The seven-minute city: How the City Rail Link could pull Auckland back together

Sunday, 16 November 2025

**In part two **of Stuff’s series about the City Rail Link, we examine how a new rail era could reshape Auckland’s economy and housing. David Long reports.

When Auckland’s City Rail Link opens next year, its impact will not be confined to businesses next door to the new stations and the CBD.

More frequent trains and better station links could also transform travel for those further out.

Someone with a vested interest in it doing well is Eden Park CEO Nick Sautner.

Rather than the stadium being regarded as a 50,000-seat venue stuck in an Auckland suburb, Sautner sees the CRL as a way of bringing the stadium closer to the city centre.

It will be just a seven-minute journey from the city centre to Kingsland Station.

Auckland is on the verge of a transport revolution that could change how people experience the city as much as how they move through it, Sautner believes.

“I do think it will be a game-changer for people in Auckland.

“We need the CRL to be successful. It will assist with people flow into the CBD, and also, with that proximity to Eden Park, there's no question that it will complement our event-day experience.”

Sautner says the City Rail Link will make attending games and concerts far simpler and much cheaper than driving.

“Recently, I parked on the street in town, and it cost $24, so my habits will change once it opens,” he said.

“Because of the environmental consequences, but also the time savings that it will deliver. So I'm very supportive of it.”

For him, the project also reconnects Auckland with its past. “If you look at some of the history of Eden Park, there used to be trams that went down Dominion Rd and Sandringham Rd.

“It's unfortunate that we don't have that public transport infrastructure, but this will be something that, if people embrace it, will really transform the city and the city experience.”

The economic spine of a new Auckland

While Sautner sees the CRL as an opportunity for people to rediscover the city, Auckland Council’s chief economist Gary Blick sees it as a way to make the city itself work better.

“When the City Rail Link opens, there will be more frequent train services, plus new routes that better connect Auckland,” Blick said.

“This upgraded rapid transit system, together with the Unitary Plan, will allow land to be used more productively.”

Better access, he says, encourages higher-density living and boosts urban productivity.

“It also allows for better use of our existing infrastructure, reducing the need for costly network expansions. A more productive Auckland is not only more competitive in attracting people, skills and investment, but ultimately, it’s a more liveable place for everyone.”

Blick argues that the CRL will make rapid-transit hubs more desirable for developers, supporting housing growth and moderating price increases.

“The City Rail Link makes locations more accessible, desirable and feasible by improving rapid transit,” he said.

“Together, they unlock the potential for more homes in key locations. This helps housing supply respond to demand, and more housing should, over time, help moderate price growth.”

Midtown momentum

Commercial property analysts are already seeing the shift.

Zoltan Moricz, executive director of research at CBRE New Zealand, a commercial real estate firm, says the CRL is breathing life back into parts of the city that had been overlooked for years.

“It will be largely positive for office demand and it should help revitalise that midtown location, which has been less favoured by office occupiers,” Moricz said.

“Over the last 20 to 25 years, there has been a drift towards waterfront locations, but I think there will be a positive impact from the CRL and the midtown station [Te Waihorotiu].”

Moricz points to a wave of recent building upgrades as proof of renewed confidence. “There have been a number of refurbishments and upgrades of existing office buildings within the vicinity of the station.

“All of this has been largely predicated on the perceived beneficial repositioning of that area from an office-user perspective. Initially, it will probably be driven by smaller to medium-sized occupiers.”

Moricz says public transport access has overtaken car parking as a priority for many businesses. “We surveyed senior decision-makers amongst medium- to large-office occupiers,” he said.

“What came through strongly is the preference for public transport accessibility, which has become a significantly more important consideration than the number of car parking spaces.

“Car parks are still important in certain contexts, but they are nowhere near as important as they were, even 10 years ago.”

Beyond the CBD

Moricz believes the CRL’s influence will extend well beyond the central city. Around the new Maungawhau Station near Mt Eden, he expects of the major benefits will be from a residential perspective rather than commercial.

Blick agrees that Maungawhau offers a major opportunity.

“Land that was, until recently, being used for tunnelling and site works will soon be left ready for development,” he said.

“It is a large area, with excellent transport connections. In the years ahead, it will be redeveloped to accommodate many new homes and commercial spaces, too.”

The link between housing and transport, he says, is crucial.

“Housing choice means having options across types, locations and price points,” Blick said.

“The Unitary Plan enables denser forms that use less land per dwelling, enabling more homes in many locations, and that supports affordability too. Additional homes need infrastructure, and that’s where the City Rail Link comes in.”

The long view

Moricz says the real legacy of the CRL may be a gradual rebalancing of how Auckland functions, a shift from sprawl and car dependency towards density and accessibility.

“Accessibility is increasingly what defines value,” he said. “The CRL gives people options.”

For Sautner, the project’s success will depend on whether Aucklanders actually use it.

“We need the CRL to be successful. If people embrace it, it will really transform the city and the city experience.”

Between the optimism of the stadium and the calculations of the economists sits the same hope: That the trains will do more than shorten journeys, they’ll help Auckland grow.