Motorway madness set to destroy Mangere neighbourhood

 

 The tarseal addicts are at it again - but thank God Kings College will be safe.

By John Minto / MANA Mayoral candidate. The Daily Blog, September 18, 2013

This $1.5 billion road itself is an outrage Auckland doesn’t need but the proposal to destroy hundreds of homes for families on low incomes while saving Kings College with a hugely expensive tunnel is sickening. It’s a typical case of double standards – one for the rich well-connected mates of the Prime Minister – another for low-income families.

A huge swathe of homes in Mangere and Otahuhu are under threat from council plans for yet another motorway Auckland doesn’t need.

The road is part of the AMETI (Auckland Manukau Eastern Transport Initiative) highway from Onehunga to Manukau. (see map)



Two months ago the Minister of Tarseal Transport Gerry Brownlee asked planners to fast-track AMETI so it could get ahead of the Auckland Central Rail Loop in the funding queue.

Council planners have come up with four options with their preferred option being the destruction of hundreds of homes in Mangere and Otahuhu while taking the road in a tunnel under Kings College to avoid tarsealing the school cricket pitch.

This $1.5 billion road itself is an outrage Auckland doesn’t need but the proposal to destroy hundreds of homes for families on low incomes while saving Kings College with a hugely expensive tunnel is sickening. It’s a typical case of double standards – one for the rich well-connected mates of the Prime Minister – another for low-income families.

We don’t need the road or the government’s double standards.

Auckland Mayor Len Brown has been silent on the issue despite his (undeserved) reputation as champion of South Auckland while the local city councilors, Ex National MP Arthur Anae and Alf Filipaina, are asleep at the wheel.

The local board is opposed to the road but Auckland Transport sees it as the best option. Bulldozing state homes in a low-income community makes perfect economic sense because no compensation needs to be paid. In their minds they see South Auckland as full of lazy, brown, good-for-nothings anyway.

But Kings College is a different matter. The sons and daughters of the ruling elites don’t want acres of tarseal across their playing fields so the most expensive part of the road will be a tunnel to avoid the disruption, noise and pollution which the rest of South Auckland will be forced to suffer.

The community will be “consulted” next year but we all know what that means. If the road is to be stopped NOW is the time to do it.

Mana will not let the tarseal addicts get away with this. Our Mana Mangere team will announce plans to fight the new road at a local body election campaign launch this Saturday 2pm at East Mangere Hall (Metro Theatre) on Massey Road. Feel free to come along and help.

In the meantime I hope all readers of this blog will know by now that Mana is proposing an alternative to big roads this election. We want to put the big roading projects on the back burner and gridlock free the city within 12 months with fare-free public transport.

The benefits are these:

1. EVERY Aucklander will get an extra hour at home EVERY work day. Even those who never use a bus or train will be able to travel a gridlock-free roading network.

2. It’s cheaper than tarseal addiction – saving hundreds of millions every year.

3. No extra charges for anyone - no rates increases, no extra fuel taxes, no congestion charges, no network charges, no toll roads, no PPPs. Those are Len Brown’s policies – not Mana’s.

4. Improved productivity – as I mentioned a government-commissioned report released in March this year estimated lost productivity at $1.25 billion every year from clogged Auckland roads. This policy will release that lost productivity and enable better pay for workers. Note here that Business New Zealand tells us we need higher productivity to get higher wage increases. Here’s a golden opportunity to pass on these big productivity increases to workers in wages.

5. Faster bus travel on unclogged roads and no time wasted collecting fares.

6. Revitalisation of Auckland’s inner city as more people travel to enjoy Queen Street and the Auckland waterfront – some kids for the first time in their lives.

7. Cleaner and greener – this will be the single greenest policy in the history of New Zealand! – less pollution, smaller carbon footprint – big ups to the environment.

8. Savings for workers – the Mayor of Tallinn calls it the “13th monthly salary” because of estimates the policy saves a month’s pay for workers using the free transport service.

9. Economic stimulation as workers have significantly more to spend in the real economy.

10. Tourism boost as tourists use the system to see all parts of Auckland as we sell the city as an eco-friendly city – released from the grip of dull ideas from the middle of last century.

- See more at: http://thedailyblog.co.nz/2013/09/18/the-tarseal-addicts-are-at-it-again-but-thank-god-kings-college-will-be-safe/#sthash.j8GQL88i.dpuf