$106m spent and still no decision on Auckland harbour crossing

Summarised by Centrist

The government has ordered another business case for Auckland’s second harbour crossing after more than $106 million has already been spent investigating the project.

The latest study will not be completed until next year, pushing any decision beyond the election despite the government promising voters an update beforehand.

Transport Minister Chris Bishop said the detailed business case would determine what should be built and examine how it could be financed.

“Getting this project right means figuring out what we are going to build based on what we’ve found in the ground and under the harbour, not just what works on paper,” Bishop said.

Cabinet will search internationally for an independent expert to lead the work. The project will be removed from NZTA’s direct control and report to ministers instead.

Bishop said the Crown controls the funding, carries the risk and must therefore be able to direct the project.

The study will consider the wider Auckland transport network, including motorway plans, time-of-use charging and the proposed 30-year Auckland Integrated Transport Plan.

Cabinet has also agreed to investigate Mayor Wayne Brown’s preferred Meola Reef bridge between Pt Chevalier and the North Shore, despite that option having been examined and rejected several times.

The additional study will proceed only if Auckland Council is interested, with the council invited to help pay for it.

The existing Harbour Bridge carries approximately 170,000 vehicles a day and will require substantial maintenance involving extended lane closures.

Bishop said the economic cost of that disruption could reach $4.8 billion if another crossing was not operating.

“That is not an acceptable outcome,” he said.

However, the government has not selected a route, decided between a bridge and tunnels, established a price or determined how motorists and taxpayers would fund it.

Brown welcomed the further work, saying it was better to contribute towards a study Auckland helped shape than risk “another extravagant failure like Auckland Light Rail”.

Read more at Stuff

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