North Shore locals petition Auckland Transport for solution to Onewa Rd congestion

Thursday, 18 July 2019

Onewa Rd has long been a problem arterial route during commuting periods. (File photo)

An 4000-strong petition is calling on Auckland Transport (AT) to trial alternative solutions to ease congestion on a busy road.

Northcote MP Dan Bidois presented the petition of 4030 signatures to AT on Thursday, with a letter outlining possible solutions to peak-hour congestion at Onewa Rd on the North Shore.

The transit lane on Onewa Rd is monitored by Auckland Transport.

According to AT, its plans for easing congestion consists of optimising signals, trialling behaviour change electronic signage, greater use of T3 lanes and a cycleway.

'I believe AT's plan is grossly insufficient to deal with current and future congestion challenges on these roads,' Bidois told Stuff.

Northcote MP, National's Dan Bidois, is frustrated AT is not listening to its community.

Compared to the quickest drive home from Albany over the previous six working days, a rainy January 18 commute, the dynamic lane trial was slower by 7 minutes and 41 seconds.

* Birkenhead locals petition against Auckland Transport's plan for transit lane

* Transport figures show Onewa Rd transit lane users in the majority**

'AT has an extremely poor reputation in my community – seen as an out of touch and unaccountable organisation that is oblivious to local concerns.'

Facebook image by Northcote MP Dan Bidois supporting his petition against the T3 transit lane on Onewa Road.

Bidois calculated it now took 40 minutes on average to travel down the 2.2 kilometre general lane during morning peak commute.

'Congestion is only projected to worsen with the level of intensification planned in my community under Council's Unitary Plan,' he said.

One of the proposals listed in the petition was to introduce a dynamic lane, which changes the middle lane's direction using LED lights with green and red arrow signs to indicate direction during peak commute periods.

A similar trial on Whangaparāoa Rd was labelled a success; however last week residents of Stanmore Bay nearly found themselves in a head-on collision because of a system fault.

New research from Boston Consulting Group revealed Auckland as the most congested city in Australasia – journeys take almost 48 per cent longer during peak hours than in Australia's biggest cities, the report said.

'AT's status quo approach of reliance on increased public transport use is not a practical option for the 87 per cent in this community who travel by private vehicle to work each day,' Bidois said.

'According to AT, 83 per cent of local daily commuters are projected to take private vehicles to work in 2028, yet this is not reflected in the organisation's priorities for this community.'

Bidois said he was committed to improving public transport, but said it's just one part of the solution.

A spokesman said AT would consider the issues raised by the petition, but said it had been in discussion with Bidois 'for some months' already.

For the 8am to 9am peak hour, there were 55 buses on Onewa Rd, and the T3 lane accommodated 70 per cent of all people on the corridor, he said.

'Overall, the efficiency of the road in terms of people movement, is considerably higher for the current T3 lane as opposed to a T2 lane or clearway, as the higher occupant buses and vehicles would now be subject to slower average speeds, resulting in longer overall people-movement journey times.'