Subscribe to RSSWellington Motorway Decision Uproar
The issue of Wellington’s future motorway development is getting hotter.
The new Mayor is not a big fan of a flyover near the Basin reserve but a group of her councillors are.
Following reports some in the NZTA were getting unsettled about the Mayor’s failure to commit to their plans, the councillors have forced through a special meeting on Wednesday for the council to make a call.
More motorways the answer for Wellington traffic problems?
Wellington Scoop has details of the latest here
The Dominion Post has details of a public screaming row between the Mayor and her deputy over it
RNZ has an interview earlier in the week with the Mayor
11 Comments
A pattern of local govt. being way ahead of national govt. and its agencies is forming in every urban centre in NZ. Do the National party just think these are aberrations, blinded by the nationwide polls? Interesting. The WGTN mayor has got the same fight with the bullying central govt. agencies as elsewhere, she sounded good on the RNZ interview.
@Patrick R Interesting battles ahead. As she said in the Nine to Noon interview, local bodies throughout NZ are starting to question the wisdom of the national policies and expressing their own view. I hope she survives Wednesday’s council meeting showdown.
The Wellington central motorway flyover is going to be a real bellwether issue. Celia is going to need all the help she can get to fight this one. Expect considerable money and influence to come to bear against those fighting the motorway.
I really hope the Greens can grab this issue with both hands and employ the resources to visually and credibly demonstrate the carnage this motorway will create through the Basin Reserve and Haitaitai. Being election year and all that……….
The Dom Post editorial is sticking in the knife:
http://www.stuff.co.nz/dominion-post/opinion/editorials/4895411/Editorial-Wellington-can-t-afford-a-wishy-washy-mayor
What a surprise, the Dominion Post not liking a Green mayor. Who would have thought?
Prendergast was awful. She was definately voted out, rather than Wade-Brown voted in.
Some of the proposed NZTA road projects are unnecessary and could be dealt with restructuring the existing road layouts and better traffic management. Some are needed quite badly though. For example the duplicate Mt Victoria Tunnel. The traffic is ridiculous at most times of the day, let alone rush hour.
Well we all know what the outcome of the plan will be, it will be supported. It just seems unfair that the people never had a chance to have a say in that issue which is Why Cecilia was elected in the first place. Its a big shame that none of her councellors share her view.
The issue afffects us all. The plan will probably recieve full support then it will be made public, meaning that the process was done behind closed doors and nobody had a say to oppose the issue, what a democracy we live in. If something should be done about the traffic issue, at least not a fly over which will blight the city scape for generations to come.
I think the best option would be for the various councils and the NZTA to go away for a year and come up with 3 options, the roads only option has already been done so that just leaves a PT only option and a mixed option taking the best ideas out of the other two. Then put it to the region to vote on in a referendum, if the people really want only roads then that is what they would vote for.
Of course it would never happen because the government, council and NZTA would never be able to handle giving up that much control.
It’s a pity that group of councilors didn’t make their views known before the last elections. John Morrison especially makes me want to puke.
Once again Labour is totally missing in action on this issue.
Shane Jones has hardly been heard of.
Labour seem to be so focused on themselves and who will be the inevitable new leader after Goff bombs at the election so National has an easy walk to an election victory.
Tonights poll on 3 showing National is 30 points ahead and Key is about 52% and Goff a joke 6% shows we have no real alternative.
Labour has been silent on these big transport issues and indeed just about anything else while they bicker about who should be their leader.
I’ve heard of Shane Jones. In the Herald today, blaming the police as “machines” because some stupid, drunken, poor sod fled a checkpoint, and then totaled a car and himself.
Not really related to this post, but can we stop this police bashing? All those people should go to Moscow and find out what police “revenue gathering” is really about, or try and see with a Mexico City cop about how “corrupt” he is. Then they would appreciate what a lily-white (in comparison) police force we have, and that they are only enforcing laws we passed ourselves, to protect us from harm (like drunken and speeding drivers, for god’s sake).
Back to lack of political leadership, I totally agree. In Germany, a similar lack of conviction and indeed, direction, among the social democrats has just led to the Greens getting higher vote totals in the state elections than the social democrats. Not quite the case here, but the coming election, all those disappointed centre-left folks will have few other options than the Greens.
It kinda sounds like she is getting bullied or blackmailed into making this sort of decision, i don’t mind the traffic in Wellington at all, it is nothing compared to other cities. so why knock everything down and make a motorway out of it?