11. SUE KEDGLEY (Green) Link to this
to the Minister of Transport
Is she confident that Transit New Zealand’s projected 7 to 9-minute peak-hour time savings will be delivered to motorists when the Wellington inner-city bypass opens this weekend; if so, why?
Hon ANNETTE KING (Minister of Transport) Link to this
Transit New Zealand has advised me that while the second phase of the inner-city bypass will be open this Sunday, there is ancillary work to be done to complete the project and ensure delivery of its full benefits.
Is it not true that Transit used wildly inflated estimates of 7 to 9 minutes at peak time, including in sworn testimony to the Environment Court, to beef up the cost-benefit ratios and justify building the bypass, but now that it is built, it is frantically backtracking and refusing to say whether there will be any time savings at all; and will she therefore agree to an independent post-construction audit as to whether the projected time savings promised by Transit have materialised; if not, why not?
No, I cannot confirm any of the things the member has said, and I have no evidence that it has backtracked from anything. The point I have just made is that Transit has said that on Sunday when it is opened there will still be ancillary services to be completed. The member may be interested in some of those services. For example, the provision of dedicated pedestrian and cyclist facilities is something the Greens wanted included in the bypass. Also, dedicated bus routes are part of the bypass. All of those innovations are there to help the flow of traffic. They will not be completed until May.
I seek leave to table the evidence that the Minister did not seem to think she had, where a Transit expert in traffic analysis said to the Environment Court that a journey across the city would save at least 6 minutes and up to 15 minutes in the busiest time, and from the former of Minister of Transport Pete Hodgson—
I raise a point of order, Madam Speaker. In my answer I was not talking about what was in the application. The member made accusations about what Transit had said subsequent to that. I said that, no, I could not confirm the accusations the member was making.
Madam SPEAKERI seek leave to table a statement by the Transit project engineer for the bypass, in which she says: “I’m not going to say it will save x number of seconds or hours, but it will make driving in New Zealand more efficient.”
Darien FentonWhat recent decisions taken by the Government’s Land Transport funding agency benefit Wellington commuter rail?
Land Transport New Zealand has approved funding for a considerable rail network in Wellington, including 58 replacement electric multiple units. It made that decision in December, and a further decision was made in February for another 12 units. There has been a lot of investment into the Wellington region in terms of building up passenger transport. This Government can be proud of the fact that there has been a 750 percent increase in funding into public transport since Labour became the Government.
Hon Maurice Williamson Link to this
How can the Minister have even a shred of confidence left in Transit when her own advisory group said that additional costs for the project it evaluated were not fully justified, that information provided does not demonstrate a robust process of evaluation for the additional expenditure that Transit was spending, that decision making in relation to scope and project definition had not always had the robust scrutiny that one might have expected, that value for money was not even identified as a key objective in any of the Ministry of Transport’s statements of intent, and—my personal favourite—that the change in project evaluation criteria away from using a benefit-cost ratio means that Transit New Zealand now has less incentive to contain project costs?
That was the view of the ministerial advisory group set up by the Ministry of Transport. It is one view. I think there are other members—
I am sorry. When the member asked his question it was heard in silence. He is now interrupting constantly, so we cannot hear the answer. Would he please just enable the Minister to address the question.
The ministerial advisory group set up by the Ministry of Transport has provided one view. There are some very good points made in it. As the member is aware, I have established a review of the Ministry of Transport, Transit, and Land Transport New Zealand. I think it is appropriate to look at the next steps, because the Government is keen on getting value for money, and the taxpayers are keen on value for money. It would be unfair to say that Transit has not, in general, done a good job—particularly in meeting the needs of local communities. Some of those local communities, including members of this House, have had some responsibility in terms of projects and how they have turned out.
Darren HughesCan the Minister of Transport tell the House what she will be doing on the Kapiti Coast on Saturday in order to assist with peak-hour time savings for the region?
First of all, I acknowledge the efforts of the member for Otaki and my colleague Winne Laban in their advocacy for the opening we will have on Saturday, which is Mackays Crossing. It will make traffic move more smoothly up the Kapiti Coast and it is welcomed by many people who live in that area. I also note, however, that there are members in the Opposition who criticised the project.
Does the Minister agree with the chair of the Wellington Regional Council transport committee, Terry McDavitt, that the bypass is causing, and will continue to cause, traffic chaos on Te Aro flat and that there is no way of fixing this, because of inherent problems in the design of the bypass; if not, why not?
No, I cannot agree with those comments, and I will not be prepared to agree with them until I see the problems he has identified at this stage—when part of the project is open—continuing into the fully operational project. Then there would be an issue to be raised. But it is not fully operational and will not be fully operational until May.
I seek leave to table something from the Transit New Zealand website that states: “People travelling across the city will save 7 to 9 minutes during the busiest peak hours”—
I seek leave to table a document in which Terry McDavitt warns that the snarl-ups and problems on the route will not be able to be solved.