Sustainable transport

Sustainable Wellington Region Transport, a coalition of groups and individuals advocating a greater role for public transport, walking, cycling, and sustainable urban and transport infrastructure in the Wellington region, has asked the following questions of candidates in the Wellington region.

Declaration of interest: I am a member of this group, but I have taken no part in any aspect of this questionnaire since being nominated as a candidate.

1. What proportion of the transport funding in the Long Term Council Community Plan (LTCCP) of the Council you are standing for would you want to see devoted to:

a. Public transport? 40%
b. Walking (facilities and promotion)? 20%
c. Cycling (facilities and promotion)? 5%

Please explain these choices.

Public transport is the lifeblood of a successful city; walking is universal and economically and environmentally effiicient; cycling starts from a very low base (barely on the Long-Term Council Community Plan expenditure radar) and needs boosting for its environmental and economic benefits. This still leaves a substantial amount to be spent on roads, for safety measures and because they are used by public transport and active modes.

2. Do you support the following transport projects, where applicable:


Note: Options a-c are mutually exclusive. Each assumes that essential service vehicles would have limited access.


a. Turning the Golden Mile into a public transport corridor

b. Turning the Golden Mile into a pedestrian corridor

c. Turning the Golden Mile into a dedicated public transport/pedestrian space Yes
d. Extending the rail system through the Wellington CBD, by developing modern trams as a priority for the short term Yes
e. A Basin Reserve flyover No
f. Doubling the Terrace Tunnel No
g. Doubling the Mt Victoria Tunnel No
h. The Kapiti Expressway No


3. Do you support the creation of an integrated public transport system across the region? If so, what changes would you propose making to bring this about?

Yes - uniform Metlink branding (any operator branding should be subsidiary); fully integrated fares; fully integrated timetables

4. What do you consider should be the top transport priorities of the Council for which you are standing?

Full public transport priority along the Golden Mile;
improving/eliminating the Wellington Railway Station inter-modal interchange;
bus priority to the eastern suburbs;
inegrating the Cable Car with other public transport;
trolleybus wiring through the Miramar Cutting to speed up journeys to/from Miramar;
improved wharves for ferry services.

5. What are your own top transport priorities for the region?

Integated PT fares & services;
public transport priority along the Golden Mile;
rail penetration into the region's CBDs;
modern trams between the airport and destinations on the region's railway network;

and in the wider region:

eliminating North-South Junction single-track rail bottleneck between Pukerua Bay and Paekakariki;
enabling passenger trains to pass on the Wairarapa Corridor north of Upper Hutt.