Tolling does not bother me but only if used under one condition
As the Long Term Plan feedback draws to a close on March 16 the vexed issue around tolling and fuel taxes has sprung back up into the forefront of the debate.
With an Auckland Conversations chit-chat session around transport in Auckland tonight I decided to put to paper (well a blog post) my thoughts.
First some context coming in from the Herald:
Cut roads budget by $2b’
5:00 AM Monday Mar 2, 2015 – Simon Collins
Generation Zero says savings will come from axing major projects in Auckland Plan.
Youth lobby group Generation Zero says Auckland Council’s planned spending on new roads in its 10-year budget should be cut by $2 billion.
The group, which aims to stop global warming, will unveil an alternative “essential transport budget” cutting $200 million a year off the council’s preferred option at an “Auckland Conversations” debate with Mayor Len Brown tonight.
Its alternative would add only about $1 billion to the $6.9 billion “basic” option in the 10-year budget – far short of the extra $3.4 billion required for the $10.3 billion “Auckland Plan” that is the only other option offered in the council’s consultation document which is open for public comment until March 16.
The saving would come from axing most major road projects in the Auckland Plan, including the Penlink Rd between Redvale and Whangaparaoa, upgrading Mill Rd in South Auckland and widening Lincoln Rd in Henderson.
That would leave only about $1 billion for public transport, walkway and cycling improvements above the council’s “basic” option.
“We think the Auckland Plan is too much of a wishlist and it’s not affordable,” said Generation Zero Auckland director Dr Sudhvir Singh.
“We have done the costings for a very comprehensive public transport and cycling network for an additional $100 million a year. That would allow Auckland to have a congestion-free network and a turn-up-and-go frequent public transport network serving the entire region.”
The Auckland Plan would require either $2 peak-time motorway tolls or a combination of raising petrol tax by 12c a litre and raising residential rates by an extra 15 per cent over 10 years on top of the 57 per cent increase already built into the “basic” option.
Transport Blog editor Patrick Reynolds said the rates increase option was “not really practicable or equitable”, and motorway tolls should not be imposed until commuters had a viable public transport alternative.
“New Zealanders have shown a tremendous lack of enthusiasm to pay even a small toll, so it’s almost certain that people will take every opportunity to avoid tolls, in other words the local roads are likely to become flooded by structural rat-running,” he said.
“The poster cities for road pricing – London, Stockholm and Singapore – all have complete subway networks and busways and cycleways. We are attempting to do that before we have that network.”
Auckland Business Forum head Michael Barnett said motorway tolls would be fairer than rates and petrol tax hikes, but he said the council should consider a third option of selling assets such as the port.
He said it would be dangerous to drop roading projects such as Penlink, Mill Rd and Lincoln Rd that were needed to cope with population growth in those areas.
Okay two issues in play here: one from Generation Zero updating a refresher to their Congestion Free Network “shopping list” in light of the Long Term Plan, and Regional Land Transport Plan, the other from possible conservative mayoral candidate Michael Barnett.
In regards to the Congestion Free Network refresher from Generation Zero, the issue came down to tolls. I was at the Otara-Papatoetoe ‘Have Your Say’ session as well as observing feedback coming out of other sessions around the City. The message I constantly heard was along these lines
“We do support tolling on the motorways BUT only as a demand management tool when the public transport system is fully complete.” That line of thought even came from the Southern Auckland areas that would be most acutely affected by tolling which is like GST regressive. I tried to draw the logic out behind this line of thought and it came down to two things:
Sharing the costs more evenly across all modes
Putting in a cost that forces people to realise there is an actual cost in travel decisions
That being there is a cost in travelling on the road when you had a public transport option available to you. The natural outcome in the end being is that the scarce road space is freed up for those who actually need it rather than those “want” it.
So it will be interesting to see how Council and for that matter central Government handle the tolling issue. It simply does not deserve to be swept under the carpet but a more sane and logical debate needed on using it as a demand management tool like our advanced cousins overseas.
As for Michael Barnett, he might want to contact National’s favourite polling company Curia and get them to poll South and West Auckland around the issue off asset sales with Port of Auckland and the airport. At the same time get Curia to poll around the Mill Road widening issue as well.
Why? Because any policy that suggests such actions mentioned above will have the South and West not exactly voting for you. And if one wants the Mayoral Chains you have the South and West onside.
The Mill Road corridor has even become an issue the Papakura Local Board and its Ward Councillor are not exactly singing the praises on. Not when the Southern Motorway is beginning its upgrade this year and the entire reason behind Mill Road was because the motorway was not being upgraded for another decade. In any case I believe Auckland Transport are going to go with just route protection only for Mill Road and come back to it later on. Hopefully then maybe Auckland Transport will come up with something more sane than a 4-lane mini motorway.
This slideshow requires JavaScript.
Your thoughts on the tolls, and what Barnett was thinking as policy platforms?
Talking Southern Auckland 