The government could be set to spend 10 percent of its total budget for new infrastructure for the next 25 years on a highway between Auckland and Whangārei.

“Is this one motorway really worth one-tenth of our entire country’s spending on schools, hospitals, houses and public transport infrastructure?”

  • TagMeInSkipIGotThis@lemmy.nz
    7·
    10 days ago

    They want to 4 lane the Hawke’s Bay Expressway too which for me is stupid on any number of levels.

    • Its only really congested at particular times of the day, and only around merges either side of roundabouts or on-ramps.
    • Because they’ve not fully funded 4 lanes along the whole thing (in fact thus far only a tiny portion is funded) they’ll just be introducing even more merges.
    • They’ve talked about tolling it, which will likely put more pressure on regional council maintained routes.
    • They would need to build two bridges over large rivers (Ngaruroro & Tutaekuri) that would need to withstand large floods and an overpass where there is very little space and it would come at the expense of a walking/cycling path.
    • It comes at the expense of doing anything to better utilise the existing rail-line for passenger commutes from Waipukurau to the Airport.