WE Aotearoa: A dozen reasons to say 'no way!' to the busway:

A dozen reasons to say 'no way!' to the busway:

Cost. It is considerably cheaper to upgrade a rail line than it is to install a guided busway
Construction delays: this could take 2 years or longer to build causing massive disruption.
Undirectionality. The busway operation would be one way requiring confusing am/pm timetables.
Congestion. The busway would significantly increase congestion through more buses on the roads and would see traffic problems at:

Where the busway joins normal road traffic somewhere near the entrance to the Ngaio Gorge.
Lambton Quay where there already is considerable bus congestion. It is unlikely that 35 extra buses could be accommodated.

Less capacity. Over-all passenger capacity of busway would be less than current rail roughly one third.
Less popular. Buses are less popular than trains .
Less efficient. Trains are more efficient than buses in terms of rubber-to-concrete vs. steel-to-steel contact.
Encourage sprawl. The busway would limit ‘transport orientated development,’ stimulating urban sprawl.
High Upfront costs. Capital expenditure can be phased over time for rail option but not so for the busway option.
Keeps commuters on congested roads. Rail is more likely to achieve a modal shift from cars to public transport than buses are.
Ontrack. The Crown through Ontrack owns the tracks and the have said:

They would have to approve the ripping up of the tracks, and:
They would be unlikely to, in light of the National Rail Strategy.
‘It would be a big ask to simply hand over,’ the considerable infrastructure of tunnels, bridges, overhead line etc.

# posted by gareth @ 5:02 PM

Comments:

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