Our Plan for Auckland Transport

Getting There — Central Government

To support Auckland's public transport system, the Green Party in government will:

• introduce emission controls for all vehicles and increase subsidies for zero and low emission public transport vehicles
• remove the burden from ratepayers by providing the same central government contribution for public transport infrastructure as for new state highways.
• change the Transport Services Licensing Act so councils can require transport contractors to accept an integrated ticketing system, coordinate timetables, and bid for transport areas, not just the most profitable routes
• allow ARTA to trial contracts for provision of a service rather than just giving contractors the rights to routes .
• Prioritise national funding for public transport rather than expensive new urban highways. As an immediate step we would use the recent $500 million land transport funding 'windfall' for public transport projects.

Getting There — Regional and Local Government

Under the Greens, regional and local government would:

• Be able to agree long-term funding plans for public transport expansion with Land Transport New Zealand.
• Simplify and reduce public transport fares eg restoring the $1 fare for the Link Bus and introducing affordable 2hr and all day tickets usable on all services
• Develop an integrated ticketing and timetabling system for rail, bus and ferries — one that contractors/operators will use and promote, and coordinate timetables
• Implement a range of policies that will strengthen local communities, attract a wide range of shops, services and employment in key centres and encourage people to live and work in the same area such as the planned Henderson town centre
• Encourage businesses to lessen the economic and social costs of road congestion by developing glide time (flexi-time working), off-peak delivery times, and moving heavy freight by rail not road — especially out-of-Auckland port freight
• Expand public transport services to offer a real alternative, and then work with central government to provide further incentives for use, such as congestion charging and limiting full day parking
• Improve amenities in transport corridors, including noise reduction and road/rail beautification

Getting there with public transport

Cities with bus and train services experience about half the congestion delay as comparable non-rail cities, because residents drive less and have an effective alternative on the most congested corridors. Research indicates that quality public transport provides significant benefits:

• Congestion reduction
• Road and parking cost savings
• Lower transport costs for residents and businesses
• Fewer greenhouse gas emissions
• Reduced dependence on oil
• Cleaner air
• Fewer traffic acidents (by up to a third!)
• Basic mobility for non-drivers

It can also increase economic productivity, enhance community living and raise property values.

Getting there — rail

Already, the value of rail in Auckland is evident. With minimal investment usage has increased dramatically although the network is still under-utilised. The carrying capacity can be increased from the present paltry 2,500 people/hour in each direction, to more than 12,000 — equalling the capacity of a new eight-lane highway from south of Auckland right out to the West via the CBD.

Rail should be the backbone of our transport network. Only a rail option will have sufficient capacity for Auckland's population — set to double in 50 years. The Greens advocate completing the network by 2015.

As first steps we would work to:

• Urgently create passing tracks at West Auckland bottlenecks, and move quickly to double track the whole Western line to allow extra capacity and timetables to be met
• Fund ONTRACK to install state of the art signalling, upgrade existing tracks and complete the grade separation of level crossings
• Electrify the rail routes
• Re-start services on the Auckland CBD to Onehunga line
• Increase train numbers to ensure a train every 20 minutes during peak periods
• Build an inner city underground rail link through Britomart to Mt Eden Station to remove bottlenecks and transform Britomart into a true transport centre
• Create an iconic high quality modern electric tram line from St Heliers to the 'Tank Farm' and up Queen St
• Include rail on the new Manukau Harbour Bridge
• Complete the upgrading of Auckland's railway stations and build new stations,
• Work with ports and freight companies to create an inland port and rail shuttle facility so that only local freight needs to go to and from the port by rail.

We would then act to:

• Complete the Penrose to Avondale rail route
• Connect Onehunga with the Airport to complete the CBD to Airport route (for passengers and freight)
• Establish a rail line from the airport to Manukau, joining with the Southern Line
• Add a line along land reserved for rail from Manukau through Botany Downs to Pakuranga, connecting with the Southern line at Panmure
• Examine triple tracking the southern rail route in order to have a dedicated freight rail corridor

A good rail service is expensive to build but less so than motorways — and studies conclude that costs are repaid several times over.

Getting there — buses

Buses are important both for local services and for through routes. These routes can later be converted to light rail when the passenger demand is sufficient to merit the investment. On its own a bus network can rapidly reach capacity and flood cities with buses (as cities such as Ottawa and Brisbane discovered).

The Greens will push to improve bus services by:

• Using buses to provide rapid transit between cities and in areas where there are not yet rail lines eg between Waitakere and North Shore, and through Pakuranga into Manukau and Auckland.
• Developing dedicated bus lanes on major routes, including the State Highway 18 link between Waitakere and North Shore and a two-way bus lane over the Auckland Harbour Bridge. New bus lanes should be future proofed by building to a quality that would allow light rail in the future
• Giving buses priority on all main roads, including right-of-ways and traffic light pre-emption, in order to improve reliability of bus services
• Improving the frequency of bus services, and the quality of buses and shelters, and continue developing flexible new routes
• Trialling LPG and CNG-powered buses and hybrid electric-biodiesel buses
• Expanding bus feeder services to enable people to access higher capacity rail services at interchange stations located in town centres
• Expanding services within Manukau and Waitakere Cities so that it is easy to make local trips by bus and connect with the expanded rail network
• Establishing more frequent cross city services in North Shore City, eg the long-awaited City Orbital service, and as well as more frequent South to North express buses to encourage the use of public transport by those employed in the North of North Shore
• Increase the use of through services in central Auckland to reduce bus congestion around Britomart and support Queen St pedestrianisation.
• Prioritising new bus lanes where they are not currently planned, e.g. in Manukau City
• Trialling free bus services in Manukau, once the local council allocates adequate bus lanes.
• Expanding the Link, Remuera Shopper and Night Rider models to other suburbs and key routes — e.g. a St Lukes route to link the shopping centre with surrounding suburbs

Getting there — crossing the Waitemata

Crossing the harbour is a key issue for Auckland's transport networks. The Green Party is not convinced that a new harbour crossing is needed. If one was built it should be for public transport and freight only — possibly a tunnel route from Esmonde Rd to Mechanics Bay - while removing freight from the existing bridge.

The Greens in government would:

• Add pedestrian and cycle access to the existing harbour bridge
• Improve funding for ferries and introduce new ferry routes e.g. from Beachaven and West Harbour to the city
• Develop Auckland's ferry terminals and wharves to encourage greater use of water transport, particularly from the North Shore and Eastern Suburbs e.g. urgently upgrading the Beachaven wharf.

Getting there — roads

Auckland's transport system represents a fifty year experiment in relying on motorways. Auckland's road network is already greater than those of much bigger cities and generates pollution and congestion usually associated with larger urban areas. Our motorways (182 kilometres including on and off-ramps) have created an elongated city where people live further and further from where they work, shop, play and go to school.

The Greens firmly believe it is time to prioritise completion of a basic public transport network to a reasonable carrying capacity and service level. To be effective increased expenditure on public transport must be accompanied by a curtailment of motorway building. Roading investment ought to be focussed on safety and improving the efficiency of existing roads.

Current proposals to expand the road network risk starving public transport of funds while delivering little durable relief from congestion. New motorways will destroy communities, increase pollution, and only bring more cars onto our roads. In virtually no other global cities does one find completion of the extravagant motorway plans of the 1960s seriously proposed.

The Greens propose to extend the timeframe for any new motorways, apart from those already under construction or where contracts have been let. This will free up hundreds of millions of dollars to complete the rail network, the North Shore and other busways and create or improve other facilities, thereby establishing a public transport network for the 21st century.

Getting there — cycling and walking

The Greens will promote cycling and walking as means of transportation for those who are able. This will not only help with important transport goals, but will contribute to New Zealand's health goals, particularly in tackling obesity and related problems such as Type II Diabetes.


The Greens will work to ensure that:

• Road controlling authorities have specialist cycle planners,
• Adequate training is provided for all planning and engineering staff
• Measures for safe cycling and walking are included in roading design standards and in all roading projects
• Road safety audits consider cyclist and pedestrian requirements
• Shared facilitates for pedestrians, skateboarders and roller bladders are investigated and use and safety guidelines are established
• End-to-end cycle networks are be created within Auckland's cities and connecting them
• An education campaign is run to raise awareness about cycling options
• On-road cycle lanes, off-road cycle paths and associated facilities (eg the existing north-west cycle way) are established where appropriate
• New cycle ways are built along all major routes including the southern motorway, and the new Mount Roskill to Onehunga route is extended by connecting it to the Great South Road at Westfield at one end, and to the North Western cycle way at the other; and another over the Harbour Bridge
• Cycle lights are provided at major intersections, similar to existing bus priority lights
• Trains and buses are upgraded toallow cycles, where possible, and carry them free of charge
• Council's provide cycle storage at principal public transport stops and key centres (e.g. Queen St, Manukau City, Takapuna Centre, major shopping centres)
• Companies are encouraged to establish cycle storage
• A walking network is complete across the region, including walk lanes alongside cycle ways
• Councils are funded for footpath maintenance (as well as roads) and maintain them properly
• A wide pedestrian way is develop from Britomart to the new Vector Arena
• Walking is promoted for health as well as transport reasons via public education campaigns