The Green Party says skyrocketing costs prove the need for better public transport strategies.
Transport costs rose 11% cent overall in the past year, with fuel costs alone up by 20%.
Greens transport spokesperson Gareth Hughes says the country needs smarter strategies to protect it from a future where families won't be able to afford to get about.
He says the Government's pro-motorway strategy locks the country into oil dependency, and the focus should instead be on developing an efficient public transport system everyone can use.
Overall prices rose 5.3%
Official figures show the cost of living is rising at its fastest annual rate in more than two decades.
Statistics New Zealand says prices rose 5.3% in the year to the end of June, the highest annual inflation rate since 1990.
Higher prices for transport, food, housing and household utilities, such as power and water, all drove up the annual inflation rate.
Excluding the GST increase in October, annual inflation was 3.3%, still the highest since 2008.
