Opinion: Transport hub, Donald Trump, Pre-election promises

Bay Venues chief executive Gary Dawson on the site of the proposed park and ride and bus interchange at Baypark. Photo/File

Public transport
Thanks to AMP Capital for forcing Tauranga City Council to consider a transport hub at Baypark and modification to the Baylink project to accommodate it.

While the "thinking caps" are on, continue the planning to include similar park and ride interchanges at Tauriko and Te Puna and everyone will have the option to leave our cars as we enter the city and use public transport.

Please also ensure buses are cheap and frequent and the parking secure.

Valerie Prentice
Tauranga

Trump no more
Surely it is about time Rosemary McLeod got over her fixation about Donald trump.

Maybe she could, along with most of your opinion writers, delve into the corrupt goings on started by Obama and Hillary Clinton.

The American economy is booming thanks to Donald Trump, whether you like him or not.

Neil Harvey
Welcome Bay

Maori votes
In reply to Margaret Murray-Benge and Richard Prince (Letters January 24), Margaret accepts that Maori are good enough to be elected as district councillors, so the reason that we have no Maori councillors is, as I have said previously, that non-Maori voters mostly do not vote for Maori candidates.

This is not racism, just reality.

The voting system is biased against Maori candidates.

In fact, over all New Zealand, only 5 per cent of councillors are Maori.

If Maori voters do not vote it is not lethargy, it is knowing that the system is biased against them.

The Maori community has requested Maori wards.

It is arrogance on the part of Pakeha councillors to tell the Maori community Maori wards would not be good for them and ignore what they have asked for.

Maori wards will not keep Maori separate. It is the present system that does that.

Peter Dey
Welcome Bay

Pre-election promises
Pre-election we were led to believe that we would have an amazing number of trees planted in the first three years and a mind-boggling number of houses.

Two "promises" that gained many votes.

Now we learn that they were aspirational concepts.

Did these aspirations result from inspiration or exasperation?

As it looks currently, they will lead to expiration!

A.D. Kirby
Papamoa