CBD ripe for congestion charge – report
The introduction of congestion charging could be fairly implemented now around Auckland’s city centre, but more analysis is need in Wellington says new research from the Helen Clark Foundation and consultant WSP.
The report is out ahead of announcements due next Monday on the future of the longstudied policy of charging vehicles to enter city centres as a way of cutting congestion and emissions.
Separately to the report, a second big shift transport policy is also possible, with the government said to be considering permanently halving public transport fares, as data shows a sharp rise early in a three-month scheme.
In the report on congestion charging, called A Fair Charge for Better Cities, the foundation’s WSP fellow Tom James said an initial cordon around Auckland’s city centre would meaningfully reduce traffic and emissions, and be equitable. James said the city centre was already well-served with travel options other than the car, and that much of the city centre workforce comes from the isthmus and North Shore.
‘‘In contrast, very few trips into the CBD are made from the south or southeast, and relatively few from the west,’’ the report said, meaning low impact on poorer communities.
The report looked at the criteria needed to ensure congestion charging was fair and equitable, and noted that public transport and active modes in the south and west were not up to scratch.
‘‘Any scheme expanded from just the CBD is unlikely to be justified as there are not yet any adequate transport alternatives,’’ James said.
Looking at the second city exploring congestion charging, James noted Wellington’s population growth and city centre job growth, and that the opening of Te Ara Nui o Te Rangihaeata/ Transmission Gully made car trips into the CBD more appealing.
However, work done by the regional group Let’s Get Wellington Moving suggested Wellington’s geography meant that those from northern suburbs might be hit hardest with ‘‘worse travel times from Johnsonville to the airport and hospital during the morning and afternoon peaks’’.
Congestion charging in Auckland was favoured as far back as 2014 by an Auckland Councilassembled ‘‘consensus group’’ as a way to change travel habits, and in 2021 by a parliamentary select committee.
The government is expected to announce next steps on May 16, when it unveils its Emissions Reduction Plan to deliver climate change emission cuts.
The report said other equity features should be a daily cap on charges, exclusion of overnight trips, providing of suitable alternatives to cars, extensive consultation, and revenue used to improve other modes.
The permanent locking-in of half-price public transport fares is under consideration closer to the end of the present threemonth initiative until July.
Figures from Auckland show a 50% jump in public transport use since the governmentsubsidised initiative began on April 1, to 1.2 million trips across the first week of this month.
Auckland Transport (AT) said part of the rise is because of the gradual return to more ‘‘normal’’ work and commuting habits as Covid-19 restrictions lessen.
However, there are clear signs of the impact of half-price fares, such as a jump in the sale of AT Hop electronic payment cards needed for travel by new users.
‘‘There was a 45% increase in new cards sold in the week after [half-fares began] and that has continued,’’ AT manager of metro optimisation Richard Harrison said.
The sharpest increases in trips are on public transport ferry services (excluding Waiheke Island) – up 66%, driven partly by higher travel on weekends – and trains, up 78%.
The government is understood to be waiting for clearer picture over much of the threemonth period before deciding.