From 1 October, Auckland Council becomes the Road Controlling Authority (RCA) for Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland. For the screen sector, this means landowner approval and statutory decisions for some traffic controls i.e., road closures and parking resolutions will now need formal sign-off from the new RCA. Historically, approvals were processed by Auckland Transport (AT). This process change has implications for how productions need to engage with Screen Auckland.
Background
The RCA change comes from recent central government legislation. AT will now focus solely on public transport (buses, trains, ferries), while Auckland Council (local boards and/or Governing Body) takes on decision-making for use of the road corridor, with some decisions requiring formal resolution in addition to staff review.
Which body decides depends on the location. The location may cross local board and Governing Body boundaries, resulting in more than one decision-maker: Local boards handle local and collector roads; the Governing Body (Mayor and 20 Councillors) under the Road Controlling Authority Subcommittee handles arterial roads and some specific precincts. Council has developed a roading classification framework to make this clearer.
Timeframes
Road closures: previously 20 working days, are now tied to local board(s) and/or Road Controlling Authority Subcommittee meeting cycles. This means the effective lead time may run longer, though Screen Auckland is advocating for it to remain the same. Nothing is confirmed yet and we won't know exact timeframes until we've begun the new process.
Parking resolutions: still working to 30 working days, but this is now connected to local board(s) or Governing Body meeting cycles.
Traffic Management Plan (TMP) review and sign-off: can still happen ahead of a resolution decision on the closure itself, so planning doesn't need to stall while sign-off is pending.
Please note: This is primarily an administrative change for Screen Auckland to manage. While it represents a significant shift in our processes, we feel confident we can manage the transition while maintaining the responsive, high-quality service the screen industry expects from us.
What we're doing
Working with Auckland Council and AT to streamline sign-off, including exploring ‘in principle’ approvals so productions can keep planning while formal approval(s) are pending. We'll keep you updated.
Briefing Advertising Producers Aotearoa (APA) and other industry bodies so awareness of these timeframe changes sits with production decision-makers from the outset.
What you can do
Engage with Screen Auckland early - bringing potential locations at the concept/scouting stage. A broad scope provides the best opportunity to keep a production’s options open. Approval requirements can vary by local board, so early engagement is key.
Prepare for some flexibility in how we work with you - Screen Auckland and Auckland Council are assessing how to work best with industry and Council departments. We may need to adapt our processes, as this change is embedded.
For more information, or to discuss an upcoming application, get in touch with the Screen Auckland team kiaora@screenauckland.com.
