RoNS Reality Finally Hits Home
In something of a Matariki miracle, the government has finally acknowledged that their mega-road programme isn’t feasible (as we’ve been pointing out for quite some time), and have scaled it back accordingly.
Transport Minister Chris Bishop has been hinting for some months that this was probably going to happen, with the Roads of National Significance (RoNS) programme alone expected to cost over $50 billion, but it’s good to finally have it confirmed as of last Thursday:
Transport Minister Chris Bishop is welcoming the publication of NZTA’s Major Transport Projects Pipeline, setting out the phasing for projects including the Roads of National Significance and major public transport projects.…
64 Comments Te Ara Tupua: Resilience and choice
Next weekend I’m heading down to the capital for Matariki and to ride Te Ara Tupua. In advance, I’ve been thinking what we can learn from the evolution of this corridor over time.
I was last there in January 2026, when Waka Kotahi kindly gave me a tour of the nearly complete project: Land Bridge
The best way for Aucklanders to think about this key link between Wellington City, the Hutt Valley and Wairarapa is that it’s their Harbour Bridge.…
Build this Brilliant Bridge
This is a guest post by Nicolas Reid, Technical Director – Public Transport and Rapid Transit at MRCagney and author of Transit By Design, outlining a proposal for the next Waitematā Harbour crossing. It is shared by kind permission (via LinkedIn), with some very tasty bonus images.…
Better scrutiny – but a RoNS-sized loophole?
Better information and advice about infrastructure projects is needed but it won’t do much if government ministers don’t listen to it.
Some of the recommendations of the recently released National Infrastructure Plan revolved around providing better scrutiny over infrastructure projects and yesterday at the Infrastructure Commission’s conference, the government announced changes to how that happens.…
For the Avoidance of Diesel, and Doubt
Yet another (not unexpected) fossil-fuel supply crunch is here. It will continue to affect everything in our economy. And be painful. But it should also, at last, shift discussion and action much more strongly towards reducing our structural dependency on fossil fuels where we can.…
Is government grasping the crisis and opportunities?
With the fuel crisis ramping up, all eyes are on the government’s response. Officially there’s a plan, with four phases. There are two relatively similar phases, Watchful and Precautionary – and then a quantum leap to quite serious measures at phases 3 and 4, Managed and Protected, both currently under consultation.…
What Should We Do?
Or rather:
What We Should Do…
…about the maybe imminent – but always possible – imported liquid fuels crisis.
And by “we”, I mean the New Zealand Government, whose job this is.
First, and above all: we should think and act strategically, not just reactively.…
For whom the harbour bridge tolls…
Many people want a new harbour crossing, but do they want to pay $9 for it every time they cross the harbour?
Yesterday Te Waihanga, the New Zealand Infrastructure Commission released its National Infrastructure Plan (NIP). A lot of their case feels very familiar to many of the arguments we’ve made over many years, especially about transport investment.…
The promise of PC120: saying yes to more homes
This piece originally ran as an op-ed in the NZ Herald on Friday. To find out more about the Coalition for More Homes and get involved in YIMBY action, check out the website. Last year, 200 people packed out a town hall in Mt Eden to protest apartment buildings being constructed near train stations – and therefore their house.…
Minister admits RoNS reality is biting – and hard
“Whatever the problem, build another road” has been a hallmark of policy from the current government. And we’ve long suggested that is simply not affordable or practical – including just a month ago, when the latest costs were released for a bunch of the government’s flagship Roads of National Significance (RoNS) programme.…
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