Work is to start next week on a $2.85 million ferry terminal for Auckland's Hobsonville Pt, where up to 3000 homes are planned on the former naval base site.
The project, to be completed for ferries to start running early next year, will involve demolishing the disused old wharf and replacing it with a covered 70m structure to which a floating pontoon will be connected via a gangway.
Hobsonville Land Company chief executive Chris Aitken said yesterday an intention was to provide "significant public access" to the new wharf for pedestrians rather than just a terminal for ferries running to downtown Auckland.
The Housing NZ subsidiary has agreed to contribute 20 per cent of the cost of the wharf and terminal to Auckland Transport, which is heading the project, and it will also create a park-and-ride area at the end of a road it has almost finished upgrading for ferry feeder buses and cars.
Mr Aitken said it would be great to have ferries running by the time a new primary school opens for the 2013 school year, enhancing the area's attraction to working families wanting "an easy commute" to the city, which is likely to take just over half an hour.
