Nick Leggett commenced in the role of Chief Executive of Infrastructure New Zealand in April 2023. Previously Chief Executive of the road transport industry peak body, Ia Ara Aotearoa Transporting New Zealand, Nick’s professional career has always centred around the need for quality and sustainable infrastructure.

What you’ll learn:

• Why eRUC matters now: How fuel efficiency, EV adoption, and declining petrol tax revenues have made the old system unsustainable.

• How eRUC works: The shift from fuel excise to distance-based charging, and the role of GPS/odometer technology.

• Lessons from heavy vehicles: What New Zealand has already learned from decades of applying road user charges to trucks.

• The bigger picture: Why this reform isn’t just about roads, but about New

Timestamps:

01:05 – The Biggest Change in 50 Years
Minister Bishop’s announcement: moving away from fuel excise (petrol tax) to electronic road user charges (eRUC). Why this is a generational shift.

02:25 – Why the Current Model is Breaking Down
How fuel efficiency, EVs, and hybrids are eroding petrol tax revenues while still using road assets, and how eRUC aligns with a 30-year infrastructure vision and why bipartisan support is critical for stability.

06:12 – What is eRUC and How Does it Differ from Petrol Tax?
Explaining distance-based charging, fairness, and the role of GPS/odometer technology.

08:20 – Why Now?
Trends driving the shift: electrification, efficiency gains, equity issues, and declining revenue.

10:06 – Lessons from Heavy Vehicles
What New Zealand has learned from applying road user charges to trucks and how that informs rollout to light vehicles.

12:19 – Building Fairness into the System
How eRUC addresses regressiveness in petrol tax, with options for rebates, concessions, and dynamic pricing.

14:19 – Defining Success
What success looks like and how eRUC can build confidence that New Zealand can modernise and deliver infrastructure for the next generation.

This episode is produced in partnership with the Institute of Transport and Logistics Studies at the University of Sydney

Prof. David Levinson joined the University of Sydney from the University of Minnesota in 2017 as Foundation Professor in Transport Engineering. He conducts research on Accessibility, Transport Economics, Transport Network Evolution, and Transport and Land Use Interaction. He is the Founding Editor of the Journal of Transport and Land Use and of Findings.

What you’ll learn:

• The meaning of accessibility. How it differs from mobility, how to measure it, and why it should be the core goal of transport planning.

• How land use and transport are inseparable. And why treating them as separate problems leads to inefficiencies and missed opportunities.

• The accessibility trade-offs of major projects and policy. How initiatives create winners and losers in access, and what that reveals about policy priorities.

• Why speed isn’t everything. Reaching more destinations versus moving faster, and how this shapes city design and property values.

• How small design choices shape behaviour. Traffic signal timings can encourage or discourage walking, cycling, or driving.

Russell King is a seasoned transport policy strategist with over two decades of experience spanning the UK and Australia. His career offers a rare 360-degree perspective on transport policy, having served as an elected London Councillor, strategic Policy Advisor to both the NSW Minister for Transport and Infrastructure and Premier, senior public servant, and advocate within influential peak bodies.

As the editor of the Transport Leader Newsletter and Blog, read by hundreds of transport decision-makers globally, Russell delivers actionable insights for leaders navigating transport's evolving landscape.

What you'll learn:

• Why transport reform struggles to gain traction

• The biggest mistakes transport professionals make when pushing for change

• How to make transport conversations more inclusive and impactful

• The difference between outputs and outcomes—and why it matters

This episode is produced in partnership with ITLS Board of Advice.
Professor Behnam (Ben) Fahimnia is a distinguished expert in supply chain management and decision sciences, currently serving as a Professor and Chair at the University of Sydney. His extensive research encompasses areas such as supply chain transformation, risk management, and the integration of artificial intelligence (AI) in supply chain operations.

Elton Brown is a Senior Consultant at Demand Management Systems. He is also an Adjunct Lecturer in Intelligent Supply Chains at the University of Sydney, an active member of SCLAA, an author, presenter and industry advisor.

What you’ll learn:

• What makes AI succeed—or fail—in supply chains?

• Can AI work with poor data, or is clean data a must?

• Where does human judgment still matter in automated systems?

• How should AI be used at different decision levels in supply chains?

• Is AI helping or hurting sustainability?

Dr. Chandra R. Bhat is the Joe J. King Endowed Chair Professor in Engineering at The University of Texas (UT) at Austin, where he teaches courses in transportation systems analysis and transportation planning. He is currently serving as the Director of the US Department of Transportation’s National University Transportation Center on Travel Behavior and Demand. Dr. Bhat is recognized nationally and internationally as a leading expert in the areas of travel behavior analysis and travel demand modeling.

What you’ll learn:

• Is Public Interest Secondary in Transport Innovation? There is a growing concern that corporate interests from technology vendors are overtaking public interest in transportation planning.

• The Complex Interplay of Psychology and Transportation: Transportation isn’t just about infrastructure – it’s about understanding human behavior and travel choices, which can be incredibly complex

• Transportation as a Lifeline: Access to transportation directly impacts social inclusion and quality of life, making it a fundamental societal need.

• Equity and Road Pricing: While pricing mechanisms can help manage travel demand, they must be implemented with careful consideration of equity

• Behavioral Data and Bias in AI: AI systems trained on human driving behavior may adopt our biases, highlighting the need for human oversight, lest we exaggerate patterns and reinforce them through our own models.

  
  

  This episode was produced in partnership with the ITLS Board of Advice

This episode is produced in partnership with the Institute of Transport and Logistics Studies (ITLS)

Andrew Petersen is the Chief Executive Officer of Business Council for Sustainable Development Australia (BCSDA). He has an enviable reputation as legal advisor on matters relating to environmental risk, law and policy, including climate change, and as a thought leader and advisor on the business of sustainability.

Andrew is a qualified solicitor of the Supreme Court of NSW, solicitor of the High Court of Australia, Affiliated Member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Australia and former Director/Company Secretary of Environment Business Australia.

What you’ll learn:

• What’s the difference between ESG and sustainable development? One is about investor metrics and compliance; the other is about shaping society at large.

• How did sustainability go from a side project to a business imperative?Sustainability is now a marker of market leadership—embedded in strategy, boardrooms, and capital markets.

• What role will data play in shaping our transport future? From people movement to freight logistics, data will guide decisions on infrastructure, emissions, and economic resilience.

• Is 2035 the real turning point for sustainable business?
  With climate targets converging and the SDGs set to wrap, the next decade will be defined by building on momentum—not starting from scratch. With electric vehicles and battery tech on the rise, circular design and recycling are no longer optional.

Carol Schweiger, President of Schweiger Consulting, has over 45 years of experience and is nationally and internationally recognized in transportation technology consulting. Her wide-ranging and in-depth expertise is in several specialty areas. Ms. Schweiger has provided over 80 transportation agencies with a wide variety of technology technical assistance. She was awarded 2022 Woman of the Year by WTS Rhode Island.

What you'll learn:

• Equity and Diversity in Transport is Necessary for Genuine Mobility Offerings: True transport equity means offering multiple options and ensuring those options are viable, accessible, and genuinely useful to diverse user groups.

• We need Outcome-Focused Technology Adoption: Instead of adopting technology for the sake of innovation and ‘shiny object syndrome’, agencies should focus on real-world, problem-solving applications that are clearly linked to an outcome.

• Understanding the Complexity of Transport Solutions: Effective transport solutions, like integrated corridor management, must be multimodal, considering incentives, behavioural nudges, and coordinated services.

Dr. Amir Sobhani is a leading road safety expert with over 22 years of experience in transport engineering, data analytics, and evidence-based policy development.

What you’ll learn:

• • Focusing on systemic failures, not just human behaviour: Amir emphasises that crashes result from multiple system-level factors.

• • Data is essential for proactive safety: Reactive safety strategies (based only on crash history) lead to missed opportunities for reducing trauma. Data like speed, infrastructure, and behavioural insights are key to prevention.

  • There are obligations on the side of governments and data providers: Legacy systems, data silos, and organizational resistance are major blockers to using analytics effectively. But data providers need to ensure they set organisations up for success by providing support and maintaining good data governance.