In the process of getting the country back on track, some tracks, such as Auckland’s light rail, will be lost. Christopher Luxon has said his Government will not proceed with what he calls a white elephant. This is eminently sensible even allowing for the fact that $150 million has been spent so far without a single piece of track being laid, never mind a tram being operational. As with the CRL the initial $15 billion cost would probably have blown out to double that by the time it was finished.
If anything defined the lack of business acumen of the Labour Government it was light rail. A project Jacinda Ardern said would be delivered two years ago has got nothing to show for the money spent other than flash offices and numerous officials. These people even contrived to implement the purchase of the Kiwi Bacon Factory when it was obvious a change of government was in the offing and the project would be scrapped.
Auckland Transport needs to go back to the drawing board and rethink its policies. In the first half of the 1900s, trams served the city well using cross-town services. Lack of maintenance during World War Two led to their demise. Buses then became the workhorses of the transport system and still are. The Northern Busway, the already started Eastern Busway, and the proposed Busways from Botany to the airport and out west are the answer to improving the transport network.
Not everyone is happy: for example Verity Johnson, writing on Stuff. The canning of light rail appears to have completely derailed poor Verity. In her view, in the real world, if you’d paid a $150 million deposit on something you’d expect to get it. Indeed you would, but light rail was never the real world. It was an ideological dream that millions of dollars of taxpayer money was wasted on.
Verity says the regional fuel tax was about funding transport projects like light rail. These projects, Verity argues, would help to solve the daily gridlock that Auckland endures. A business case would probably say the busways give more bang for the bucks spent than light rail, even if the light rail route was totally above ground. In my view, the avid proponents of light rail are looking at it as a nice-to-have alternative. With the electrification of the bus fleet emissions will be cut on a more economical basis.
The light rail enthusiasts need to realise it is not the only way to solve Auckland’s transport problems. Christopher Luxon intends to run the country like a business, at least where multi-million dollar projects are concerned. There is more work to be done to improve Auckland’s transport infrastructure but it needs to be achieved in the most efficient and economical manner. Off the rails looks like the preferred option.
If anything defined the lack of business acumen of the Labour Government it was light rail. A project Jacinda Ardern said would be delivered two years ago has got nothing to show for the money spent other than flash offices and numerous officials. These people even contrived to implement the purchase of the Kiwi Bacon Factory when it was obvious a change of government was in the offing and the project would be scrapped.
Auckland Transport needs to go back to the drawing board and rethink its policies. In the first half of the 1900s, trams served the city well using cross-town services. Lack of maintenance during World War Two led to their demise. Buses then became the workhorses of the transport system and still are. The Northern Busway, the already started Eastern Busway, and the proposed Busways from Botany to the airport and out west are the answer to improving the transport network.
Not everyone is happy: for example Verity Johnson, writing on Stuff. The canning of light rail appears to have completely derailed poor Verity. In her view, in the real world, if you’d paid a $150 million deposit on something you’d expect to get it. Indeed you would, but light rail was never the real world. It was an ideological dream that millions of dollars of taxpayer money was wasted on.
Verity says the regional fuel tax was about funding transport projects like light rail. These projects, Verity argues, would help to solve the daily gridlock that Auckland endures. A business case would probably say the busways give more bang for the bucks spent than light rail, even if the light rail route was totally above ground. In my view, the avid proponents of light rail are looking at it as a nice-to-have alternative. With the electrification of the bus fleet emissions will be cut on a more economical basis.
The light rail enthusiasts need to realise it is not the only way to solve Auckland’s transport problems. Christopher Luxon intends to run the country like a business, at least where multi-million dollar projects are concerned. There is more work to be done to improve Auckland’s transport infrastructure but it needs to be achieved in the most efficient and economical manner. Off the rails looks like the preferred option.
JC is a right-wing crusader. Reached an age that embodies the dictum only the good die young. This article was first published HERE
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