My Account
A plan that will attempt to reduce Auckland’s transport emissions by 64 per cent over the next seven years was adopted by Auckland Council on August 18.
If the Transport Emissions Reduction Pathway (TERP) is successful, it will give Aucklanders more sustainable transport options, reverse urban sprawl, make the streets safer and make it easier for people who still need to drive.
At an extraordinary Environment and Climate Change Committee meeting, general manager for long term planning Jacques Victor said the TERP was Council’s only option if it wanted to reach the 64 per cent target. The target was set in te Tāruke-ā-Tāwhiri: Auckland’s Climate Plan.
“It will require every single lever to be pulled to the absolute maximum,” Victor said. “You cannot help but come to the conclusion we have very little time left.”
Cr Wayne Walker asked about costs for the TERP and was concerned that if it was not costed, it might not be possible to achieve.
Chief economist Gary Blick said that a long-term plan like the TERP would not be costed but individual projects would be.
Mayor Phil Goff said councillors would be judged by their kids and their grandkids for the way they voted.
“Anyone who does not believe in a climate emergency is a dinosaur and will go the way of the dinosaurs,” Goff said.
“It would have been better if we had done this yesterday, but the next best thing is that we do it today.”
Cr Linda Cooper said Council had to get people on board for the change.
“Everybody likes it until it affects them. I would love if Auckland Transport would work with local councillors to figure out how best to communicate to individual communities,” Cooper said.
The word ‘radical’ was thrown around throughout the day with some saying it was a necessary to have radical change, while others said the changes were not radical at all.
Chair Richard Hills said the changes only appeared radical because of the timeframe Council had set.
“Climate change knows no bounds. It does not need a visa … thousands of global citizens have had their lives extinguished from climate change,” Hills said.
Crs Daniel Newman, Greg Sayers and Sharon Stewart voted against the adoption of the pathway. Early next year, Council staff and Auckland Transport will report back to the committee on a monitoring framework and implementation programme for the pathway.
Cr Sayers explained that he voted against the motion because he believed that Rodney’s ratepayers had made it clear that they wanted spending on local roads prioritised ahead of more cycle lanes in the CBD.
“I need to reflect the views of the ratepayers I represent, which is one reason why I voted against it,” he said.
“I also voted against as it was particularly shocking to hear that the plan is not funded or even costed. We have learned from bitter experience that these large CBD-focused projects are very happy to siphon Rodney’s rates to pay for them.
“I voted against the plan to also protect Rodney’s ratepayers from the massive and unknown costs of implementing it. It would be irresponsible to vote in something that you didn’t even know how much it would cost.”
