Transport infrastructure upgrades to get NZ moving
Hon Phil Twyford
Minister for
Transport
MP for Te Atatū
29 January
2020
PĀNUI PĀPĀHO
MEDIA
STATEMENT
Transport
infrastructure upgrades to get NZ moving and prepared for
the future
•
$6.8 billion for transport infrastructure in our six main
growth areas – Auckland, Waikato, Bay of Plenty,
Wellington, Canterbury and Queenstown.
• $1.1
billion for rail.
• $2.2 billion for new roads
in Auckland.
The Government’s programme of new investments in roads and rail will help future proof the economy, get our cities moving, and make our roads safer.
Transport Minister Phil Twyford says these important projects will speed up travel times, ease congestion and make our roads safer by taking trucks off them and moving more freight to rail.
“The New Zealand Upgrade Programme reflects the Government’s balanced transport policy with $6.8 billion being invested across road, rail, public transport and walking and cycling infrastructure across New Zealand.
“This programme brings forward and funds significant projects, allowing them to be built sooner. The significant package is designed to give the construction industry certainty and confidence about future work.
“Many of these projects have been talked about for a long time, but we are the first Government to fund them. We have also made important changes.
“We must look to the future as we design this critical infrastructure. The projects have also been redesigned and future proofed to include provision for public transport and walking and cycling.
“We can do this and bring these projects forward because of our careful management of the Government’s books. It means New Zealanders can be assured they will be built as soon as possible.
“Our decision to fund these projects by taking advantage of historically low long-term interest rates means this Programme will free up funding in the National Land Transport Fund and Auckland transport budgets.”
Roads
“Our
package of road investments will reduce congestion and
travel times, support businesses and open up new areas for
housing developments.
• Upgrading SH1 Whangarei
to Port Marsden to four lanes will improve freight
connectivity and improve productivity in the North.
•
Penlink will open up more growth north of Auckland and
connect Whangaparoa residents to the successful northern
busway.
• Upgrading Mill Road to four lanes and
connecting Manukau to Drury will ease traffic on SH1 and
connect growing parts of Auckland with job-rich centres.
• Widening SH1 from Papakura to Drury and
building a cycleway alongside it, will get commuters to work
faster.
• Building a roundabout at the
intersection of SH1/SH29 will improve safety at one of New
Zealand’s most dangerous intersections. This is on the
route that future proofs the extension of the Waikato
Expressway from Cambridge to Piarere.
• A
four-lane Tauranga Northern Link and upgrades on SH2 to
Omokoroa will improve safety on a dangerous stretch of
highway and unlock more housing developments in our fastest
growing city and important trading port.
•
Four-laning SH1 from Otaki to North of Levin will improve
travel times and safety and boost the Horowhenua economy and
its connection to Wellington and the region.
•
The second stage of SH58 safety improvements will make a key
route in Greater Wellington safer and more reliable. Stage
one started in late 2019.
• The Melling
interchange project will reduce the risk of flooding, help
ease congestion during peak times, and the railway
realignment will improve reliability and give more ‘park
and ride’ options.
• Our Christchurch package
will speed up public transport in the high-growth south west
of the city, improve safety in rural towns in the region and
boost economic development with a more reliable route for
freight to Lyttleton Port.
• Our Queenstown
transport package will greatly improve public transport into
the town centre on SH6A, ease congestion on SH6 and support
continued tourism growth.
Rail
A
package of targeted rail investments will get trucks off the
road and improve passenger train services, particularly at
busy travel times.
• Completing the third main
rail line will remove a key bottleneck for freight and
passenger services, as well as provide additional capacity
for the increased services once the City Rail Link is
completed.
• Electrifying the railway track
between Papakura to Pukekohe will speed up trips to the CBD.
The addition of two new platforms at Pukekohe station will
allow additional lines for future growth.
•
Two new railway stations in Drury Central and Drury West,
along with ‘park and ride’ facilities, will give real
choice to the families that move to this high growth part of
Auckland.
• Wellington rail upgrades, including
in the Wairarapa, will make the lines north of the city more
reliable and better able to meet growing demand.
Walking and cycling
Giving people
safer options to walk and cycle in our cities means families
have a healthy, congestion-free alternative to sitting in
the car.
• Aucklanders will finally get the
ability to walk and cycle from the North Shore, with a
shared path over the Harbour Bridge. Seapath will connect to
the shared path over the Harbour Bridge and provide a fully
separated, safe path for Aucklanders from Takapuna and
Northcote to the city. It will also be a key tourist
attraction.
Record investments in transport across
New Zealand are already happening under this Government,
including:
• $100 million for the initial work
on the $620 million Manawatū Gorge replacement
highway.
• $92.37 million for the Hamilton to
Auckland commuter service which will start mid-year.
•
Budget 2019 provided a $1 billion funding boost to support a
long overdue redevelopment of KiwiRail.
• The
$6.4 billion Let’s Get Wellington Moving package will help
ease congestion in our capital city.
• The $29
billion Auckland Transport Alignment Project will unlock
Auckland’s potential.
• $130 million for the
upgrade of SH20B the Puhinui rail and bus interchange to
allow a 10-minute bus connection to Auckland Airport.
•
$196 million Wellington commuter rail upgrades will mean
better services and fewer breakdowns.
• $1.4
billion to upgrade 3,300kms of state highways and local
roads with proven safety upgrades to save lives.
•
$240 million on the Auckland Manukau Eastern Transport
Initiative (AMETI) Eastern Busway improvements which will
give a congestion-free public transport options for east
Aucklanders.
• $37.5 million Awakino Tunnel
bypass project to improve safety on SH3.
• $137
million Tairāwhiti Roading package from the Provincial
Growth Fund to boost the region.
• $18.4
million He Ara Kotahi pathway and bridge over the Manawatū
River.
• $80 million through the Provincial
Growth Fund for the KiwiRail’s TranzAlpine and Coastal
Pacific trains to develop this successful tourism service
further.
ends