategy.
The State Infrastructure Strategy is a rolling 10–year plan for infrastructure projects to
support service delivery. First published in 2006, it is updated every two years. The State
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