2012: A year in review

Well as another year draws to a end it can be interesting to review what went on and to start with Blog: Well we started the year with the news that this sites founder was having to give up blogging due to the fact he got a job at the council.…
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CCFAS and the Additional Harbour Crossing

Along with making a fairly compelling case for the City Rail Link project, the City Centre Future Access Study (CCFAS) also provides some interesting information on my least favourite transport project: the Additional Waitemata Harbour Crossing (AWHC). For some unknown reason the AWHC made it into the “balanced reference case” (otherwise known as the “no CRL option”) for 2041, which means that its impact on the transport network made it into the modelling analysis.…
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Video: Cities in the Balance

Thanks to @ByTheMotorway for highlighting this video from the 1995 that was produced by the Federal Highway Administration in the US. They describe it as Cities in the Balance: Creating the Transit- Friendly Environment Contrasting modern suburban development with older, urban neighborhoods, this video depicts the relationship between transit and land use, and illustrates land use mitigations to make transit an attractive alternative to the automobile.…
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Hopes for 2013

Next year will have a lot of really important milestones for Auckland’s public transport system. Let’s take a look at the biggies: The first electric trains are scheduled to arrive in the second half of 2013, although they’re not likely to be put into revenue service until early 2014.…
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Who will run against Len Brown?

Matt is putting together a fairly comprehensive post which reviews the big transport stories of 2012, so I won’t go there for now. Instead I’m looking forward to what might be the big issues of 2013 and obviously a really big event will be the next Auckland Council elections, which take place in October/November next year.…
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Pressure Increases on Government Transport Policies

In an opinion piece in this morning’s Herald Michael Barnett of the Auckland Chamber of Commerce expresses his most unequivocal support for the City Rail Link [CRL] yet. It seems that the Centre City Future Access Study [CCFAS] has given Barnett and the Chamber’s members the final nudge needed to not only see the need for this project but also confidently call for it against the government’s expressed position: “I represent a group of business leaders who strongly support the principle of the city rail link and accelerating other long-agreed key transport projects.…
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Sydney’s extended light-rail network

I guess this is what happens when you have a centre-right government that isn’t completely insane in its ideological dislike of public transport: Premier Barry O’Farrell and Minister for Transport Gladys Berejiklian today announced light rail would be built through the Sydney CBD to Randwick and Kingsford to reduce congestion and revitalise the city.…
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