NZTA should listen to City Council

Labour MPs Grant Robertson and Annette King are urging the New Zealand Transport Agency (NZTA) to listen to the Wellington City Council which voted last night to investigate alternatives to the Basin Reserve flyover.

Labour is putting NZTA on notice saying it would revisit this plan in order to improve traffic flow without the need for a flyover.

"The Council is to be congratulated for putting its money where its mouth is in funding work on alternatives to the flyover,” Wellington Central MP, Grant Robertson said.

“With the trenching of Buckle St it is possible to create significant improvements to traffic flow around the Basin at a fraction of the cost of the flyover and without destroying the amenity value of the Basin.”

"NZTA need to start working with the City Council on alternatives. For example there is a proposal for a second tunnel that will improve traffic flows from the eastern suburbs without the need for an expensive and unnecessary flyover," Rongotai MP,  Annette King said.

"The threat from NZTA about the potential loss of other funding to Wellington city projects if the Council opposes the flyover is totally out of order. Major projects such as this should not be imposed on communities. There is the possibility of a win-win here if NZTA can get over its flyover obsession,” Grant Robertson said.

"Wellingtonians are rightly proud of their city that is easy to get around, with a unique character. The flyover does not fit with that, and it should not go ahead when there are worthy alternatives on the table," Annette King said.