Congestion crippling business: NRMA survey

May 26, 2011 - PRLog -- The NRMA BusinessWise http://www.mynrma.com.au/business.htm survey of almost 1,100 fleet-running businesses in Sydney found that one-in-four (26 per cent) have seen operating costs increase by around $5,000 over the past twelve months as a direct result of congestion.

The NRMA BusinessWise survey found 78 per cent believe it takes them longer to get to work than it did 12 months ago, up three percentage points since last year's survey.

NRMA BusinessWise provides roadside assistance http://www.mynrma.com.au/join/roadside-assistance.htm and motoring support to over 21,000 fleet running businesses in NSW and the ACT.

The survey also found that a significant number of respondents (40 per cent) would like to see work begin on the F3 extension, highlighting just how important the road is to Sydney motorists.

Of those businesses surveyed, almost 70 per cent remained opposed to a congestion charge on motorists designed to discourage people from driving during peak times.

Almost half (48 per cent) have changed staff shift times to start earlier and or finish later, while the same number had changed their fleet to more economic vehicles to prepare for rising fuel costs.

The NRMA Businesswise congestion survey also found:

   82 per cent of businesses want the Government to reduce the cost of motoring
   62 per cent said roads had got worse
   32 per cent have seen their operational costs increase by as much as 10 per cent
   Businesses would like to see the following road projects made a priority: The F3 extension (40 per cent); the widening of the M5 (38 per cent) and the M4 extension from Concord to the CBD (37 per cent).

82 per cent of businesses want the Government to reduce the cost of motoring

NRMA President Wendy Machin said businesses were finding it harder to avoid the increasing costs of doing business in Sydney.

"Our NRMA BusinessWise Members are struggling to get around the city, let alone get deliveries to their destination on time and ultimately it's the economy that suffers," Ms Machin said.

"Sydney businesses cannot continue to operate under these conditions. More and more businesses are being forced to work around congested city streets in order to keep their businesses running.

"The results of our survey shows that congestion issues in Sydney have worsened in the past year. In order to keep Sydney moving, we need the new Government to come up with a plan to tackle congestion and implement solutions that will alleviate congestion across metropolitan Sydney," Ms Machin said.

"Our Decongestion Strategy (PDF 3MB/40 pages) http://www.mynrma.com.au/assets/About-PDF/NRMA-Decongesti... released last week could be part of the solution to tackle congestion on Sydney's roads. The ten steps we propose are neither costly nor difficult to implement.

"We ask the Government to consider our proposal because we believe it could potentially make a big difference to those motorists who travel in and around the CBD."

NRMA BusinessWise Members would also like to see the Government address increasing fuel costs (79 per cent), registration costs (63 per cent) and tolls across the city (60 per cent).

"The challenge is there for the new Government to build the infrastructure we need to stop congestion crippling our city," Ms Machin said.

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Since 1920, the NRMA has been working with governments, businesses and drivers to make motoring easier. We provide a wide range of services to our Members, including legendary roadside assistance , motoring advice, vehicle inspections & car servicing.