What I find so exciting about the Super City election result is how central making fast improvement to Auckland’s rail system will be to Len Brown’s mayoralty, and the fact that it seems he will have a council to back him up on his vision. There’s a relevant section from an NZ Herald article:
Mr Brown, in a 20-minute address to 300 supporters, said Aucklanders had elected a mayor who would unite all of Auckland, not just the south.
“I’m so proud to stand in front of you and say I am a mayor for all of Auckland. I want to build Auckland into the great, great, great city it can be.”
“After 170 years of disparate growth, we need someone that can reach across geographic and socio-economic boundaries.”
“To our people, thank you, I’m humbled. “
He invoked the legacy of former mayor Dove Myer-Robinson, declaring that he wanted to build a city on rapid transit, which would encourage economic growth.
What’s also interesting is to see the big banner that was standing behind him. I wasn’t at the event where he gave the speech, which is a pity as it would have been good to get a closer look at it:
That’s quite a fancy and extensive looking rail diagram being outlined as “Auckland’s rail vision”.
In fact, having a more lengthy look at it, the diagram looks somewhat familiar. Now I have drawn numerous rail dream system diagrams in the past, and having a look through past posts I have done on the issue – found this diagram from a post that I wrote in February last year – titled “Auckland’s rail map in 2030?” 
The alignments seem to match up quite well, although there has been a little bit of editing. Of course I’m perfectly happy for my dream diagrams to end up becoming the official rail vision of Auckland’s new Super City Mayor. I mean isn’t that the whole point of a blog like this after all?
The difficult question of course is how do we make it happen. We’re probably looking at about $10 billion of expenditure to create a system like that. Over the course of 20 years though, that’s “only” $500 million a year – around half the annual amount that the government wants to waste on building new motorways over the next decade. So perhaps it’s not quite so impossible after all – we just need to have a good chat between local and central government about where Auckland’s transport priorities lie. With a united council for the first time, that will now be a very very interesting discussion.
PS – Just for everyone’s information, my latest dream rail system for Auckland is slightly different to what’s outlined above.
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I think you mean this http://greaterakl.wpengine.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/07/stage3-rail.jpg
The image you linked is what we already have! So not much of a dream 🙁
Ah good point, will fix that.
That’s uncanny. The diagonal “corners” are the same and even the station ticks are on the same sides of the lines. He (or a PR person) has pretty much taken your map and used it without change. I know you’d be happy to let them promote your ideas. But you’d think they’d be polite enough to ask.
The title makes me laugh tho… AUCKLAND RAIL VISION means I FOUND THIS ON THE INTERNET.
Do I detect sour grapes there obi?
All this means is that Jarbury’s blog is well read and all of us can be happy about that, except of course if you’d prefer that they stuck to looking at motorway maps from the 50’s like this http://i233.photobucket.com/albums/ee102/Rigglesnz/OldPlan.jpg as Joyce does.
With only a few changes that would make an amazing rail network for the city 😉
I don’t see how it could be a matter of sour grapes. I’ve never produced a rail map so there really isn’t any way it’d appear at a mayoral victory speech.
The image in question is the second that appears if I Google “auckland rail map”, after an actual current map. Did a Brown staffer tasked with producing an AUCKLAND RAIL VISION backdrop find it with a quick search, or does Brown himself hang out here getting some ideas to inform his policies. If it is the later then he should join in the conversation (which is always interesting and fun), and he could explain why he prefers Josh’s old scheme rather than the most recent version. But if the AUCKLAND RAIL VISION amounts to a Google image search then that is bad on so many levels… “Quick, I need a philosophy for the press conference… someone type PHILOSOPHY in to Google and see what comes up”.
Lastly, is that a real 1950s map you’ve linked to? If so, the government cartography in those days leaves a lot to be desired. Looks like someone has scribbled the roads in using a black marker.
I have sent this map to a number of people, including some people who advise him.
It isn’t a carbon copy – mine has narrower line sections whereas the one in the photo has the same width for the whole line. So I would say that they went “hey this is a great idea” and then messed with it a bit to get the final result.
Which means it wasn’t a quick google. And also if I was worried about having my ideas borrowed and adapted then I’m doing the wrong thing being a transport blogger. I’m actually really happy.
Don’t think it’s a real 1950’s map and it seems to follow a whole lot of rail maps there were road maps too I think rtc thinks it is because that’s Riggles photobucket profile and he’s a bit of character on the CBT forum
He’s quoted in The Herald as saying his priorities are extension of the Onehunga line to the airport, and construction of the CBD rail tunnel to start within his first 3yr term.
We wait with anticipation…..
I posted your pictures to the mayors months ago I think.
Now that the election is over, wouldn’t it be a good time to release the results of a certain rail tunnel study showing how much economic value it would bring to the city.
Mid October is apparently when it will be completed. That’s not too far away now – and will hopefully provide the ammunition Len Brown needs to get the government to change its stupid “NZTA money can’t be spent on rail” policy.
I wonder what position the new council will take on the Puhoi-Wellsford Road?
Interesting article on stuff today – http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/local-elections-2010/4216806/Sort-out-Auckland-PM-urges-super-city-winner
Prime Minister John Key has challenged new mayor Len Brown and his super city council to sort out Auckland’s problems, which he says have been holding back New Zealand’s economic growth.
“We do have to see some answers to the transport issues in Auckland, we have to sort out the waterfront, we’ve got a plethora of stadiums and structures around the place that often are duplicated. I want them to get on the with the job and be ambitious. If New Zealand is going to be a country that’s successful, Auckland has to rival Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane – it’s as simple as that,” Key said.
So Key knows Auckland has transport problems, and they need to be fixed. However all he and his government has done is continue with the 1950’s vision of motorways. Does he then realise that it wont work? And just doesnt care?
If Auckland wants to rival Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane in regards to transport, it needs to actually have some worthy investment
“So Key knows Auckland has transport problems, and they need to be fixed. However all he and his government has done is continue with the 1950′s vision of motorways. Does he then realise that it wont work? And just doesnt care?”
National are building the Waterview motorway extension. Brown supports that. National are building the Upper Harbour motorway. Brown supports that too. Labour planned the Waterview extension, planned the Upper Harbour motorway, and planned and built the Manukau motorway extension. Brown was happy to open (along with Stephen Joyce) the Manukau extension and commented favourably about it. Brown will “focus on finishing the motorway network” (http://www.elections2010.co.nz/2010/candidates/len-brown). National are planning to build a motorway to Wellsford, but this addresses a need for Northland rather than an Auckland transport problem.
So how do Key’s and Brown’s policies on Auckland motorways differ? They seem to share exactly the same Auckland motorway policies.
Just thinking about this some more, hopefully this map gets picked up by the places like the Herald as I do think that once the wider public see it they will realise its won’t actually be that hard to get rail to many areas of the city.
obi – agreed, and actually don’t mind, all those Motorway project you mentioned are good steps and are needed, but we cant stop there and we need to push on. Thats where Len need to step in and push Rail construction, this is the next step for us to compete and to solve our transport problems, and I’m of no doubt Joyce doesn’t see the importance, however what about Key, if we can convince him would he then in turn put pressure on Joyce?
I think it needs to be made loud and clear that Waterview Connection is completion of the motorway network in Auckland, and after that all major transport projects are PT focused.
I mean seriously, if Waterview isn’t completion of the motorway network, we’ll never complete it.
I think it is fantastic to see Mr Brown has the guts to put a map up and say that this is his vision. We then have something to discuss and the NZ Herald might then also start paying attention to PT, since it seems that it is the new buzz word.
Discussions at different levels can only be good for PT 🙂
There now seems to be more emphasis on the airport line than any other. I would have thought that the CBD tunnel would have the greatest impact on the way Aucklanders travel.
Thats understandable.
Most of the polulation is unaware that there is anything wrong with britomart. Yes the two extra stations will be nice, but in reality, to bulk of Aucklanders it don’t allow any travel that can’t be done now.
The airport line reflects a new (popular) destination, and more people can see the advantages to them personally.
Very few people know that britomart is jammed full of trains and an upgrade is needed to further improve frequencies beyond what we will have this summer
Well done Aucks, you have a rail enthuastic mayor. Hopefully the Wellington results swing the way of Celia Wade-Brown and we’ll have the same down here. Come on special votes!
The best thing about his map is it has the Eastern Line…
Do you mean the south eastern line? I like that its on his map, but I cant recall him ever mentioning it before. We need this far more urgently than rail to the North Shore I believe, as there is currently no fast transport options out there (busways, railways or motorways), unlike the north shore. I hope he starts talking about it soon… Its an important link, especially as its mainly designated, and now that we have the Manukau spur.
Bust as Ive said before, I think the CBD loop is on a totally different level when it comes to importance- it will ‘unlock’ the potential of the western line n a massive way, along with the other benefits
Yeah I think that will be my goal for the next short while – trying to raise the profile of that southeastern line and showing why it’s much more necessary than rail to the North Shore.
Anyone have horror stories about catching buses to the city from way out east?
I live in the Botany / Howick area. At one stage I caught the bus, but I still had to drive to get to my nearest bus station and then find parking without annoying the locals. My trip door to door every morning would be over an hour, due to the route the bus takes.
I changed and I now drive to Panmure where I use the park n ride and catch the train and that is fantastic. The intresting this is that I recognise quite a few people from my area doing exactly the same. So we are still ‘forced’ to use our cars. This trip door to door takes me 45 minutes in the morning and afternoon.
The winner from a time point of view is still taking the car in the morning, it only takes me 25 minutes to my office. The DOWNSIDE however is that it takes me 20-30 minutes in the afternoon to just get onto the Southern Motorway. I will not even mention the cost of the parking.
I’m looking forward to the profile of the South Eastern line being raised and I believe that once you build it people will use it.
I would love to catch a train to the rugby at Eden Park…
the fact that most Aucklanders dont know we need the CBD loop and they want the airport done first is an advantage, as you can get two projects through on the same ticket.
I’d say the goal should be a ‘rethink AMETI’ campaign. I.e. keep the funding and timeframe, do the first intersection and bus lane works but have the main focus on building a rail line rather than a motorway in drag.
this’d be the best way to do it, any other way and you’ll have north shore folk thinking the manakau mayors just helping out his hood in the eastern beaches. Wont make Brown popular up in the north
Yes, it is a problem that politics [‘The Mayor for all AK’] is driving Brown talking up the Harbour crossing plan. As noted here in the past the Busway can handle that for a while yet and the real urgent area is the Southeast. And both are expensive but the shore is already served. Still, if we can get the Southeast route protected and any extensions to the Busway future proofed for rail things may well have changed by the time the CBD and Southwestern lines are underway.
Protected routes, accepted at the highest levels, changes everything and must be our immediate goal.
Here’s one for Nick R, I’m sure you’ve seen this:
http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/plan-for-hundreds-of-kilometres-of-new-freeways-20101010-16e04.html
I’ve just had four very interesting days of wonderful transit experience in the centre of Melbourne and Fitzroy and an absolutely vile 2 hours in a car coming into town from the airport… went up to RMIT and bought Mees’ book, just read the passage on Auckland on the plane over so it was deeply ironic to drive from the airport at 1am over the vast and empty Manukau harbour bridge….
Do Auckland’s planners travel? Is David Jones out of business even though there is hardly a car in the streets in the centre of town? I particularly love the way they narrow the side streets at the junction with bigger shopping streets like Brunswick and fill up the resultant pavement bulge with cafe seating. In general I noticed a huge difference in the balance of power between pedestrians and motorists in the inner city and suburbs. The fact that the roads are shared with trams and particularly people getting on and off the trams means that the roads are not just for cars. Having the trams stop at the lights for passengers speeds the journey too, instead of here where the busses stop at the lights AND in between for alighting slows everything.
But it’s still captured by the freeway mania elsewhere, when I asked locals why there was no train to the airport they all said that because a toll road was built the private owner had a no competition deal with the local government! No idea whether this is true [Nick?] but it is a big worry that PPPs or toll roads could produce such horrible fine print, or even just the commercial imperative to violently oppose PT programmes.
Fascinating reading the responses to the Age article: at 8:00 am on the day of its publication (?) there are 23 responses all in effect questioning (i) why such a document can be developed, effectively in secret, by Victorian state planning authorities without apparently a commensurate document for PT; (ii) the very basis of these highly ambitious (and, frankly, maniacal) proposals. Unfortunately for us, it wouldn’t be too hard to speculate that the NZTA have been undertaking similar road-building fantasy exercises; indeed, I suspect Mr Humpty’s hymns of praise to motorways have been extracted from this particular, if fugitive, song book.
Ah yes, the outer ring road has been rumoured for some time, and it is simply crazy. They call it a truck bypass freeway but it comes with a massive rezoning of farmland to suburbs so that’s obviously a lie. It really is mental, you could fit all of urban Auckland in the gap between the existing ring road and the proposed outer ring road, it’s about 560km2 they have condemed to sprawl.
Not to mention it is 100% inconsistent with the M2030 master plan, I guess the state make the plans up for fun and then just do whatever they feel like anyway.
Now this mega-outer ring road, well if it is to be a state highway between the outer towns that might be ok, but if they also package it with a massive coversion of farmland well that is absolutely birko. Looking at the pink ‘proposed urban growth boundary’ I’m going to run with absolutely birko. This would add 1,300km2 of suburban sprawl to Melbourne in the next 30 years, or a whole new Auckland a decade for three decades! It seems they are assuming a Melbourne of about 8 million by then, entirely met by low density, freeway based suburban sprawl into the hinterland.
This map just shows the ‘missing link problem’. A few years ago the opened the ‘missing link’ eastlink freeway, now they are preparing to build the ‘missing link’ from the ring road to the eastling freeway, the greensborough freeway…. and on this map we have a third ‘missing link’ between the greensborough freeway and the gippsland freeway. An so on and so forth. This last one is particularly nasty as there is simply no corridor for it, what they are actually proposing is 19km of freeway tunnel under the inner east. Based on the current proposed east-west motorway tunnel this north-south one will cost over ten billion dollars.
On the airport link, it’s true the private freeway has some anti-competition clauses in the contract, however these specifically do not apply to a rail line. The problem is the government decided that the would go with a private toll road and a commercial shuttle bus service as their solution to airport access, and that is what happened. They just aren’t interested in anything else.
To the causal visitor Melbourne has amazing public transport, but in reality it’s political situation is very similar to Aucklands, they only progress commercially led, car based transport changes. Thankfully the city has it’s historically large rail system to fall back on, and of course it never removed it’s tram system. However apart from the City Loop project in the early 80s, integrated ticketing in the early 90s and a handful of minor tram extensions Melbourne hasn’t really done anything for public transport since the 1930s. There are huge swathes of Melbourne that have no tram or train access, and in a lot of these new suburbs buses only run Monday to Friday. It is much the same as Auckland, except for the historical accident of keeping it’s earlier public transport system operational.
Maybe they’ve been reading this website.
http://www.roadsfirst.org.nz
I urge you to read it, it’s hilarious 🙂
And how did the strange Mr Roads First do in the election? ANYWAY, what does he mean, this has been the policy for 60 years and still is under Joyce. I like his picture that’s no motorway that’s a country lane….
He got 550 votes for mayor and 1000 for Albany ward.
I love that picture as well. Just think if we got rid of all public transport we could have roads like that everywhere.
“Over the course of 20 years though, that’s “only” $500 million a year –”
But that’s Auckland’s entire contribution to the Land Transport Fund last year! There’s going to need to be either huge traffic growth or huge tax increases to provide for the existing subsidies for PT and local roads ($150m each) as well as Brown’s rail capital plan even if all capital spending on State Highways is cancelled forthwith.
Who, apart from the Chinese, can actually risk investing in PPPs in NZ in the foreseeable future?
Thanks to National, Auckland’s not allowed to raise its own petrol tax. We nearly got there, then Joyce came along and decreed that no money could go into public transport unless it came from rates or general roading taxes. Can’t let those nasty public transport hippies have their own funding streams!
ahh… David Wilmott. Heard his amazing solutions for our transport network almost won him the mayoralty- he got almost 600 votes!
People ask where Len Brown will get 5 billion dollars for rapid rail, but I ask where Wilmott plans to find 100 billion plus for:
-widening the northwestern motorway to 16 lanes (currently only a tiny 9! no wonder its congested)
-widening the southern and northern motorway to 12.
-rebuilding spaghetti junction from scratch to support more lanes
-building these: http://i233.photobucket.com/albums/ee102/Rigglesnz/OldPlan.jpg
-widening most arterials, especially dominion road… we will after all need space for over twice as many cars, and some future proofing. 6 lanes + parking bays should do for a while. A few skyscrapers will have to be sacrificed for the greater good of the cars of course.
-50000 new parking spaces in the CBD (for now)
-paying out a few dozen thousand people for their land
etc…
and we are left with really poor pedestrian environments and public spaces in the city-but thats ok because the city is a machine… just like people are (thats why communism works so well).
Maybe we are just meant to bulldoze it and build another Penrose there? we don’t really need a CBD do we?
I didn’t actually see any policies on his website. Just a general fear that young people are leaving for more public transport oriented cities because we have too much public transport. Oh and there are reds under my bed, I’d better check it before I go to sleep.
I simply based my comment on 3 policies I found in various parts of his site:
1)Public transport is an inefficient drain on the economy that no one really wants to use, so it should be abolished
2)we need way more roads- arterials criss-crossing the city
3)a city is effectively a massive machine that doesn’t need to be planned or controlled
I just stated what would need to be done to achieve these goals. He does seem a bit low on policies I agree… probably because the specifics required to reach the above state don’t look anywhere near as appetising as the oversimplified overall agenda he shares-they are all crazy destructive projects that have endless crazy destructive repercussions.
David Wilmott got eased out of organizing the next transport conference, because he was so out of step with the rest of the profession (which says a lot, transport engineers are not by nature alone a progressive bunch). So he went and got into politics.
For some reason, his “freemarket capitalism, roads first” message didn’t appeal to people. Maybe because they have enough of greed and sprawl and more traffic, and actually suspect there might be smarter ways than laissez-faire development combined with massive roading subsidies?
Considering that Aileen “I’ll write every word that comes to my mind about local government” Austin got three times the number of votes as David Wilmott, I would say his political career is over before it began.
You mean we have to take him back? Damn.
Wonder if he will still turn up at transport meetings and castigate people about their foolishness – he once piped up after an ARTA presentation and expressed his dismay at the extreme amounts of money being poured into PT. And this was just after National had proposed their RONS project, and Auckland’s electrification was still in some doubt after the regional fuel tax had been canned.
I have always had some sympathies for libertarianism, but in reality what his bunch achieve is just massive subsidies for motor vehicles.