Subscribe to RSSNew Selwyn Station Would Be $20m
A new Eastern rail station near Selwyn College and connecting to Gowing Drive would cost at least $20,000,000, according to Auckland Transport.
Orakei Local Board has been pushing for it b ut Auckland Transport will tell its meeting tomorrow it doesn’t support it based on its research because the cost of building the station is likely to be” very expensive.”
It says that currently the location is 25m below the nearest road and getting plant equipment into the site is difficult. An approximate estimate is that it would cost at least $ 20,000,000.
The completed station would require access routes to be built to it and the nature of the ground is such that this would be expensive, says AT.
Anyway AT believes that passenger numbers are unlikely to support its operation economically.
The track alongside the Purewa cemetery at St John's
And there’s more.
The “relatively isolated location would make security a major issue and the cost of ensuring a safe environment for passengers has to be considered when appreciating the long term cost of maintaining the station if it is built.”
AT says that currently the central rail network is working at capacity. Adding another station to the network requires purchasing more trains would slow the network down and increase its vulnerability.
And in order to serve the residential area around Gowing Drive AT would be required to purchase additional private properties further increasing the overall cost. Properties around there certainly would not be cheap and some of the land in the area is church land.
However AT has to keep going with its research. Auckland Council has requested ito conduct further investigation up to a cost of $50,000.
14 Comments
Working at capacity. Wont the new trains alleviate that? Can’t private property purchased be sold again or is there a requirement to demolish buildings? Although the new station would be isolated in the interim is there any chance that housing will be built towards the station in the future? I’m not really familiar with that part of Auckland.
$20m wow and here I was thinking Parnell was expensive at $15m. I never thought it was a good idea but if that didn’t put the idea to bed then nothing will and spending another 50k on more studies is just wasting ratepayer money.
Ian - no the site is in a bush clad valley and there isn’t any chance of more development nearby. Look up Selwyn College on google maps then head south to the rail line to see the suggested site.
Ian, most of the surrounding area is bush, and I think a lot of it is part of a park or few. There’s not going to be any development happening, other than intensification of the existing properties, and they’re all quite a way from the site.
It’s unfortunate that this is the outcome, because this area really is relatively horribly served by public transport, but a cost like this is unsupportable.
A good place to build a station would be to redo the Purewa Tunnel and have it in there. (At the north entrance in the tunnel) Elevators could connect from St Johns road & paths could run along each side of the tracks to Selwin college and Gowing Drive. Also included in the modification of the tunnel could be the future cycle network that runs from the CBD beside the Eastern line. The reason why I think this is a good place is because it can connect well to buses.
I’m thinking you are right DC, I have been struggling to see a station working in that valley. It needs to be connected to a bus interchange at St John’s road. The Kids can walk, from there, should walk. And the leafy qualities of the valley should be kept and enhanced.
So protect room for 4 tracks, build great walking and cycling routes and line bridges for peds and bikes, through the valley, connect both sides of the communities and the school. And build [or at least plan for] a bus interchange station at the northern end of the tunnel….?
There use to be a station at Purewa just behind the cemetery until late 40′s. When this burned down Meadowbank was being developed as a new suburb so the replacement station was built there. Also when I was a child in the 60′s I was told that land on the eastern side of the Purewa Creek where the pony club is was slowly moving and that was why there was very little building on that side of the valley. Also until the mid 60′s the Gowing Dr area was a town milk supply farm.
The nexus of Kohimarama Rd, St Johns Rd, St Heliers Bay Rd and Apirana Ave is an ideal location for a bus interchange station. Perhaps they could consider a station immediately west of the portal, with a bus access road from the end of St Heliers Bay Rd. A quick look suggests a bus loop around what appears to be a horse jumping course could work, plus a footbridge between Gowing Drive and Wytehead Cres. Not going to come in cheaper than $20 million but it would be very effective.
Protecting the corridor for four tracks and a duplicate tunnel is essential.
It seems that every time there is a station refurbished or built several zero’s are added to the real cost.
The tent awning at Kingsland that failed to provide an extra seat cost several hundred thousand did it not?
Maybe the council should start its own civil works company, like it used to and save the ratepayers a fortune.
I think the Kingsland shelters cost more like 2 million…. I don’t see why larger infrastructure projects are so expensive in new Zealand.
@Pim $2.1m for the Kingsland shelters
I would prefer Purewa Valley be retained as a green space, although allowing for a third railway line.
This historic ‘forgotten valley’ of Auckland has great potential as a recreational area. Orakei Basin boardwalk is an excellent start on which Auckland Council should be congratulated.
A walkway/cycleway starting at St Johns Rd, mangrove boardwalks with rail overpass footbridge would keep joggers off the railway and have little comparitive cost or environmental impact. As a bonus it would allow legal access from the Mission Bay (Kepa Bush), Kohimarama side and Gowing Dr area to Meadowbank Station.
The St Johns/Glen Innes side is also worthy of similar treatment and long may the Pony Clubs remain too.
As far as meeting commuter needs, shuttle buses running between GI and Orakei stations via residential streets might serve the community well and reduce parking congestion near train stations.
Pim, lack of competition, one suspects, along with a general lack of broad experience in actually doing the work. Lots of small players, only a very few big ones who can actually bid for and get these kinds of contracts.
these prices are joke, plain and simple… maybe they should get rid of all the concrete and tarseal and use pavers and bricks like in Perth, bet it would cut the costs by heaps… plus if you need to future upgrades, you can just rip them up and relay them.
even the underground stations in Perth Central have brick pavers… why on earth stations here are tarseal is beyond me…
I would like to know exactly where on the line below Selwyn College the initial survey took place.
There are streets very close to the railway although the eastern side does have some bush area.There is also some flat land and only a very small creek running there that drains into the orakei Basin. Part of the reason for the initial proposal was to ease congestion off St Heliers Bay Road and Kohimarama Road by running a small feeder road down to the station. The station was envisaged as being a ‘kiss and ride’ station only.
There are significant numbers of students who would use rail as well as adults in the community side of the school plus others who use the ASB centre for sporting events.The population of St. John’s was not there when the earlier Meadowbank station was buitl.Maybe the real reason is that there would need to be more trains bought?