From 159 Ideas, This Tunnel Gets the Nod (So Far)

in General by Jon C — December 2, 2009 at 9:52 pm | 1 comment

BOXES (left to right) Connection to Akoranga station:Wynyard cut and cover station: Connection to CBD rail loop

This Tank Farm to Esmonde Rd tunnel is the preferred option for a new harbour crossing after officials considered an extraordinary number of options - 159 of them. Those options included tunnel’s bridges, sky cabs, monotrail or using ferries.

Their preferred option was four driven tunnels - two each for road and rail.

UGLY: Tank Farm

NZTA (formerly Transit NZ), Auckland City Council, North Shore City Council, ARC and ARTA want road and rail tunnels to carry SH1. But the tunnels would not all be built at once, especially as the CBD rail tunnel and rail on the North Shore are yet to get a Government buy-in.

Transport minister Steven Joyce has made it clear he hasn’t made up his mind.

NZTA says the notices of requirement lodged today,with the Auckland and North Shore councils for the favoured tunnel route, are to preserve the option of using tunnels for an additional crossing and to protect the route for the crossing.

If that route is not protected now, construction of the new crossing could be compromised by development of Wynyard Quarter (the tank farm) at the southern end of the proposed new crossing.

The Wynyard Quarter plan change hearings /appeal process is in progress. The appeal hearing is next February. That development without protecting the route would have compromised the ability to build an additional crossing there.

NZTA says while the government considers the issue, a decision doesn’t have to be made immediately. The route has been protected but no decisions have been made around funding, design or a timetable.

The original idea was that the present bridge could be retained for cycling and walking provisions.

But right now, the focus is on the discovery, half way through the clip on strengthening work, that twice as much money as allocated is needed.

As detailed in an earlier post, the Beca engineering report on the current harbour bridge that triggered today’s flap. counted down how few years are left with it -10 to 20 under the current regime; 20-40 if restrictions are placed on early morning heavy vehicles and more than 30 if this is accompanied by some form of temperature control.