Upgraded pretty much immediately if NZTA follow through

 

 

 

I listened to pieces of the New Zealand Budget today which was a more tame affair than the Australian version for sure.

One piece that caught my attention was this transport piece from the NZ Herald:

 

Southern corridor motorway projects proposed for acceleration:

* Three-laning State Highway 1 southbound Hill Road to Takanini
* Six-laning State Highway 1 Takanini to Papakura
* Takanini northbound onramp improvements
* Takanini Interchange upgrade
* Four-laning State Highway 1 southbound, State Highway 20 to Hill Road
* Benefit-to-cost ratio: 6.8
* Proposed construction period: 2014/15 – 2016/17
* Expected cost: $210 million

 

It came from this article: “Budget 2014: Auckland transport projects get boost”

 

It basically means that NZTA willing we should see construction starting on the Takanini Interchange later on this year (the Government year is same as the Council’s year: 1 July – 30th June) and completed by 2017.

This is a major win for the South (along with some public transport projects) who like I have to put up with the crap that is the Takanini Interchange and the grief it causes just about any time of day any time of the week.

I just remembered a discussion I had with Auckland Transport and the Papakura Local Board a while back around bus lanes for the Great South Road area near the Takanini Interchange. They had told me they would love continuous bus lanes along that section of the Great South Road but can not do so until after Takanini Interchange is upgraded. Well then if the Local Board and Auckland Transport follow through (as well as NZTA) as planned then by 2017 we should get some bus lanes along that particular section of the Great South Road which will greatly assist the 33 Great South Road bus services. So in effect a double win in that we get that hell-hole interchange upgraded and some new bus lanes to boot.

 

So this is what South and Southern Auckland do have coming their way in regards to transport if and when the transport authorities follow through

• The upgrading of the Takanini Interchange and the surrounding Southern Motorway to start later this year
• As a result of the now certainty with the Takanini Interchange, Auckland Transport can start the work around upgrading the Great South Road in the area and adding those bus lanes
• The Manukau South Rail Link is currently working through processes in the main Council rather than Auckland Transport. As I noted in an earlier post it illustrates we are going through the final hurdle to have the South Link built and running. A public announcement from Auckland Transport on the South Link was due in a few months
• Modelling for the Pukekohe Electrification project which includes currently two new stations (Paerata and Drury) is about to get under way. With a bit of luck the wires should reach Pukekohe allowing the electrics to run there by 2017 at the latest
• Station upgrades as apart of a larger package continue. This does include Takanini Station and a revamp of the Papakura Station Park and Ride

 

So a good day for the South in regards to transport.

 

What I am not very amused by is critics of motorways tarring the Takanini Interchange upgrade with the same brush that they are using against other accelerated projects mentioned in today’s Budget. A Benefit Cost Ratio of 6.8 to 1 alone signals that the Takanini Interchange and surrounding motorway upgrades is a value for dollar investment. No other roading project in New Zealand gets anywhere near 6.8 on the BCR scale.

Note any BCR (Benefit Cost Ratio) above 1.0 means it is a positive investment. For example the Takanini Interchange project sits at 6.8 meaning for every dollar spent on the upgrade (so the cost) the benefits come back in the range of $6.80 per dollar spent. A BCR below 1.0 means it is a dud and waste of money. Most Roads of National Significance are below 1.0 so for every dollar spent they return less than a dollar in benefits worth. 

Furthermore the Takanini Interchange is essential to the South and the wider economy for the inefficiencies and congestion it causes. I did in brief mention the issues and benefits of the Interchange upgrade here: Southern Auckland and Manukau – An Omnibus #3. This especially as Southern Auckland takes the brunt of population growth, new industrial complex growth, and has Auckland’s only true tier two City Centre – the Manukau City Centre.

 

So yes I am not very amused with critics of the Auckland transport projects announcement right now and the South wont be particular either. I can understand criticism around State Highway 20A (the airport north link) and the State Highway 1/18 interchange upgrade but lugging that together with the Takanini is something that will attract my ire (and I see it is attracting others ire as well on Twitter) rather quickly.

Also check page 28 of the NZTA State Highway report on traffic volume movements between Manukau and Papakura. Not particularly pretty and they keep going up.

 

Looking forward to the first sod turned for the Takanini Interchange upgrade as I am with the Manukau Rail South Link upgrade when its turn comes around.

 

I will send an email to NZTA tomorrow to see what the current status is around the Takanini Interchange and what any plans now and in the future are/maybe