Regional Councillor Paul Bruce reports on changes in the Transport Plan

Presentation to the Rotary Club of Wellington, May 2010

Tena koutou katoa!

According to Charles Finny, CEO of Wellington Regional Chamber of Commerce, Greater Wellington is possibly the best performing regional council in the country, with highly dedicated staff, and a couple of significant plans produced during the recent triennium.

The major expenditure item has been the replacement of 1940’s trains, and the addition of some extra transit capacity.

However, as well as running the buses and trains, GW is the environmental manager of the region, does transport planning, water supply, flood protection, pest and land management, harbour safety, regional parks and forests, emergency management and funds a regional economic development agency.  Three years ago I talked to you about climate and weather.

Well, greenhouse gas emissions continue their relentless climb, as do signs of global climate change.

In fact we are following along the worst case scenario … in spite of what the climate deniers say!
The way we use energy and transport matters not only for sustainability, but also for our safety, comfort and health. The most dangerous thing we do in our lives is to travel in a car.  And two thirds of cyclist accidents are due to cars.

If you want to be really safe, then travel by train, they are doing so increasing numbers in Europe – the risk reduces ten-fold! Less hassle and you arrive safely at your destination.

Well, what about Wellington?

Our city hums with a vibrancy that comes from a denser inner core and the seat of Governance, and plenty of intellectual debate. And, we have other things, like a Sustainable Cities faculty (Otago University), the most used public transit system in New Zealand, and almost all our electricity about to be produced by a couple of wind farms. About 75% of public transport use, measured in passengers times distance travelled (passenger-km), is powered by electricity: trains and trolleybuses.

Thirty one percent of inner city residents no longer own a car, with 73% choosing to walk to work. A WCC 2006 survey, also showed 27% of trips in Wellington city between 1km and 2km were made by walking and cycling.

Yet, in spite of this only 17% of the wider regional population commute by public transport to the CBD, with about 70% commuting by car. But 70% of car journeys are not work-related: visits to the supermarket, sport, recreation, and for social occasions.

New Zealand has one of the highest per capita transport demand profiles, and is highly dependent on oil imports to support this demand. Thirty six percent of Greater Wellington greenhouse emissions come from petrol, diesel and aviation fuel.

This suggests that NZ would fare comparatively badly in response to high oil prices, especially lower socio-economic communities, with poor public transport connections. An interesting survey done at Griffith University shows how communities located in peripheral suburbs by cheaper housing suffer disproportionately from oil price increases. The same would probably happen here, in Wainuiomata, Porirua East, and Titahi Bay and so on unless there is strategic development of post-oil alternatives.

Oil Vulnerability in the Australian City – Griffith University

The sustainable response? Provide people with the opportunity to choose sustainable transport modes for most of their travel, generate services locally, increase efficiency of our services, give support to active transport and adjust our urban form.

Greater Wellington funds public transport

Our system suffers from decades of neglect. Trolleybus, and rail networks have been allowed to run down.  Since 1993 the National and Labour governments have invested roughly $14 billion in road maintenance and renewal and only $2 billion in rail improvements, so it is not surprising our railway lines are carrying less freight than the trucks on our roads.

Good news for Kiwirail today, making a modest profit, according to the half-year report [PDF].

96 new electric “Matangi” trains will start arriving from August this year. This has been accompanied by a year long upgrade of station platforms, signalling and electrification to Waikanae, with new double tracking. Work is continuing on providing real time information for bus and train travellers, with a pilot involving 25 buses under way at present.

Integrated ticketing is planned, but held up in order to coordinate with Auckland. NZTA has chosen Thales as the supplier for a national system.

At the same time, GW is reviewing bus efficiency on routes south of Wellington Railway Station.

A major deterrent to public transport use south of the CBD, has been the congested hub at Wellington Railway Station and along Lambton Quay. Multiple routes passing through this space, produces bus congestion, and poor timetabling.

A collaborative NZ/Australian transport study, directed by Prof. Gustaf Nielson, indicated the value of moving towards spoke and hub services (and sub-hubs) feeding into enhanced arterial transport routes, and I am very pleased to say the GW officers now believe that we can make significant improvements to the efficiency of our networks, which allow for increased frequency in outer areas, and less congestion in the CBD.

Roads of National Significance (RoNS)

However, these fine aspirations have been undermined by Government’s announcement of Roads of National Significance or RoNS, and has thrown into doubt the purchase of another 14 trains, that would allow for 3% annual growth.

Minister of Transport, Stephen Joyce, has outlined an additional $21 billion of investment in roads. The same National Infrastructure Plan lists only a further $0.7 billion investment in alternatives to roads.

It is indeed ironic that Prime Minister John Key can claim in Copenhagen, that NZ can’t afford to reduce GHE, yet National can find $2.2 billion public money for expenditure on non-performing assets in the Wellington region that saddle us with long term costs and more greenhouse emissions!

GW’s Regional Land Transport Strategy contains a vision that few would disagree with.

It advocates modal shift to public transport and active travel, and transfer of freight to rail, as a response to climate change, rising fuel prices, health, safety and security.

However, the key outcomes listed - Reduced severe road congestion (6.4.1), and the related outcomes - Maintained vehicle travel times between communities and regional destinations, and Improved reliability of the strategic roading network, have been used to justify the inclusion of the Transmission Gully project (8.1r, 10.2.1), the “Road of National Significance” (8.5d, 10.2.1), and Ngauranga to Wellington Airport Corridor (10.2.4). The timing of the Mt Victoria and Terrace Tunnel duplications and the widening of Ruahine Street have been brought forward in response to the inclusion of the Road of National Significance.

I also say, “non-performing” non-reservedly, as the cost benefit analysis shows that all the different components come out at well below One.  This means, the Government is planning to build roads that will have no net benefit to the economy, that is a loss will be made.  And the Transmission Gully road lies on an active fault line, and soil mapping indicates that the area suffers the same propensity for slips after heavy rains, as the coastal route.

The latest OECD comparison (2002) shows that New Zealand is already suffering from a very expensive transport network, with the highest vehicle kilometers travelled (VKT) per unit of Gross  Domestic Product (GDP) in the OECD:

Vehicle Kilometres Travelled by Road – MfE website

Each year in New Zealand, traffic-related air pollution is a contributing factor to 500 deaths, a similar number of deaths to road accidents. Car drivers and passengers have a death/injury rate ten times that of bus passengers.
There are also a lot of hidden costs, and one Ministry of Transport study, estimates that car and trucks only contribute 65% towards the total cost to the community.

For example, wastes such as used oil, batteries and tyres require careful disposal and cost New Zealand $3.8 billion. Road transport is also a primary source of harmful air pollutants in urban areas, and waterways are affected by contaminated run-off from roads.

Roading projects are funded from the National Land Transport Fund [Government Policy Statement GPS 2009/10 – 2018/19 May 2009 - PDF].  Some funding also comes from local authority rates.  So ratepayers are paying for a portion of the cost of the Roads of National Significance (RoNs).

While most trucks pay road user charges it is not generally enough to cover the cost of road maintenance and the remainder is funded from taxpayers contributions.  Road freight causes significant damage to roads and the most efficient means of transporting heavy goods is by rail.  So in effect, roads are subsidized three times, firstly by vehicle registrations, secondly by taxpayers and thirdly by rates.

Many of us believed that peaking oil prices would see a shift in the car friendly culture irrespective of which Government was elected. We did not imagine in our wildest dreams that the Government would begin raising billions of dollars to keep the whole structure going and would prefer that our children inherit an impossible debt just to feed this addictive use of mineral oil.

The RONS proposal will result in unnecessary road capacity and community severance.

They will increase traffic speed and feed more vehicles into already congested Wellington streets. New expressways, like Karo Drive, may well lead to further high speed accidents, making a mockery of the recently launched Traffic Safety program, aimed at getting speed down.

The Minister wants a racetrack, in a similar manner to Muldoon’s think big projects, and they seem to be placing all their bets on bio-fuels and electric cars to replace gasoline.

However, electric cars are expensive, their uptake will be slow, with resource constraints on essential materials necessary for both batteries and electrical infrastructure. The Hon Steven Joyce has in fact estimated that there will be 300 light electric motor vehicles in the fleet by July 2013, and only reach 5% of the vehicle fleet by 2020. (NZ Energy Strategy PDF).

As a Regional Councillor, I have been advocating a balanced approach and seek the funds needed to fix the key problems with the rail system – the North-South junction, the fixing of the missing rail link from Wellington Railway station, that is light rail through to the Airport, and looking at our Urban form.

Urban form – access rather than mobility

A recent Health Department report, Healthy Places, Healthy Lives: Urban environments and wellbeing, provides detailed evidence about the strong link between poor urban design and poor health, and the large burden that puts on our communities and health services.

If designed appropriately, urban form and transport can increase physical activity, improve air quality, reduce road traffic injuries, increase social cohesion, and achieve maximum health benefits from services and facilities. Urban form can also help create a sense of place.

Urban form is a key factor in reducing the need for fossil fuels.

All the territorial authorities except Upper Hutt are signatories to the Urban Protocol (March 2005). The Regional Land Transport Programme has a vision that acknowledges the need for better land use, that people live closer to their main destinations for work and play, more vehicles run on renewable fuels, and that peoples choices recognise the risk and impact of climate change and diminishing non-renewable resources.

A vibrant city will facilitate compact development around transport hubs -

• safe cycle ways on all arterial routes, and speed limit of 30km/h on shared roads.
• electric trolley buses and light rail
• freight to shipping and rail powered by a combination of solar, wind and bio-fuels. Coastal shipping is the most energy efficient way to move freight around the country, producing only 14 grams of CO2 per tonne-kilometre compared with road at 92–123 grams of CO2
• moderate density apartments allowing regen heat, smart transport design,  car share, passive solar aspects, savings in building design, community gardens
• connectedness through broad band, social access
• time share
• free cycle and swap of used goods
• clean air and good health
• demand management programs run through workplace and schools, to encourage active modes, school walking buses etc.

Projects such as dual rail tunnels from Pukerua Bay through to Paekakariki, can enhance the public transport network and take cars and trucks off the road.

Tram – Train

Brent Efford, a recipient of a Winston Churchill Fellowship in 2003, to study transit in North America, says that extending the rail system into the CBD using tram-train would knock ten minutes off the journey time for thousands of commuters every day, the same time saving claimed for Transmission Gully, but at less than $100m – less than a tenth of the cost.

Let’s look at a schematic of a possible new tram-train network, connecting Johnsonville and Melling directly through the Wellington CBD to the airport. Of course this would be done in stages, and based on similar light rail developments in Adelaide, Melbourne and most recently in Christchurch, would cost no more than $20 million per km to lay down the lines.

Allowing an inland rail port at Waingawa in Wairarapa, would remove the need for heavy trucks to use the Rimutaka Hill road.

And we need more passenger connections – rail commuters are complaining of “Third World travelling conditions” and safety concerns on packed trains. Passenger counts of 1200 on the three peak morning services from Masterton to Wellington, outnumbered available seats last year (DomPost 12th March 2009).

And another way that John Key and Steven Joyce could give us real dividends is to ….

Active modes

… invest in cycle friendly infrastructure.  All TAs and GW have cycle plans specifying the need for safe cycling routes. In spite of this, change is slow and some times non-existent.  Riddiford Street was upgraded in January last year, with no provision for cyclists, though advance stop markings have since been added.

A cycle/walk way connecting Petone and Nguaranga was first mooted over 100 years ago.  Progress has been made here with the adoption of the concept of the Great Harbour Way by all TAs including GW. NZTA has also completed a study recommending a stand alone seaward track only between Petone and Horokiwi. We need political pressure to expand that to a fully fledged cycle way into the heart of Wellington.

Thirteen National cycle trails got the nod at the start of February to go through to the next stage for National Cycleway funding.  Wellington region was excluded!

Based on experience in other cities, a 3 to 5 metre two way track connecting Wellington’s two major cities, could lead to a 20 fold increase with up to 8,000 new cyclists.  This would significant number of cars off State highway 2 with corresponding benefits for us al.

The economic benefits are well established.

NZTA have found that a car driver shifting mode to cycling on a 5km commuter trip to work, brings $9,000 savings per year to the rider and the rest of the community.

A 10% shift back to cycling would bring savings of billions of dollars to the NZ economy.

30% of our land travel trips are for distances of under two kilometres.

Urban planner Richard Register recounts meeting a bicycle activist friend wearing a t-shirt that said “I just lost 3,500 pounds. Ask me how.”  When queried he said he had sold his car. Replacing a 3,500-pound car with a 22-pound bicycle obviously reduces energy use dramatically, but it also reduces materials use by 99 percent, indirectly saving still more energy.

Enrique Penalosa, Mayor of Bogota (Colombia), was responsible for numerous radical improvements to his city, and for its citizens. He promoted a city model giving priority to children and public spaces and restricting private car use, building hundreds of kilometers of sidewalks, bicycle paths, pedestrian streets, greenways, and parks.

Penalosa, said that he had seen transportation systems where people had to walk or bike unprotected on highways and risk being killed, because figuring out how to move people who choose to walk, was less important than figuring out how to move rich people who had fancy cars.

“There are 1 or 2% kamikaze cyclists who will mix it with car traffic. If you paint a white line on the road, the number of cyclists increases to 5%. Then if you construct a special cycle way, protected from the traffic by shrubs, then 30 to 40% will venture out”

Broadway in New York has removed car parks, and traffic lanes, and created really popular cycle ways and broader sidewalks.

Overseas cities are no longer investing in accommodating the motorcar. They are promoting and improving their public transport. In cities such as Toronto and Seattle, there are moves to demolish freeways (motorways).

Moving our City with Free Public Transport

Bob Jones hit the mark when he called for a car free golden mile. However, there a number of other things that we should do to help people move more freely about town.  One of these is free public transport, and the other is reducing the number of car parks.

Wellington City Council provides, through a business levy, free carparking at weekends to encourage shoppers to come into the city, but this may well be counter-productive. It costs $1.2m in forgone parking revenue, and contributes to vehicle pollution and traffic snarl ups as cars search for parking spaces. It may also put some people off coming to town, and actually decrease retail returns.

Wellington City Council “free” weekend car parks cost a lot in foregone revenue, in fact three to four times more than the cost of inner city public transport weekend fares. Wellington is in fact, an extreme case in terms of provision of car parks, with the highest number of parking spaces per job, according to figures gathered from around the world.

We outrank Christchurch and Auckland, and well known US cities, Phoenic, Denver, and Detroit. In his book The High Cost of Free Parking, Donald Shoup estimates that off-street parking subsidies in the United States are worth at least $127 billion a year. What societies should be striving for is not parking subsidies, but parking fees, reflecting the costs of congestion and the deteriorating quality of life as cars and parking lots take over.

In a time of diminishing resources, this isn’t the best message to send out.

Instead, we should aim for fewer cars in shopping areas, which would improve air quality and traffic flow, and hence ambience and retail sales. It also can give an added pull to tourists.

Number of CBD parking spaces in 1996 per 1000 CBD jobs

(figures collated by Kerry Wood)

Wellington	1050
Christchurch	940
Auckland	650
Sourced figures:
Phoenix	910
Denver	730
Detroit	710
Perth	630
Houston	610
Los Angeles	520
Portland	400
Melbourne	340
Brisbane	320
Sydney	220
Copenhagen	220
Zürich	140
London	120
New York	60

Zero fare public transport services

Auckland	Free downtown bus loop, ‘City Circuit’
Christchurch	Free downtown bus loop, ‘The Shuttle’
Invercargill	Free downtown bus & free off peak buses
Adelaide	Free downtown tram route
Sydney	Free downtown city bus loop
Melbourne	Free downtown tram and bus loop
Chapel Hill , USA	Free area-wide bus services
Hasselt , Belgium	Free area-wide bus services

Bachels, M, Newman, P and Kenworthy, J (1999). Indicators of urban transport efficiency in New Zealand’s main cities. Perth: Murdoch University, ISBN 0 86905 669 7

Newman, P and Kenworthy, J (1999). Sustainability and cities — overcoming automobile dependence. ISBN 1 55963 660 2.

The High Cost of Free Parking, Donald Shoup estimates that off-street parking subsidies in the United States are worth at least $127 billion a year.

Why not look at shifting some of the business levy to cover bus fares in the central business district? This would tie in with Greater Wellington’s intention to move towards integrated fares, allowing people arriving from outer suburbs such as Hutt Valley and Kapiti Coast to proceed through to Courtenay Place without any extra cost. Greater Wellington already provides a free connecting bus service on the Kapiti Coast to connect with train services, and has found this measure to be cost neutral.

Overseas experience has shown that zero fare inner city public transport encourages people to test the alternative.

More about free public transport

“The Thrill is Gone”

There are signs of deeper shifts in consumer attitudes towards cars, notably among the younger people on which its future rests. Studies now show they will be less willing to spend on them than their parents –  Toyota, the world’s largest carmaker, concluded recently that in the US “frugalism is the new cool”, according to Bob Carter, brand head in the country.

We do have ways to live more lightly on the earth that give joy and better health.  Our end game can be a delightful, cradle-to-cradle, pollution free environment.

Now is the time to wake up to irresistible cities, with light rail, Great Harbour cycle walkways, community gardens, energy efficient buildings, and the power of solar.

One last thing…. remember that

The economy is a wholly owned subsidiary of the environment.

For more information

Contact Regional Councillor Paul Bruce
paul.bruce@greens.org.nz
phone: 04 9728699 cellphone:021 02719370

The Dominion Post reported; “Round-the-clock gridlock has been predicted if The Terrace and Mt Victoria tunnels are closed for five weeks to kickstart a $80 million project to remedy serious safety problems.”

Could we use this sense of crisis to achieve immediate improvements in public transport services and safe cycle and walk ways between Wellington CBD and its suburbs?

A report to the Greater Wellington’s Transport and Access Committee is proposing that all fares be increased from 1 October 2010, to take account of the GST increase, and to produce a 3% increase in fare revenue to balance increased costs

Fare increases: bad timing

Greater Wellington Regional Councillor Paul Bruce said that coinciding Public Transport fare increases with the Mt Victoria tunnel safety upgrades is bad timing. “If we are going to close off routes, we must provide some counter balancing measure to help people move freely about Wellington city.

One of these measures could be moving the subsidy for free weekend public parking to zero inner city fares. Mr Bruce said that many other cities provide zero fare services, including Auckland, Christchurch and Invercargill.

Use the business levy

Shifting some of the Wellington City Council business levy to cover bus fares in the central business district ties in with a move towards integrated fares, allowing people arriving from outer suburbs to proceed through to Courtenay Place without any extra cost.

This will attract extra riders and lead to fewer cars in the inner city area, which in turn will improve traffic flow and air quality and thus ambience and … retail sales. Convenient public transport will also give an added pull to tourists.

Other advantages to alternative transport

There are also health, social and environmental advantages to funding alternative modes of transport such as cycling, walking and public transport.

Physical inactivity accounts for almost 10 percent of New Zealand’s 20 leading causes of death. It is a contributor to obesity and type 2 diabetes, which together cost the health system over $500 million per year. In the United States, the Environmental Protection Agency is now promoting “car reduced” communities.  And the British government’s 2001 planning document says: “Development comprising jobs, shopping, leisure and services should not be designed and located on the assumption that the car will represent the only realistic means of access for the vast majority of people”.

Car parking

Wellington is an extreme case in terms of provision of car parks, with the highest number of parking spaces per job, according to figures collated by Kerry Wood. We outrank Christchurch and Auckland, and well known US cities, Phoenic, Denver, and Detroit.

Wellington City Council “free” weekend car parks cost a lot in foregone revenue, in fact four times more than the inner city public transport weekend fare, and about half the total weekend bus revenue take. Free parking contributes to vehicle pollution and traffic snarl ups as cars search for parking spaces, and may actually diminish retail sales. In a time of diminishing resources, a subsidy for free parking isn’t the best plan.

Creative solutions

Improving Wellington’s transport network can happen with some creative solutions. Our transport network includes every bus, car, skateboard or pair of feet that people use to get around, each with different requirements, whether in use or not.

Wellington’s compact size means space is at a premium downtown.What goes unnoticed are the ways in which we prioritise and even sponsor car use above every alternative. Private cars are the part of that network that take up the most space and energy, for the least return.

Instead, providing some real alternatives, such as zero inner city public transport fares combined with safer cycling after the removal of some parking, enhances the village atmosphere that we all seek.

Paul Bruce concluded that the closure of the Mt Victoria tunnel for safety upgrades should be seen as an opportunity to promote our public transport system. “Greater Wellington provides a free connecting bus service on the Kapiti Coast to connect with train services, and has found this to be a great success. What about moving towards zero weekend fares for Wellington city?”

Number of CBD parking spaces in 1996 per 1000 CBD jobs

(figures collated by Kerry Wood)

Wellington	1050
Christchurch	940
Auckland	650
Sourced figures:
Phoenix	910
Denver	730
Detroit	710
Perth	630
Houston	610
Los Angeles	520
Portland	400
Melbourne	340
Brisbane	320
Sydney	220
Copenhagen	220
Zürich	140
London	120
New York	60

Zero fare public transport services

Auckland	Free downtown bus loop, ‘City Circuit’
Christchurch	Free downtown bus loop, ‘The Shuttle’
Invercargill	Free downtown bus & free off peak buses
Adelaide	Free downtown tram route
Sydney	Free downtown city bus loop
Melbourne	Free downtown tram and bus loop
Chapel Hill , USA	Free area-wide bus services
Hasselt , Belgium	Free area-wide bus services

Links

Economic benefits of people-friendly streets

Parking lots to parks – designing livable cities by Lester R Brown

Paved with gold – the real value of street design – by CABE, UK

Economic value of walkability – Victoria Transport Policy Institute [PDF, 233KB]

Bachels, M, Newman, P and Kenworthy, J (1999). Indicators of urban transport efficiency in New Zealand’s main cities. Perth: Murdoch University, ISBN 0 86905 669 7

Newman, P and Kenworthy, J (1999). Sustainability and cities — overcoming automobile dependence. ISBN 1 55963 660 2.

The High Cost of Free Parking, Donald Shoup estimates that off-street parking subsidies in the United States are worth at least $127 billion a year.

For more information

Contact Regional Councillor Paul Bruce
paul.bruce@greens.org.nz
phone: 04 9728699 cellphone:021 02719370

Proposed GW Annual Plan 2010/11

Submissions close 4pm Friday 23rd April, and oral submissions will be heard 12th to 14th May.

Areas of interest:

1: Public transport fare increase of 3% (plus amount GST increase) for upgrade improvements

My suggestion:  This increase be applied evenly over the network, while using the WCC downtown business levy to provide free public transport services during weekends for the CBD sections. A free CBD fare will allow those arriving by public transport to the city to move about the city without having to pay for an additional fare. Note that the rail fare terminates at Wellington railway station not Courtenay Place.  The integration of fares between services is making very slow progress, and this would be a step in the right direction.

2: Refurbishment program of the Ganz Mavag rail fleet at an estimated cost of $8 million (page 25 on full report)

My suggestion: Proceed no further with refurbishment of these units which will not match the quality of the new Matangi trains.  Instead investigate the purchase of modern light rail units for travel through the city CBD.

3: Water Supply

Expenditure of over $ 7 million on upgrades to infrastructure.

My suggestion: Extend the clean heat (also referred to as Warm Greater Wellington) rating financial expenditure program to domestic rain water collection tanks as an additional item.

Proposed Wellington Regional Land Transport Strategy 2010-2040

The Wellington Regional Land Transport Committee is seeking public feedback on its proposed Regional Land Transport Strategy, which is an update on the current strategy adopted in 2007.  Submissions must reach Greater Wellington by 5pm on Friday 23 April 2010.

The RLTS document contains a vision that few would disagree with.  It also advocates modal shift to public transport and active travel, and transfer of freight to rail, as a response to climate change, rising fuel prices, health, safety and security.

However, one of the key outcomes listed -  Reduced severe road congestion (6.4.1), and the related outcomes -  Maintained vehicle travel times between communities and regional destinations, and Improved reliability of the strategic roading network, allow the inclusion of the Transmission Gully project (8.1r, 10.2.1), the “Road of National Significance” (8.5d, 10.2.1), and Ngauranga to Wellington Airport Corridor (10.2.4) .  The timing of the Mt Victoria and Terrace Tunnel duplications and the widening of Ruahine Street have been brought forward in response to the inclusion of the Road of National Significance.

A small portion of the $2.4 billion allocated to road upgrades would provide for double tracking and tunneling of the main truck rail line,  light rail, safe cycle paths, and consequent increase in resiliency of region to price increases, storms and earthquakes.

The incompatibility of this outcome with the other outcomes and the Proposed Regional Policy Statement 2009 (Appendix 4.1), needs to be highlighted.

My suggestions:

1. Faster movement towards integrated public transport services
2. Inclusion of light rail in the Ngauranga to Wellington Airport corridor to address limitations on capacity
3. Fast track construction of the Petone to Nguaranga cycle/walk way as an essential part of the regional network
4. Cycle racks on buses (note new amendment to the road rules)
5. Introduction of road pricing or congestion charges (Appendix 3.1.6)

For more information

Contact Regional Councillor Paul Bruce
paul.bruce@greens.org.nz
phone: 04 9728699 cellphone:021 02719370

Buses should have been given priority before replacing a zebra crossing with traffic lights.

Traffic signals are being installed on the pedestrian crossing near Reading Cinemas. Originally this was part of a package designed to improved bus priority that included 30k limits and giving buses priority during peak hours. Wellington City Council agreed to consult on the details of bus priority lanes in Courtenay Place in June 2008 but a couple of elected members changed their minds and revoked that agreement.

I have walked, cycled, caught a bus and driven my car along Courtenay Place at different times of day.

There are considerable peak hour delays in this part of the route caused by private cars, especially in the evening. Sometimes there are ten cars per bus going through Courtenay Place. We should have collectively had the vision to improve public transport by reducing car access at peak times, not simply restricting people on foot!

At the moment many Wellington traffic signals give very poor priority to people on foot. I say that as the founder of Living Streets Aotearoa, the national organisation for improving urban walking.

Walking increased

Wellington is the only metropolitan region where walking to work has increased between 1991 and 2006. More people live downtown and in inner suburbs and enjoy walking to work. Giving priority to a bus with 40 or 50 passengers is acceptable but why should walkers have to give way to one person occupancy cars?

Natural allies

Walkers, cyclists and public transport should be natural allies in improving the liveability of downtown cities, improving access and economic success without increasing congestion, pollution and parking problems. The private car has its place in Wellington’s transport system but not at 5 p.m. on Courtenay Place! Drivers could use other roads to get across town in these busy times instead of paralysing our public transport spine.

References

1 Original Bus Priority Plan [PDF] -  http://www.wellington.govt.nz/haveyoursay/meetings/committee/Strategy_and_Policy/2008/12Jun0915/pdf/3_Bus_Priority_Plan.pdf

Extract: “During peak periods Courtenay Place is no longer adequately coping with the competing demands. This is especially the case for buses and bus users, who unlike cars, have no alternative routes through this part of the central area. Currently passengers and bus companies experience significant delays on Courtenay Place, which filter through the entire transport system and affect public transport users and drivers across the city.
The average journey time for buses along Courtenay Place in the morning is 1.5 minutes and in the evening is 4.25 minutes. This is against a free flow journey time of 40 seconds. Of more concern is the variability of the bus journey time ranging from 40 seconds to in excess of 10 minutes. ”

http://www.ijbnpa.org/content/6/1/64
Extract:
Two New Zealand regions that bucked the overall trends by revealing increasing levels of walking warrant further comment. Regional strategies in Wellington and Nelson have made substantial investments in active transport. Wellington has proposed an urban development strategy, based on the idea of a “growth spine” (a strip of land along which more intensive urban development is encouraged), a bus lane programme and school, workplace and community travel plans.

Contact me

celia.wadebrown@greens.org.nz

phone: 04-938 6691 cellphone: 027 483 6691

Celia’s Councillor profile on the Wellington City Council website

Wellington City Council unanimously voted to agree the goal of being a Fair Trade City and to take the necessary steps to get there!

Cr Celia Wade-Brown, a member of the local steering group promoting Fair Trade, said “I’m delighted Wellington City Council has taken this step. Fair Trade businesses have continued to flourish despite the recession, showing that social responsibility and business success can go hand-in-hand.”

The Mayor successfully moved a resolution at Council on September 17th, making us the first Free Trade Capital City in the Southern Hemisphere and the first New Zealand Fair Trade City.

Other Fair Trade cities include London, Yarra and Manly.

We’re nearly there!

Wellington has already achieved all the other necessary steps.

Fair Trade products are available in more than a hundred retail outlets, including cafes such as Finc, TradeAid, Peoples Coffee, Celcius Coffee, Starfish, Kowtow and Commonsense Organics.

Fair Trade products are used in a range of workplaces, schools and community groups, there has been positive media coverage and there is a local steering group to support progress.

What happens next?

Now Council must work towards providing a choice of Fair Trade tea and coffee at public meetings and for staff.

Several departments already buy Fair Trade coffee and its purchase is compatible with Council’s procurement standards. There are plenty of choices of supplier in Wellington.

Cr Wade-Brown says “While many Wellingtonians can still afford to enjoy a cup of coffee in our world-class cafe culture, we can also feel pleased that growers are receiving a fair price for the beans. We all have a responsibility to think about where our purchases come from and what impact is caused by their production.”

Fair trade

Fair Trade is a way out of the poverty trap for growers and their families. Commodity prices are volatile and can leave farmers without enough income for their health and education needs. Fair Trade organisations are independently certified.

More about Fair Trade Communities

Contact me

Celia Wade-Brown
celia.wadebrown@greens.org.nz
phone: 04-938 6691
cellphone: 027 483 6691
Celia’s Councillor profile on the Wellington City Council website

This article is based on a presentation given in August 2009.

Download the presentation [1.4MB, PDF]

Collaborative communities

We face many challenges in the coming years; the limits of growth, climate change and peak everything, beginning with oil.

The media has been preoccupied with the financial collapse. The situation is much more complex than the collapse of the sub-prime market. Last year’s price of oil at $140 a barrel, was too high for non-producing countries, and lead to significant demand reduction. Demand is continuing to drop, even though the price is still less than half it was at its peak.

In its most recent report, the International Energy Agency (IEA) forecasts that the oil supply shortfall that they had previously predicted for 2010 will only be delayed a little by the recession.

Dr Faith Birol, the chief economist at the IEA in Paris, says “there is now a real risk of a crunch in the oil supply after next year, whenever demand picks up because not enough is being done to build up new supplies of oil to compensate for the rapid decline in existing fields.” The IEA estimates that the decline in oil production in existing fields is now running at 6.7% a year compared to the 3.75 decline it had estimated in 2007, which it now acknowledges to be wrong.

Oil availability then, is the first major restraint on growth. Water supply is also constrained, with lowering water tables, melting glaciers, and increasing severity of drought in major grain producing areas, portends food shortages. Pumping underground water exceeds natural recharge in countries containing half the world’s people, leaving many without adequate water. If growth resumed, most basic commodities would reach peak production within a few decades.

Sustainability and natural resilience

While the economy has grown exponentially, the earth’s natural capacities have not. This includes its ability to supply fresh water, forest products, and seafood. Humanity’s collective demands first surpassed the earth’s regenerative capacity around 1980.

Today, global demands on natural systems exceed their sustainable yield capacity by nearly 30 percent. We are meeting current demands by consuming the earth’s natural assets, setting the stage for decline and collapse. We must learn to live within our carbon footprint.

Each of us depends on the products and services provided by the earth’s ecosystems, ranging from forest to wetlands, from coral reefs to grasslands. Among the services these ecosystems provide are water purification, pollination, carbon sequestration, flood control, and soil conservation. A four-year study of the world’s ecosystems by 1,360 scientists, the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment, reported that 15 of 24 primary ecosystem services are being degraded or pushed beyond their limits. For example, three quarters of oceanic fisheries, a major source of protein in the human diet, are being fished at or beyond their limits, and many are headed toward collapse.

- Adapted from Chapter 1, “Entering a New World,” in Lester R. Brown, Plan B 3.0: Mobilizing to Save Civilization

Consultation

Fellow Regional Councillors have remarked to me, “Paul, we have a different culture here. You need to take care!”

Our future is indeed determined by how we take care, what parameters we set, and how we collaborate. I have come to learn that Council officers write reports, and by and large Regional Councillors rubber stamp them. Consultation has involved a request for submissions, and then a perfunctory hearing.

However, the end game is a delightful, cradle to cradle, pollution free environment with clean water, air and soil… not business as usual.

I attended the first World Social Forum in Porte Alegre, Southern Brazil in 2001, as a Council for International Development representative.

At that time, Porte Alegre was the poster child for participatory democracy, and yes, they did increase participation, which lead to a significant surge in projects targeted to marginalised areas, and a reduction in poverty and increase in well being. The city council emphasised influence and deliberation as important for long lasting solutions. At the same time, Argentina, across the border to the south, suffered melt down, after years of military dictatorship, followed my IMF impositions. Unemployment was close to 50% with widespread poverty. This lead to a social revolution, with 5 changes of government. Worker’s co-operatives and community gardens now flourish, and Argentina has joined Hugo Chavez of Venezuelan’s Alba alliance, rather than following the dictates of the IMF and World Bank, and the neo-liberal free market mantras.

New Zealand is at a crossroads with the election of a National/Act Government. Do we move to a more collaborative system, or a centralised city state under control of the technocratics?

Pathways to Resilient Communities

Earlier this year, we held a Pathways to Resilient Community dialogue with about 150 Local government and community representatives, where we discussed the concept of resiliency and key vulnerabilities of the region.

Resilient communities workshops

These ideas have feed back into the Long term community plan.

Greater Wellington has undertaken to develop a Genuine Progress Index (GPI) to measure progress towards the four well beings (social, cultural, economic and environmental outcomes). A report by Aaron Packard explores the role for public participation in the assessment of the these indicators [Public Participation in the Community Outcomes Process and the Development of the Wellington Region Genuine Progress Indicators: Feb 09, unpublished].

“Any initiative must have influence to give a sense of meaning for participants…..One of the principal reasons offered for low levels of participant motivation was a perception that the public had little influence over agency decisions…. increasing influence helps to build trust, which in turn fosters participation”.

Deliberation creates an environment in which the exchange of perspectives arising from social difference constructively builds a common ground for community development. Deliberation fosters social learning, can be effective at dealing with conflict and can change people’s perspectives and preferences. Deliberation requires careful facilitation and planning”.

Effective deliberation needs good representation. Extra effort is required to ensure that frequently unheard groups are engaged, such as youth, indigenous peoples, disabled and migrant groups.

Inclusion or representativeness provides legitimacy to the outcomes of public participation. A study found that 60% of public participation processes were not-representative of the general public, leaving those that do not participate excluded from both the process and ownership.

New ways of hosting meetings and harvesting innovative ideas and concepts need to be found. A deliberative process, will bring clarity to where benefits and disadvantages lie, and where there needs to be some rebalancing.

Can we develop the grand vision that will take us into a post-carbon future?

Transport

GW plans and funds most public transport, and is now looking at when and how often services run, and how they connect with each other.

The system suffers from decades of neglect. Trolley bus and rail networks have been allowed to run down. There is a large amount of infra structure work that still has to be done, upgrading rail stations, the lines, signalling, stabling yards.

New trains have been purchased and will begin to come into service mid 2010.
Real time information displays will also be rolled out in 250 separate locations over the 12 months, and then when you next text for a departure time from your stop, it will be real time, not just a timetable. The next thing is integrated ticketing, and NZTA (Transport Agency) is investigating a system which will be operable over the whole country.

However, that is not the end of the matter. We need to design a network that will work for mums and dads, children and of course singles, through the weekend, during evenings, and on weekdays, and for the carriage of cycles. That means including destinations to sports fields, shopping centres, recreational spots such as Red Rocks…

And the active modes have to be supported. Gil Penalosa, the transport engineer who redesigned Bogota’s transport system, says that there are only 1 or 2% kamikaze cyclists who will mix it with car traffic. If you paint a white line on the road, that increases to 5%. Then if you construct a special cycle way, protected from the traffic by shrubs, then 30% will venture out.

There is space for this in Wellington, especially if we remove a few car parks, as is happening in some European countries. Options are presently being developed for a dedicated cycle/walk way between Petone and Nguaranga, and we hope this will be the foundation of a Great Harbour Way.

Question: What role should the private car play in a post carbon society?

Regional Water Strategy

There is a proposal before Greater Wellington to bring together the Three Waters, potable, storm water and sewage under a Committee containing both Iwi and GW Councillors.

The disruption of the small water cycle is accompanied by growing extremes in the weather, a gradual drop in groundwater reserves, more frequent flooding, longer periods of drought and an increase in the water shortage in the region.

Can a new Committee structure allow more collaborative conservation at the local level, rain water collection tanks, permeable surfaces, compost toilets, grey water recycling? Or do we further com-modify water, build dams.

GW will be assisting in financing elements of the New Green Deal, that allows you to repay loans through your rates, for clean heat and insulation upgrades, and this could be extended to rain water collection tanks.

Question: Are water meters an essential component of a conservation strategy?

New Urbanism

Now is the time to wake up to the power of solar, irresistible cities, community gardens, a great harbour way, energy efficient buildings, and make our region the best post-carbon place to be.

For more information

Contact Regional Councillor Paul Bruce
paul.bruce@greens.org.nz
phone: 04 9728699 cellphone:021 02719370

Greater Wellington has a report on the Transport and Access agenda
on Carriage of cycles on buses and trains.

Report 6: the Transport and Access Committee on Carriage of Cycles on Buses and Trains

This report includes a review of the recent survey of people using trains, and a Environment Canterbury trial of racks on buses. The good news is that cycles can still be carried for free on trains (but with possible restrictions on peak hour Matangi trains).

The bad news is that the Report recommends against carriage of bikes on buses.

The report says that there has been little demand for bikes to be carried on buses, and recommends that Greater Wellington not install bike racks on buses, or move to carry bikes inside buses.

This is very contentious. The general public has never been consulted at all. The Public Transport Review was  circulated to 50,000 Wellingtonians, and could have included a relevant question but didn’t!

What you can do

Request a copy of the Wellington Public Transport Review from the Greater Wellington reception, freephone 0800 496 734, or you can send an email to ptreview@gw.govt.nz

Contact myself, Paul Bruce indicating your support for cycle carriage on buses, and/or Peter Glensor

Summary of Bikes on Buses report

This report reviews Environment Canterbury’s experience with racks on small buses (competed in Nov 08), and an extended trail to large buses, to be completed in April 2010.

NZ Transport Agency has advised that there will be an amendment to a Ministry of Transport rule change, to allow for bike racks without special exemptions being necessary. Bikes may be carried inside a bus only if the bus has been designed and built accordingly. Bikes may be transported at the outside rear of a bus provided certain conditions are met.

NZ Bus is opposed to the carriage of cycles inside buses on health and safety grounds, and indicates that they believe that the addition of cycle racks would pose significant issues for bus storage at depots.

The cost to Greater Wellington to provide racks for 450 buses amounts to about $1m, or $2000 per rack.

The report states that there has been little demand for bikes to be carried on buses.

Please free to ring me at any time.

For more information

Contact Regional Councillor Paul Bruce
paul.bruce@greens.org.nz
phone: 04 9728699 cellphone:021 02719370

Celia Wade-Brown is a Wellington City Councillor and Environment Portfolio Leader.

Celia for Mayor on Facebook

Celia stands for:

Leadership on climate change

• Leadership – Wellington City Council, residents and busineses take climate change actions that put us back in the forefront of activity
• Long term strategic thinking – Wellington’s emergency preparedness, vulnerability to climate change, population changes and oil dependency are addressed WITH the community

Sustainable transport

• Compact, walkable city and town centres
• Modern light rail, not increasing traffic volumes – Light rail from the railway station to Courtenay Place, Newtown, Kilbirnie and the airport
• Better walking and cycling – Upgraded, dedicated walking and cycle paths, including the Great Harbour Way from South Coast to Eastbourne and links through Johnsonville and Tawa

Community

• Support for community volunteers – Restoration projects, arts projects, skills transfer, community gardens, neighbourhood networks, beach clean-ups
• Knowledge sharing - Support for Enviroschools, sharing knowledge with our future citizens, listening to the city’s children and making Wellington child-friendly

Tourism and recreation

• Environmental facilities working together for ecolocical and visitor outcomes – Otari-Wilton, Karori Sanctuary, the Botanic Gardens and the Zoo working together, not in competition
• Coastal protection, marine education and integrated thinking about coastal planting and stormwater infrastructure
• Tourism initiatives that increase the length of time people stay in Wellington, rather than the total number of visitors
• Ensuring a wide range of healthy recreation options
  

Business

• Fair Trade City – Council must support the direction the City residents and small businesses are already taking
• Local business development using resource recovery – insulation materials, furniture restoration, recovery of metals

Arts

• Continuing public art and adding more emphasis on local communities e.g. school murals, local sense of place

Housing

• Social housing – ongoing support for the most disadvantaged and homeless

Technology

• Upgrading Wellington’s broadband for new creative digital industries, and ensuring residents have skills and access so they’re not left behind

Diversity

• Involving the excitingly diverse range of ethnic groups in showcasing their cultures and contributing to our city
• Give effect to the Treaty by strengthening relationships with Tangata Whenua/Mana Whenua

Support Celia for Mayor in 2010

Email editor@thewellingtonian.co.nz saying why Celia would make a great Mayor of Wellington!

Celia for Mayor on Facebook

Contact Celia

celia.wadebrown@greens.org.nz

phone: 04-938 6691 cellphone: 027 483 6691

The Wellington City Council draft Dog Policy is available for consultation.  The Council is keen to hear from the public whether this Policy achieves an appropriate balance between the needs of people who own dogs and those who don’t. Submissions close 7th August 2009 at 5:00pm

Detail about the policy and how to make a submission

The associated Animals Bylaw supports changes made in the Policy. Submissions on this document are also due on the 7th August.

Changes in the policy

Key changes in the Policy are:

• Introduction of new objectives that recognise the benefits of dog ownership
• Creation of 5 new dog exercise areas, a dog destination park and the extension of existing dog exercise areas
• Increased access to the central city for dogs and their owners to allow better access to the waterfront
• Increased access to Island Bay, Seatoun and Worser Bay beaches
• Restricted access to Kaiwharawhara and Arthur Carmen Parks and no off lead access to Karori Cemetery (access still allowed on lead)
• Dogs to be banned from the grass area in Waitangi Park

Feedback is particularly welcome on whether dogs and their owners should have greater or less access to the city and beaches, the adequacy of the city’s dog exercise areas and whether the Policy adequately protects the welfare of the city’s animals.

Making submissions

There are several ways to make submissions.:

• submit online (using the links above),
• e-mail the submission to policy.submission@wcc.govt.nz,
• fill out the feedback form at the back of the consultation document or post it to Wellington City Council at Freepost PO Box 2199, Wellington.

It is also possible to make an oral submission to Council.  Hearings will be in September.  Council is encouraging people to make their voices heard on this issue.

For more information

Contact Councillor Iona Pannett, Council spokesperson on Dogs:
phone 04 384-3382 or 021-227-8509
email: iona.pannett@wcc.govt.nz.

Wellington Trust, Community Net under threat

The existence of the Wellington Trust and its key service, Wellington Community Net is now under threat from reduced WCC funding because some staff and councillors don’t understand its value.

Wellington Community Net offers a very valuable service.

There are 570 separate websites, not pages in a directory but complete sites. Some host multiple community groups like the Wadestown one.

Facebook is no substitute for a website with full information and the ability for low-skilled users to update them. Blogs are only one way of telling people what you think. With Community Net sites, groups can manage sports draws, plant information, and multi-language support.

Sign the e-petition to continue funding to Wellington Community Net:

Include Wellington Community Net and Community ICT Funding In The Draft LTCCP for 2009-2019

Accessible to many people

Those familiar with setting up websites have little idea how difficult it is for a group without technical knowledge to do this. Wellington Community Net allows groups with few IT skills to

• put up any sort of database
• use email forwarding
• use a free WELLINGTON domain name

WCN is also low-cost, which is vital for groups who are not incorporated and have no funds. Planting groups just want to showcase their work and attract volunteers really easily, not fund raise for a website!  For some groups finding funds for web-hosting would mean other activities are curtailed.

Funding from 2020 Trust

The 2020 Trust was set up in 1996 to provide support for the Information and Communications Technology needs of Wellington people – particularly community groups and disadvantaged people. I was its founding chair and then stayed on as a trustee for a number of years.

It’s now a national organisation running e-Day, Computers in Homes and other projects. There’s also the local Wellington Trust, now known as Wellington ICT. It’s done some terrific projects, several of which I’ve worked on in a voluntary basis such as Whanau Link for giving Internet access to hospice patients and their families.

Funding WCN provides a good platform for the Trust to support future IT requirements for not-for-profit groups such as what Internet plan, what membership software, email trouble shooting and so do on. Some groups have this expertise available within their membership but plenty just don’t – or not at the times its needed! It can be particularly difficult for people with English as a second language.

Groups using WCN say…

Further points that have been emphasised in emails from groups that use WCN:

• Other sites are used by groups who are not incorporated and have no funds.
• Planting groups just want to showcase their work and attract volunteers really easily, not fund raise for a website!
• For some groups finding funds for web-hosting would mean other activities were curtailed.

Websites are not the same as directory pages

Some of the officer/councillor comments seemed to equate web pages in a directory with a full website service including databases, mailing lists and so forth is available.

The existence of Wellington ICT and WCN is a base upon which further services such as e-rider and community networking conferences can be built up on.

Political boundaries don’t match neatly with community interests and regional replication would be a waste of resources.

Most comments I’ve received recommend WCN as a necessary part of an intelligent city’s community service infrastructure that other cities should emulate.

What you can do

Sign the e-petition:

Include Wellington Community Net and Community ICT Funding In The Draft LTCCP for 2009-2019

Links

• 570 community websites under threat – Scoop story
• 2020 Communications Trust

Contact me

celia.wadebrown@greens.org.nz
phone: 04-938 6691
cellphone: 027 483 6691
Celia’s Councillor profile on the Wellington City Council website