Sign In / Register
Proposals to shift transport policy and planning from Auckland Transport back to Auckland Council and give local boards more decision-making powers were given only a cautious welcome by Rodney Local Board last month.
The Local Government (Auckland Council) (Transport Governance) Amendment Bill seeks to establish a new Auckland Regional Transport Committee (ARTC) consisting of councillors and Crown appointees, and a jointly appointed chair.
It also proposes giving Auckland’s 21 local boards certain transport decision-making powers for local and collector roads, including setting speed limits, closing roads for events, managing parking and creating cycleways.
While Rodney members supported the principle of expanding local decision-making for roads and transport, they also raised worries over a number of issues, including funding, potential inconsistencies and risk of projects being delayed.
After ducking out of their monthly meeting on September 17 to workshop their feedback in detail, the board voted to voice concern that Rodney’s pre-existing under-investment in road maintenance could lead to an unfair burden on ratepayers, unless a fair funding model was put in place across the region.
They also felt the changes could add another layer of bureaucracy that might slow down project delivery and increase costs, and even potentially increase the risk of conflicts of interest and corruption.
Another worry was that with so many local boards making decisions for their own areas, there could be inconsistent speed limits or safety standards across the wider transport network.
Members asked council for a cost/benefit analysis as part of any public consultation documentation “as the full cost of transitioning the regional road controlling authority from Auckland Transport to Auckland Council is unknown” and “significant expenses are likely to be incurred in areas such as consultant fees, integration or migration of complex IT systems, and data infrastructure”.
They also felt the proposed changes could lead to more work for local board members and staff.
The feedback was submitted to council to be included as part of its submissions on the Bill last month.
