Whangarei to Auckland transport links

Between COVID19 and a very wet 2023, the transport links between Northland and the rest of the country have suffered from major disruptions. They simply are not resilient. This post is the start of an examination of the problems and some of the possible solutions. It will be edited as I add more material but let's start with SH1.

I will also look at the months-long failure of the rail link, the proposals to build a rail link to the port at Marsden Point and move Whangarei airport, and an interesting new proposal for a ground-effect service along the coast called Ocean Flyer.

Before the Labour Government was elected, its National Party predecessor had promised a four-lane highway.

The current SH1 four laneing has now reached north to Warkworth with the recent opening of a new road north from Puhoi. This was part of the previous Government's Roads of National Significance (RoNs) programme.

At the same time work has been done to improve the safety of the existing section of SH1 between Warkworth and Wellsford.

But what was investigated before the change of Government in 2017? There is still information on the NZ Transport Agency web site about what might have involved a major rerouting of SH1, avoiding both Dome Valley and the Brynderwyn Hill. See, for example, the August 2017 Programme Business Case: https://www.nzta.govt.nz/assets/projects/whangarei-to-te-hana/Whangarei-to-Auckland-PBC.pdf

Information about the current work programme is available from the NZTA web page on Connecting Northland: https://www.nzta.govt.nz/projects/connecting-northland/ 

New Zealand Government releases transport policy direction statement

On 31 August 2011 the New Zealand Minister of Transport, Hon. Steven Joyce, released a new 44-page transport policy direction statement, Connecting New Zealand.

In contrast to the previous coalition government's 2008 New Zealand Transport Strategy (see previous post), Connecting New Zealand includes three pages specifically focussed on civil aviation.

Road safety continues to be a major priority. Also featured are the Roads of National Significance, a programme of investment in the road network around New Zealand's three main centres, and major investment in rail.

Our daily commute - New Zealanders' travel patterns

A couple of recent reports focus on the changing travel patterns of New Zealanders.

In August 2009 the Ministry of Transport published a 44-page report, How New Zealanders Travel, based on its Ongoing Household Travel Survey work that started in 1988. One of the notable changes is how fewer children are walking to school. The report also focusses on the safety risks we face when travelling, highlighting the dangers of motorcycling and cycling.

In terms of my personal morning 30km commute, I am in the 1% group that travels by a combination of car, public transport (in my case a train) and walking.

On 6 July 2009 Statistics New Zealand published a report, Commuting Patterns in New Zealand 1996-2006, based on census returns. This focusses on Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch. Further papers released on 29 July 2009, Workforces on the move and Human capital and commuting to and within the four cities of Auckland, cover similar ground.

The distance of my personal commute is clearly at the high end.

The world's most liveable cities

Every year Mercer produces a global ranking of the world's most liveable cities. The Mercer 2009 Quality of Living Survey suggests that I am fortune to live and work in the 12th ranked city in the world. Auckland comes in at 4th equal with Vancouver this year. Vienna, Austria topped this ranking.

Perhaps more interesting from a transport perspective is that Auckland ranks a not so impressive 43rd and Wellington ranks 47th for infrastructure. The top cities on this measure are Singapore and Munich, Germany, and having used their public transport systems I have to agree. A feature of the New Zealand Government's 2009 Budget is a substantial increase in infrastructure spending, including on roading.

The Forbes coverage of this year's results has caused me minor amusement. Choosing one photo for each of the 20 top cities, they somehow managed to feature for Wellington, New Zealand a photograph of Apsley House, the former home of the Duke of Wellington in London, England (ranked 38th for liveability)!