At long last LGWM have uploaded some of their work for the Public to look at and consult on. There is literally so much stuff to read and so little time to get consultation back, that all I’m going to do here is to publish some links now, and then more analysis and commentary later.
Early Interventions engagement report
Golden Mile Vision – the actual Vision.
Golden Mile Long List Options report.
Golden Mile Short List Options report.
Golden Mile Strategic Case report.
I’m sorry, buy that “Vision” Image is just pure Spin and Whitewash, there are going to be large numbers of buses going up and down willis street at that point.
All of the documentation, which runs to 100s of pages all talks about
“This Strategic Case highlights the need for improvements that improve the movement of buses within the corridor ”
now, language aside “improvements that improve”- are there any other type??
“and make the Golden Mile a safer, more pleasant place in which to walk and
spend time.”
I’m Sorry but I don’t wand to spend time in the close vicinity of 100s of buses, that are large, smelly, noisy and polluting…
This is all ass about face, LGWM’s first task should be to either build the light rail and take the buses out of the golden mile, or electrify all the buses, (oh that’s right the operators have just gone and spent millions on lots of new diesel buses, with 9 year contracts, so I guess that ain’t gonna happen soon either…)
The whole LGWM process makes me angry, and this doesn’t help…
Well, we agree 100% on that. They’ve already done lots of studies which show that we have more than double the safe amount of buses per hour – from memory, the maximum buses per hour should be 60 and Wellington is currently running at 120 per hour at peak times. So, they made some double decker, but because they only board from the front it now takes twice as long to board. And so even more get caught up behind.
As you say – Arse about face. A bloody three year old with a packet of crayons could make a more coherent policy than they bunch of fuckwits.
Here’s what their review says to me.
1. That Bus Rapid Transport has already been chosen as the means of Mass Transit for Wellington
2. That the route has already been chosen to go down Lambton, Willis, Manners and Courtenay
3. That the everyday bus commuter route will be the same as the nominally ‘high speed mass transit’ public transport route
4. That therefore there is no need to look further at anything other than cars and trucks on the Waterfront route
5. That they have not yet decided on how the cars get round the Basin, nor the Buses
6. That LGWM have a very blinkered view of the problem and are tackling just one part at a time, rather than look at the whole overall picture.
Am I wrong or am I right?
There’s a fundamental point being missed here. Light rail (or indeed proper BRT, which has never actually been proposed, just a bit more bus priority) wil take at least 10 years to do. Waiting that long for any improvement to the Golden Mile is clearly unacceptable, hence these proposals.
The fact that these options are being proposed has no implications for the mass transit route, nor whether it’s light rail, BRT, whatever. It’s addressing the immediate GM (only) problem – everything can’t be fixed at once.
Forgive me for being naive Betterbee, but my understanding of the whole LGWM effort was that they would be looking for a solution to ALL of Wellington’s traffic needs. To me that entails a complete overall overview – a MasterPlan – that would propose an integrated solution for the entire city and region, and then work could take place on sections of this MasterPlan one by one.
It just seems stupid beyond belief to me that you would put this much work into one section of the city – if that is not working to the overall grand masterplan as well. The logical thing to do, in my very humble but at times rather strident opinion, would be to publish the Masterplan first, and then everything else that comes later can then be assessed as to how well it fits in with the Masterplan. Doing this on its own makes a mockery of it all to me.
Continuing on: either Alan is right and the decision has already been made to have BRT as the one and only PT in Wellington and therefore this fits into the mould. Or alternatively, Alan is wrong and the decision hasn’t been made yet, and it could therefore end up having to rebuilt Lambton Quay yet again, in a mere 10 years time. You simply wouldn’t spend $80million (as reported) on something that you could dig up again later.
Or I guess, there is a third scenario: that a route for PT has indeed been chosen and it is not down the Golden Mile. Therefore they know that they can do this work with impunity and it will not stuff up future work.
Levi, LGWM is not about solving ALL Wellington’s traffic needs. It’s about transport rather than traffic (and rightly so); and it came from GWRC’s Ngauranga to Airport corridor study, now morphed into Ngauranga to Miramar (again, rightly so: it’s not about the airport!).
LGWM has identified a number of key issues that need fixing irrespective of the final outcome, and which can (and should) be done without affecting that outcome. The Golden Mile is one of those, where there has been clamour for years (decades?) to do something, in particular to get rid of private vehicles. LGWM is now progressing that, and good on them.
And it’s important to note that the preferred route for mass transit is along the quays. Whether that’s the right choice is a bit moot, but it means (repeating myself) the fact that these GM options are being proposed has no implications for the mass transit route, nor whether it’s light rail, BRT, whatever.
So yes, Alan is wrong – and I’ve no idea how he’s come to some of those conclusions!
Betterbee – thank you for that explanation – better than anything I have ever seen come out of the LGWM stable.
All good then. I just wish that what you say was available formally as a published written statement – I know that you know what you are saying, but how / where is the public informed of this? For instance – you say that the preferred route for mass transit is along the quays – which I agree with – but as we well know there are some of the pro-PT brigade who will hear of nothing else than a full Golden Mile route. A statement from LGWM somewhere saying “Its the Quays!!” or something similar would go a long way towards quenching my thirst…
My reading of the word “preferred” is that that’s the route that LGWM is leaning towards, but it’s subject to confirmation from a business case – and then consultation, of course.
I’m in two minds about the “right” route through the CBD: the GM is slower for the vehicles but a short walk, the quays faster for the vehicles but a longer walk for many, particularly if on the sea side.
I don’t think LGWM have ever come out and said it, but images last year were of mass transit on the quays.
@Conor,
They have concluded the quays as the “preferred” options for any LRT for a number of years, the Golden mile is to be a bus sewer forever…
“Preferred routes identified for RPI:
Waterfront/Quays for light rail/like light rail
The Golden Mile was identified as preferred second CBD PT spine ”
https://lgwm.nz/assets/Documents/Technical-Documents/25-June-2019/8-Preferred-mass-transit-route-response-to-further-queries-LGWM.pdf