Our recommendations

1. To provide greater transparency of how well they are carrying out their oversight role, we recommend that the Sponsors' Forum and Joint Sponsors Team prioritise improvements to the way they manage the Assurance Manager's recommendations.
2. We recommend that the Sponsors of the City Rail Link project ensure that officials prioritise completing an agreed comprehensive benefits realisation plan that:
   • clearly defines and quantifies the benefits expected from the City Rail Link, with measures that are specific, measurable, and realistic;
   • assigns responsibility for managing benefits; and
   • assigns accountability for co-ordinating reporting on realising benefits over time.
3. We recommend that the Sponsors of the City Rail Link project review the governance arrangements to ensure that there is an appropriate mechanism for Boards of City Rail Link Limited, Auckland Transport, and KiwiRail Holdings Group to have collective oversight of project dependencies and support the Delivery Partners Steering Committee with joint decision-making where appropriate.
4. We recommend that officials from Auckland Council, the Ministry of Transport, and the Treasury ensure that they sustain improvements in reporting to the Sponsors of the City Rail Link project to promote accountability, improve governance, and gain the confidence of stakeholders.