The brakes have once again been slammed on plans for a four-lane highway near Whangārei - and local leaders are shocked and disappointed.
File image. Photo: 123rf.com
The road between Whangārei and Marsden Point has been a regional transport priority for more than 10 years, but an upgrade has today been substituted for rail upgrades, including a new line out to NorthPort.
Whangārei mayor Sheryl Mai said her jaw dropped when she heard the news.
"Stunned and disappointed would be the first two emotions that came to mind this morning I guess," Mai said.
Plans to turn the dangerous roading stretch between Whangārei and the Marsden Point roundabout into a four lane highway have on the boil for years.
But Mai said the latest u-turn was a bolt from the blue - especially after Minister of Transport Michael Wood was asked about it during a meeting just last week.
"It just feels like the significant investment that's required to infrastructure in Northland has yet again been sidelined by other projects" - Sheryl Mai
"The question was directed specifically to him about the four-laning project and... the response said the funding is still there," Mai said.
"I think we could probably say we thought the funding for the project was still there but the funding for investment in infrastructure projects in Whangārei was still there, but not the road."
Instead, the $692 million funding will go toward a 19 kilometre rail line out to Marsden Point - a huge boost for plans to expand NorthPort and improve freight transport - as well as an upgrade the rail line north of Whangārei.
Mai said that was fantastic - but it should not come at the cost of the road upgrade.
"They are doing some investment into safety improvements - and that is welcome - but it just feels like the significant investment that's required to infrastructure in Northland has yet again been sidelined by other projects.
"The people in Northland like the idea of being able to cycle across the Auckland Harbour Bridge, but that's probably not our priority."
Whangārei MP Emily Henderson said Whangārei would still get the same level of investment but the rail focus would help with economic recovery and reduce hefty road traffic emissions.
"The investment for the previous Whangārei to Port Marsden highway will now fund targeted safety upgrades, including median barriers, along the same route and include the Marsden Point rail spur," she said.
But National's Shane Reti, the former MP for Whangārei, said stopping the road upgrade was unbelievale.
"Every economic strategic plan for Northland, probably over the last decade, has said the number one economic driver for Northland is the four lanes."
Northland Inc chief executive Murray Reade (Ngāpuhi and Ngāti Pāoa) was also disappointed and said investment was needed to improve Northland's productivity - which is around -0.2 percent.
"Northland is pretty resilient but this is a bit of a body blow."
Looking south it was easy to see what difference roading investment had made connecting Auckland with Kirikiriroa and Tauranga - and that was needed in Te Tai Tokerau, he said.
But there was some celebration - KiwiRail chief executive Greg Miller said the rail upgrades would be a game changer.
"The Ministry of Transport's 2019 Northland rail business case found that with these improvements, rail tonnage into, out of and around Northland could reach 2.2 million tonnes a year. I think it can go even higher," he said.
Northport chairman Murray Jagger also welcomed the investment, however, he said the port needed road investment as well to establish a resilient supply chain.
"It's not an either/or I don't think, we need to focus on road, rail and coastal shipping. So it's one of the jigsaw puzzle pieces."