Govt ‘turns its back’ on Canterbury and South

The Government has turned its back on the South Island, public transport and walking and cycling improvements, critics say.

The National coalition released its $20 billion draft Government Policy Statement (GPS) on Land Transport on Monday, setting out how it wants NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi to spend money over the next 10 years.

Only two of 15 roads of national significance projects given funding are in the South Island – the Hope Bypass near Nelson, and the Belfast to Pegasus Motorway and Woodend Bypass, north of Christchurch.

Included in a list of projects identified for Crown funding is a second Ashburton bridge, an Ashburton freight hub and packages for Canterbury and Queenstown, which include State Highway 1 transport improvements at Rolleston, a SH76 Brougham St upgrade, and building bus lanes on SH6.

There are no projects or funding mentioned specifically for the West Coast.

Christchurch city councillor Sara Templeton said it was “appalling” more money was not given to cycle lanes and public transport.

The previous government had budgeted up to $3.2b on public transport infrastructure and $2.8b for public transport services over the next three years. The current Government has cut this to $2.1bn and $2.3bn respectively.

Funding for walking and cycling improvements has been almost halved from $1b over three years under Labour to $510 million.

Templeton said the Woodend bypass was outside the Christchurch urban area and did not help in planning for the city’s future.

“We are New Zealand’s second largest city and we have contributed a significant amount to the national land transport fund, but we get a dismal amount reinvested in our city’s infrastructure,” she said.

“All the revenue gathered here [will be spent] on state highway projects in other parts of the country. We already get a dismal amount of central government funding for transport compared to our population, and this will cut that further.

The new GPS on land transport makes it abundantly clear that the new Government has turned its back on Ōtautahi.”

Transport planner Axel Downard-Wilke said the GPS did not provide a breakdown on how much was being spent in each region, however Transport Minister Simeon Brown’s foreword focused on public transport funding for Auckland and Wellington.

“Canterbury is being left out. The Government has taken half of the public transport funding out for the next three years, which is absolutely massive,” Downard-Wilke said.

He said the Government wanted to avoid congestion by providing more capacity in the roading network.

“Problem is, that doesn’t work. If you build big roads you get more cars, more congestion and more emissions. That’s what’s being clearly signalled for the future of greater Christchurch – the fastest growing region in the country,” he said.

The South Island is over-represented in the road toll statistics, with 32.7% (84) of the 341 national road deaths last year, despite having 23.5% of the population.

Downard-Wilke said the Government was also focusing on enforcement to improve road safety – which ignored the internationally evidence-based multipronged approach needed.

But others applauded the projects including in the Government’s plan. Woodend School principal Principal Andrew Retallick said news that the bypass would finally happen was great. “It will reduce traffic going through Woodend at the moment, but I still think there are safety improvements needed that were announced by the previous government.”

There were no footpaths for children walking to school from new subdivisions that had brought many new families to the area, he said. “Children are walking down the side of the state highway and running the gauntlet trying to cross the road. There’s nowhere to cross.”

Brown said the Government’s priority was to support economic growth and productivity by ensuring people can get to where they are going quickly and safely.

“The Government is committed to delivering certain priority projects which are named in the draft GPS, but this is not an exhaustive list of all projects expected to be funded and delivered,” he said.

Other local and regional projects would be considered by the transport agency, provided they meet the priorities of the draft GPS. Consultation on the draft GPS closes on April 2.