In my post about the AT board meeting last week I highlighted that construction of the Otahuhu Bus-Train Interchange station is currently out for tender. This interchange is crucial to enabling the new network for South Auckland to be rolled out
The AT website contains a few new images of what’s proposed for the site and which are different to what we’ve seen before.
First up the overall layout
I agree with some of the comments from the AT Board Meeting post that said having a single entrance meaning buses travelling though the station have to loop around isn’t ideal. I guess the only counter to that is that having another entrance/exit adds an additional intersection which may not be idea.
Here’s what the interchange may actually look like. First up an aerial overview of interchange.
The main entrance
Walking along Walmsley Rd from the North
Overall it looks like a very nice station and a great addition to the network. Currently the station is not highly used however once complete the bus interchange should see a lot of people flowing through every day.
Of course it also needs to be supported by improved walking and cycle connections. There are plans to improve the connections to the Otahuhu Town Centre but these don’t seem to include improvements such as along Walmsley Rd into the nearby residential areas.
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So why not also have a bus only entrance off Walmsley Road by the entry plaza? It would save the looping around and wouldn’t be hard to add on.
+1. It was the same thing that came to mind when I first saw it. A bus only entrance. Otherwise buses will have to queue at the lights just to get into the interchange. Doesn’t look like there are any bus priority slip lanes on the surrounding roads either. The whole area is congested at peak hour.
I wonder how much it would cost to add a third platform and extra line (eastern side) to allow manukau bound trains to disembark/embark passengers. I am not sure of the statistics but I feel that there is quite a few times that south bound trains are delayed so that manukau train can clear the Westfield intersection. While this will not solve the train congestion problem it does allow for south bound trains to disembark passengers without being delayed. Which is important for people needing to catch buses.
So many times South bound passengers services just idle for more than 5 minutes outside of penrose power station.
With Westfield closing ( and good riddance) I feel it would make sense making Otahuhu into a 3 platform station. There is enough room for a third eastern line from Westfield to just before middle more and I suspect the cost will not be more than $10 million ( mainly for the traction system).
Otahuhu is abit of an isolated wind sweep station. So I think for it to work it will need easy and reliable transfers.
Totally agree. And if the post CRL has trains terminating at Otahuhu wouldn’t it make sense to have a third platform for this also? Just a thought
There is space and plans for an additional island platform. Post CRL this is currently planned to be the busiest point on the rail network in terms of train movements. Believe it or not, here:
http://greaterakl.wpengine.com/2015/06/23/mangereairport-rail-2-0/
Glen Innes really needs something like this. It looks like a great setup.
I think a light rail line linking this to the Flatbush area via the East Tamaki business area would open up those areas with extremely limited public transport as AMETI is doing further north… Would also provide good connection to the Otahuhu centre.
Connecting shelter seems to be missing from the bottom of the platform stairs/escalator run to that very long run of CES structure. Designers, why have you left this very small area empty?? Structurflexing that gap a la Ellerslie would fit within the budget methinks.
Can’t agree more. Adding shelters over the stairs at Ellerslie, and now over the gap between the stairs and the platform shelters, has made it a lot more pleasant on rainy days.
Safer too IMHO, no one feels the need to run to avoid the rain and can over – an especially bad idea on stairs :S
Actually… while we’re talking below about the Mt Albert land purchase for the overbridge to the main road, does anyone know why the Mt Albert stairs don’t have a shelter?
Mt Albert ran out of budget in the Stage 1 build to cover the stairs. Suppsedly the cost of stair covering is included in Stage 2 – the build-out over the up main to connect to NNR – but that’s not guaranteed by any means.
It seems there should be a pedestrian crossing directly in front of the concourse. And are we still proposing intersections with missing legs as the one with Station Road is?
Why can’t we get a real bike parking area incorporated?
Doesn’t appear to be any does there? The staff parking should ideally be hidden away down where the wetland is, which would create a large space for bike parking right up front in a well trafficked area. The staff’s parked cars don’t really need pride of place front and centre.
Staff parking moved to the back (inset into the large island in the bus parking? or inset into the trees by the shops?) and two parallel parking parks in its place (though are angle parks better for disabled?)
Why is the drop off zone where it is and not on the street?
I guess they are hoping on lots of transfer, because as the other people posting have noted the cycling infrastructure to the station is poor and it is not a very busy station. I thought they have predicted that manukau was going to be the busiest on that part of the line behind britomart and Newmarket.
Love the staff parking!
Are there going to be any shops in the exchange? Its going to be one of the busiest stations with the CRL. It would be great to have some kind of convenience stores etc, just like britomart.
I think there is an Asian supermarket across the road. Not sure it is the kinda of place for shops to do well. Station square in Newmarket is still struggling and that with a set of apartments on top of it and a large business base around it. I doubt if it will be as busy as they are predicting. Newmarket and manukau have (or will have) uni campus near them to drive up demand. Around Otahuhu station there is not much. I am skeptical about AT predictions. It seems like PR BS to me. But I am willing to be proven wrong.
Station Square has failed because it was a poor and sterile design creating an unpleasant space, compounded by the entrance to Broadway after all these years still being hidden away down a tiny alley. The sign advertising the carpark is bigger than the one for the station. AT/AC gave the developer too much leeway in building the square, there should have been much stricter design oversight and requirements in the initial agreement.
Create a place where people will want to linger and it will succeed, personally I don’t see much in these designs that would make me want to linger.
Thats why some shops and a cafe could be good – it could help people linger. People could grab a coffee on their way to work. It would also help with safety as there would be more people around. if there are staff in the ticket hall, they would also benefit from shops.
Presumably we will see more development around the station with the UP so it would be good to set this up with shops now.
Neither AT nor AC existed when it got consent did they?
Indeed, would have been the old Auckland City Council, so the citizen ratepayers majority were as usual blind in their belief that the free market would deliver the best outcome.
Do many people actually interchange or do these types of things just make the buses less convenient? Not trolling I just don’t use either so I don’t know.
Will be a major transfer point when the new network rolls out, no one changes here presently because as far as I know no buses pass through and the train station itself is fairly unpleasant. Panmure used to have no transfers, from what I’ve seen here and read, there’s very large numbers these days and will only increase as bus network rolled out.
Yes, at least at Panmure people are transferring very readily. Makes sense though, short and close connection at a brand new facility that saves you more than 20 minutes at peak times and gives a more reliable trip time. Why wouldn’t you?
People do transfer, especially where and it is made convenient. Panmure is the obvious recent example. Those H+E buses from Panmure still head on to the city Britomart even, despite emptying their contents there.
Most people are rational and will take the option with the lowest cost in time. But just wait till fare integration is complete and there is no financial cost as well, then, with more stations like this and with the high frequency rail service transferring will be even more widespread. New Lynn is firmly the third busiest station behind Britomart and Newmarket despite having a poorer service in terms of train quality and frequency, but is well connected with buses and has a good new station.
So station development is its own reward: The two fastest climbing stations in boardings 2015 over 2014 were Manukau 105% and Panmure 80%. Manukau went from 28th ->16th and Panmure: 13th ->9th busiest. Both new stations with enhanced connection facilities.
Yes you are just trolling. There is no possible way that a single bus route could take you everywhere you want with out a transfer. People want to travel all over the city. Great way to allow this is create legible transfer points. New Lynn is very successful, and busy at all times, same with Panmure. Expect Otahuhu station will rocket, as people from surrouding areas will now have much better access around the city. Currently Mangere to CBD is over hour on occasional bus. With this will be 15 min frequency bus but 7.5 min frequency train to city.
The interesting lesson from Auckland’s current Transit boom is that there is usually a time lag in the acceleration of uptake once the improvement is made. Sylvia Park for example has finally made its big move up to 5th on the boarding stats; it has been building but it has really taken the new trains and most of all the turn-up-and-go frequencies to unlock the obvious potential there. Next year should be the all about the western line, if AT manage to get the long promised 10 min frequencies going, but perhaps a stronger surge will continue form the south?
Not this time. Back in the mists of time before the Link there was an 000 service that met the Devonport Ferry so people could interchange. On the service I used only two of us used both the ferry and bus and some days I walked. The problem is the both the actual delay of waiting for another service and the perceived risk (it might not show and you have to hang around an interchange.) When I worked as a modeller in London we had to add a penalty to the PT model for each interchange to make it replicate observed choices. That penalty could be a significant part of the total. Of course it is all different now. They can put on slower trains and the patronage increases. I never had a model for that.
If both services are infrequent and/or unreliable, sure, interchanging sucks. You have to build in so much extra time to cope with possibly missing the connection. I’ll choose the airbus over the train+380 trip if I’m pressed for time, despite the price difference, because the 380 only comes every 30 minutes and gets badly stuck in traffic. OTOH, taking the train into town and changing to the NEX is practically frictionless.
If you can expect a good connection, either because they’re timetabled to meet and the bus won’t leave without you, or because there’s one along every ten minutes, it becomes much less like sitting at a bus stop in the rain and much more like changing lines on a decent subway network.
People who use public transport in South Auckland won’t have a choice, since most buses won’t be going into central Akl from South anymore.
From Britomart it would be maybe a 25-30 min train ride to Otahuhu, vs a 45+ min bus ride. I’d rather take a train then a short bus ride, than take a long bus ride. It’s a good time saving as long as a connecting bus is there.
About staff parking, I can’t see why they can’t just park in Titi St, where some people park already. Or better yet, catch public transport!
“Or better yet, catch public transport!”
Presume it’s because they have to be there and open it up prior to PT starting up, Airbus is Auckland’s only 24hr bus service sadly.
Perhaps AT could set up a shuttle for staff…..oh maybe not.
Does anyone know anything about the manukau interchange. Everything seems to gone quiet about it.
On another topic does anyone know what the patronage figures are like for each station. I would be interested to know how the interchange opening has affected panmure station and how manukau station is doing.
Yes have the latest launched figures for each station and will be posting in the next day or two. Panmure has had huge growth, as has Manukau
Thanks. It would be interesting to see. I wonder if there are any other stations that could benefit from an interchange. I wonder if Mt Albert could?
Did Auckland council end up buying that vacant land next to the video store? Someone mention once that Mt Albert would be a good outer link interchange
I’m pretty sure they did buy it and the plan was to have bus stops located next to it. Perhaps Matt has heard something recently about the future timeline for Mt Albert?
The drop off Zone adding car traffic to the bus entry and exit doesn’t seem a good idea. Could a drop zone not be incorporated at the street edge with the pedestrians behind it and closer to the building?
Agree with Ted, there is already a conflict with the bus stop and kiss and ride entrances at Papakura station next to each other, compounded by a y intersection with traffic turning, not too much of a problem now but when the buses start honking in at peak… They need to be well separated.
Yuss!!! Finally, a station built with a decent passenger shelter for people alighting from the train. Why can’t all stations have decent-sized canopies over the platform like this?
Because it costs a fortune and we only have the budget to upgrade a few at a time? Nonetheless i appreciate your enthusiasm – what would you suggest is the nexylt priority?
Forget the Riviera, or Venice on a July evening, forget Fuji on a clear spring day. Why, because you’ve seen nothing until you have witnessed AT’s hidden gem that is the Otahuhu bus/Train interchange. A sophisticated cosmopolitan delight on the banks of the Saleyards Rd, with trees…..grass and a gentle zephyr blowing across the moon drenched landscape of brightly coloured birds and gaiety. Where is the Hi Vis clad locals, where is the container stacks 20 high, where are the wreckers yards and the emissions from the steel plant? Those images make me want to move there…….now! If only AT’s reality was like their fantasy pictures!
But isn’t that the point; it’s going to change. The good thing about these renders is that this high standard can be appealed to if it fails short.
The streets and infrastructure are there. We don’t want to have nice streets that is full of jobless people, vandalism, and robbery.
People need be educated, Otahuhu college should upgrade and have elite Cambridge option like Avondale college to increase the percent of people getting high income jobs, which in long term upgrade the community.
The kings college should provide scholarships for highly achieved students who could not afford.
Local council should have entrepreneur fund for people who generate jobs back to Otahuhu.
Council should also promote arts, tourism, quality food, and shopping
Sorry wrong century.
Don’t you worry your bowler hat too much Kelvin. With the way house prices are skyrocketing in Otahuhu, you’ll get your gentrified neighbourhood soon enough.
Ditch the staff parking.
Looks to be future-proofed for a third platform?
“Of course it also needs to be supported by improved walking and cycle connections. There are plans to improve the connections to the Otahuhu Town Centre but these don’t seem to include improvements such as along Walmsley Rd into the nearby residential areas”
I raised this at an open day on the project AT held a few months back. A pedestrian/cycle way from Marjorie Jayne Crescent to Lippiat Road or Nikau Road would be a great way to increase the potential catchment of the station for little cost. While the land required may be currently private it may not be that expensive as some of it looks like industrial land with a bit of space to spare around buildings. A new swimming pool and library is opening on Mason Ave next week and could well become a popular destination for users of the transport interchange.
Walmsey Road at the moment is very pedestrian unfriendly, its narrow, has two lanes of cars where there shouldn’t be and there isn’t a footpath on the station side. The interchange project is going to make a big difference here, but users of the interchange are stilling going to have to combat a very busy road. At the open day I also asked them if they considered a pedestrian walkway from the station over Walmsley Road (answer too expensive) – hopefully this might be an option in future.
They need heavy security for this station. All the schools nearby wanting to meet up for a brawl will be eyeing this place up as their next fight club venue. Auckland needs transit police for the rail lines.