NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi (NZTA) and Auckland Transport have now lodged decisions on the Notices of Requirement with Auckland Council for the Airport to Botany Rapid Transit project.

This long term project is part of the Southwest Gateway programme which will deliver a fast, frequent, high capacity public transport route between Auckland Airport and the city’s southern suburbs of Manukau and Botany.

The decisions on the NoRs follows NZTA and Auckland Transport receiving Council’s recommendation from their independent hearings panel. The hearing was held in August 2023 and Council’s recommendation was issued last December.

Auckland Council will now inform submitters and other interested parties of the decisions and the 15-day appeal period. It is anticipated that the designations should be finalised by the end of 2024, subject to resolution of any appeals that are filed.

The Airport to Botany Busway has been listed as a priority project in the draft Government Policy Statement on Land Transport currently out for consultation.

Current priorities for NZTA include finalising construction of the Eastern Busway, and alongside this planning will also be undertaken in the next three years for the delivery of the Airport to Botany Busway.

Project planning, funding and construction timeframes will be confirmed with the release of the National Land Transport Programme (NLTP) later this year.

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