16 July 2008

Roads. 230 times better: Transit

Green Party Co-Leader Russel Norman is describing Transit's 10 Year Transport Plan, which proposes spending 230 times more on roads than on cycle and walking infrastructure, as 1960s style transport thinking.

Transit's 10 Year Plan for New Zealand's transport infrastructure, released yesterday, ranks all community safety, walking and cycling projects at the lowest level possible and funds them at 1/230th of roading projects.

"The level of institutional prejudice fostered by the Labour Government and Land Transport NZ against having a safer country for all transport users is made clear by this massive difference in funding," Dr Norman says.

"Transit's 10 Year Plan is a crime against the climate and an offence towards New Zealand's obvious desire to reduce oil reliance.

"The Green Party acknowledges the importance of investing in road safety, but Transit has given 'Community Safety, Walking and Cycle Lanes' their lowest priority rating, despite stating that 'we are increasingly responding to the challenges of climate change and resource efficiency'.

"The result of this bias will be more traffic on the roads, more toxic car fumes polluting the environment and even less alternatives to driving. We are talking about basic things like planning for rain cover, underpasses and safe cycle and walking routes." Dr Norman says.

"Cycling and walking won't suit everyone, but where it does we need to make it safe and convenient and this means investing more in cycle and walking infrastructure.

"Absurdly, Transit claims it is fulfilling its environmental sustainability objective through its new roading projects.

"They says they're concerned 'about the effects of oil prices in the future', but only as it effect the price of new roads.

"It may come as a surprise to Transit, but most people are concerned about oil prices right now, and spending over $13 billion on roads but only $57 million on walking and cycling infrastructure over ten years, will make things much worse."

ENDS

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