Light rail would be a real game-changer for Auckland
Even National backs light rail to the airport; it just wants to wait 30 years before building it.
Tuesday’s Herald editorial asked readers to assess whether Labour’s plan to build a light rail network stacks up. Fair enough. Big infrastructure projects should be tested and I have no doubt that as a transport solution to our city’s congestion problems, ours will deliver.
Politicians shouldn’t make choices on infrastructure based on their personal favourites, a grudge or guesses. Important projects, like the City Rail Link, have been held back for years by ideological opposition rather than facts.
When it comes to Auckland transport, doing nothing clearly isn’t an option. So, we looked at the options and listened to the advice of the people who have studied the issue in depth. Light rail is the best option for Auckland’s transport future, according to the experts at Auckland Transport (AT) and independent transport economists.
Auckland Transport says light rail will deliver:
Increased capacity to move people with high-frequency, reliable, safe services.
Permanent infrastructure encouraging urban development, increased productivity, and economic growth.
Improved access to the airport precinct and surrounding centres for employment and residential growth.
A solution to bus congestion and urgent access problems in the city centre.
It is also the only option to add to the capacity to move people into the city centre from the airport, West Auckland and the North Shore. Only light rail is a game-changer for Auckland. That’s why Labour is backing it.
A heavy rail line to connect to the existing network would be surprisingly expensive and would mean trying to send more trains on to the Southern Line, which is already near capacity. AT assessed it would deliver only 64 cents of benefits for every dollar it would cost.
Relying solely on buses or building more motorways both mean sending more vehicles to the already clogged entrances to the city centre. That’s not an option for a growing city. Congestion is already a billion dollar problem in our city and the cost of doing nothing will just keep on growing. Only light rail actually adds to the capacity to get people into the city centre.
Each light rail line has the capacity of several lanes of motorway. So, when we say we’re going to build two-way light line routes from the city centre to the airport, to West Auckland, and to the North Shore, we’re talking about adding capacity on the scale of a new motorway network at a fraction of the price, and inter-connected with the existing heavy rail and bus networks.
That’s why AT assessed light rail will deliver $1.72 of benefits for every dollar it costs.
Light rail in dedicated lanes — separated from road traffic and synchronised traffic lights — is as fast as commuter rail. The expected journey time to the airport of 43 minutes is faster than the average car journey and the bus.
Some people ask whether light rail is practical for people with bags going to and from an airport but, just like airport buses, space can be allowed for baggage on the airport line. Other cities do this, and we can too.
Even National backs light rail to the airport; it just wants to wait 30 years before building it. AT says a solution is needed within the decade and light rail is the preferred option. Labour has listened.
Light rail is a big project and it costs money, as any game-changer does. But the cost of doing nothing is far greater, we pay it every day we sit in traffic jams and our productivity suffers.
The question isn’t whether light rail is the answer. Everyone, from Auckland Council to the Chamber of Commerce, to the independent experts, to Labour, to the Greens, and National, agrees light rail is the solution. The question is, why wait when we need to start now?
A world-class city needs a world-class transport network, including rail to its airport. Labour will make the investments we need to build an even better Auckland.
My vision is for Auckland to be an even better place to live — a truly world-class city in the 21st century. To achieve that, the transport investments we make have to stack up and the experts say light rail is the best value-for-money option for Auckland.