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Mike Sabin - It’s not an either-or

 

Last week an independent board of inquiry gave its go-ahead to stage one of the 18.5km Puhoi to Wellsford highway extension. The board granted the 15 resource consents sought by the NZ Transport Agency, essentially moving it to a construction-ready status.

There are knockers of this project saying that the regions have missed out because of our investment in roads of national significance like the Puhoi extension. Interestingly enough, I have gone to the Minister and NZTA to fact-check these assertions and can confirm there has been NO cuts to regional/local road funding since we came into government.

The budget for Northland for the 2012-2015 period, at more than $450 million, is the most it has ever been. Also the Government Policy Statement (GPS) just released by the transport minister proposes a further 4.8 percent increase in funding for regional/local roads and the creation of a new funding class specifically for the regions that will provide $360 million over a four year period over and above the base funding for special projects that haven’t met criteria previously. This is on top of 14 high priority regional projects that we have committed to fast track and fund costing $212 million – two of which are in Northland at a value of $35 million.

The knockers of the Puhoi to Wellsford, headed up by the Labour and Green Parties, seem to think a couple of hundred million tidying up the existing road is a better way forward. These are the same people that dismiss it as a ‘holiday highway’ by the way. Would those same people rather drive around SH16 or through Albany than use the four lane motorway Auckland to Puhoi? I would doubt it very much. There’s a good reason for that – the motorway is faster, more efficient, more direct and far more fit-for-purpose for a busy economic trade route. The same applies on any part of SH1 heading north – which is why the Puhoi to Wellsford needs to become, and will become, the Puhoi to Whangarei. There is no question what is better in my mind.

Funnily enough Helen Clark knew this and it was under her in 2006 that the NZTA commissioned a strategic assessment of SH1 and SH16 between Auckland and Wellsford. NZTA’s study concluded the SH1 corridor was the preferred route for future development to meet the long-term needs of transport between Auckland and Northland and said it should be developed into a four lane highway to accommodate anticipated future demand. We agreed and got on with it – and recently fast tracked it.

The Puhoi to Wellsford highway extension was ranked the most important piece of infrastructure during the whole-of-region economic summits I ran in 2012 and there is a good reason for that; $1.2 billion worth of our economy travel down that road to Auckland every year. Beyond that it signals to all that Northland is open for business and worth investing in. Labour’s Kelvin Davis and Dover Samuels know how important this road is to Northland and both have said they support it – against Labour Party policy who will ditch it.

Besides that, it’s not an either-or on roading; we are increasing local road funding, have fast tracked and funded priority projects, are funding the repair of storm damaged roads and we are also fast tracking our economic highway north from Puhoi. In all we have

committed to $1.66 billion for Northland roading projects to support our growing economy and keep it moving.

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