NZ Transport Agency

The NZ Transport Agency (NZTA; Māori: Waka Kotahi) is a New Zealand Crown entity tasked with promoting safe and functional transport by land, including the responsibility for driver and vehicle licensing and investigating rail accidents. It was created on 1 August 2008 by the Land Transport Management Amendment Act 2008, merging Transit New Zealand with Land Transport New Zealand. Its legal name, as established by the Act, is New Zealand Transport Agency, but it operates as NZ Transport Agency. Its Māori name, Waka Kotahi, means "one vessel" and is intended to convey the concept of "travelling together as one".

Public data access

The Transport Agency stores registration, licensing and warrant of fitness details for any road-registered vehicle within New Zealand, including cars, motorbikes, trailers, trucks and earthmoving/agricultural machinery. Any member of the public can query the Transport Agency's database by making a request using the licence plate or VIN number at an NZ Post outlet, or by using a vehicle checking website.