I can’t stand seeing money wasted – especially when it’s our taxes and rates that could be spent much more effectively.
‘Stop Wasting Money’ was one of the key platforms I campaigned on and I’m pleased to have delivered savings of $83 million from Auckland Council spending in 2023/24. Another $140 million will follow over the next three years. The cross-harbour tunnel proposed by the major parties needs to be right at the top of the list in any discussion about waste.
They have already ploughed $37 million into this fantasy, with precisely zero to show for it.
Another $177 million is planned over the next three years, by which time over $210 million of public funds will have been squandered. There won’t even be a hole in the ground to show for it – this money is going into just thinking about a tunnel.
Someone is getting rich out of this and it isn’t you or me.
Any second harbour crossing needs to give the best value possible and achieve the maximum benefit for Aucklanders.
Recent experience with the City Rail Link (CRL) shows tunnels usually cost at least double the original estimate.
That puts the true cost of a tunnel in the vicinity of at least $34 billion (note: much bigger figures are being bandied about) or equivalent to more than a decade of national road spending on one project that actually achieves nothing.
A much better option is for a bridge further along from the existing one that goes across the next-shortest point. This diffuses traffic and takes demand away from the existing bridge.
A tunnel in the same location as the current bridge achieves nothing. The approach roads on either side will still be choked.
I’ve proposed Meola Reef as the site for a second crossing. There may well be other good ideas and I’m open to hearing them.
The Meola option has a fair bit going for it: the reef goes 80% of the way across the harbour and could allow a causeway to be built across those shallow waters at comparatively low cost, ramping up to match the topography on the North Shore side and allow boats to pass underneath.
Some Westmere locals may have reservations about the impact on their property values. But remember, the most expensive area in New Zealand is St Marys Bay – right in front of the bridge! I’ve seen various experts saying Meola could still cost hundreds of millions.
That is probably true but hundreds of millions are way less than thousands of millions.
Various people have raised possible concerns about environmental impacts and property values at Point Chevalier. People forget that most of our CBD is reclaimed and there’s no noise about that.
As Mayor, it’s my job to think about Auckland as a whole. We have to elevate the discussion. No matter which option we take for a second harbour crossing, there will be some localised impacts.
Don’t forget a tunnel would have massive impacts of its own – excavation, trucking rubble through the city to be dumped somewhere, building approach roads on both sides and the release of exhaust fumes.
We live here and love this city. We know best and should be having a discussion among ourselves about what we want.
I’m happy to see people poking and prodding the Meola Reef crossing option. At least we’re starting to have a debate on our own terms.
It would be good if we could quickly get to a point where, as a city, we kicked around a few options and then locked in around one. We showed we can do this with the CRL, now we need to come together again.
This would create the political pressure needed to get Wellington to stop wasting our money on a tunnel. They’ll keep going if we let them and we’ll have nothing to show for it at the end. (Wayne Brown)
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Mayor.Wayne.Brown@Aucklandcouncil.govt.nz
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