Wellington loses over 1600 car parks, millions in revenue in cycle lane roll out
Tuesday, 17 December 2024
Wellington will lose some 1651 on-street car parks and the council an estimated $1.85 million a year in parking fees with the roll out of the city-wide bike network.
Another 252 metered parks ‒ in Courtenay Pl, Allan and Blair streets, Lambton Quay and its side streets Panama, Brandon, Johnston, Waring Taylor, Stout, and Ballance strees ‒ are expected to go as part of the Golden Mile upgrade, resulting in another $2 million hit to council coffers.
The figures are revealed in minutes from the council’s Long Term Plan, Finance and Performance committee. They show the suburbs of Karori, Kilbirnie and Berhampore being impacted most, with the Botanic Garden to Karori section of the project, Paneke Pōneke, losing 450 car parks, along with losses on Kilbirnie connections (215) and Berhampore to Newtown (210).
Their removal has received widespread blow back, with some businesses claiming the move has lost them customers, others blaming the loss for their closure, tradies and disability advocates arguing it leaves them with too few options and tulip lovers upset at having nowhere to park when visiting the gardens.
The paper notes numbers are sourced from the proposed traffic resolution sent for consultation. The revenue impact in the suburbs is “theoretical” and includes pro-rated enforcement revenue from offences such as infringement fines for incorrect parking, parking on yellow lines, and expired regos and WOFs, while the loss in the central city includes payments through both parking meters and the PayMyPark app.
Council spokesperson Victoria Barton-Chapple said while 1651 might sound a lot, the central city currently had more than 12,000 publicly accessible car parks ‒ 2200 of which were on-street parking ‒ and on-street meter parking only had an average occupancy rate of 56%.
Excluding Berhampore to Newtown ‒ and the Golden Mile ‒ none of the projects in the suburban areas had removed metered parking spaces.
“Removal of spaces had been done in accordance with the parking policy’s street space hierarchy and we have in fact retained or increased short stay parking and mobility parks in and around town centres as much as possible.
“There will be plenty of capacity for parking within a short walking distance.”
But there is some good news for motorists in the lead up to the annual Christmas shopping mayhem ‒ the council’s Frank Kitts underground car park has re-opened, providing 97 all-day parking spaces, including two mobility parks.
Meanwhile the council appears to have had the last laugh with revelations that two of the city’s newest and most contentious bike lanes were funded by the government.
The cycleways run from Lambton Quay up Molesworth St, past Parliament to Tinakori Rd and back along Murphy St. They have been the subject of considerable criticism from cyclists, motorists and delayed public transport users, and, prior to construction a failed court case.
An OIA response from Transport Minister Simeon Brown shows that while the actual project was run by the council, money for the two cycleways had been signed off under the previous Labour government’s Transport Choices fund.
It meant the incoming government was up for 90%, or $2.1m, of the total $2.34m cost, and the council just $235,380. Brown axed the fund on becoming minister to stop any new projects which had not already received support.
In October, after “gridlock” on surrounding streets reportedly stretched all the way to Bowen St, figures from the Greater Wellington Regional Council showed that bus commutes through the area were taking up to three minutes longer than pre-cycleways.
“The Molesworth Street cycleway is not a project I support,” Brown said.
“In my interactions with Wellingtonians I have heard multiple complaints about the Thorndon Connections project, including cycleways that have been installed on Molesworth and Murphy streets, among others. It’s clear that these cycleways are frustrating motorists…” he said.