KEY POINTS:
Uncertainty over the future of the Whenuapai air base has coloured Waitakere City Council's response to the Metro Project Action Plan.
The council, while publicly endorsing the plan, is unlikely to give it financial support because the plan fails to back Whenuapai as a second Auckland commercial airport
and ignores the rail network.
Waitakere Mayor Bob Harvey wants to ensure that the Metro Plan does not become too ``CBD centric'' and rolls out in a way that takes account of the issues affecting the other established Auckland cities which are experiencing all the pangs of fast growth.
Waitakere and North Shore city councils and Rodney District Council _ the local authorities that make up the Auckland region's burgeoning northwest _ want Whenuapai to be turned over to commercial aviation when the Royal New Zealand Air Force quits the base.
This is opposed by Air New Zealand and Auckland International Airport, whose collective regional dominance could be weakened by a second airport.
Waitakere city officials, in particular, are concerned the Metro Project workstream looking at improving the CBD-Auckland International Airport link _ a key part of the Metro Project Action Plan _ is unenthusiastic about a rail link between the airport and the city and opposed to the opening of a rival airport.
The officials question whether it is appropriate that the head of the workstream, Don Huse, is also chief executive of Auckland International Airport.
But Huse has the support of business and the blessing of the chair of the Economic Development Forum, Chamber of Commerce chief executive Michael Barnett.
Huse said there was ``no silver bullet'' to improving airport access.
``We are in the infrastructure business and we take a 20-year-plus view of life. We certainly see rail as part of the long-term solution but the costs are a big challenge.''
He said it would be better first to complete Auckland's western ring road, duplicate Mangere Bridge, establish clear access ways to the airport, provide bus lanes and improve bus services.
``We have some 81,000 vehicles a day travelling to and from the airport. By 2015 we expect the number of persons requiring transport to and from the airport to nearly double.''
Huse sees rail as part of future-proofing the airport, ideally as part of a modern transport centre.
``There are better transport options earlier [than rail] through roads.''
Huse says it is difficult to make an economic case for establishing Whenuapai as a second airport.
``We ended up at Mangere because the authorities did an enormous amount of work and determined the best location for an international airport,'' he said.
``Whenuapai has several restrictions in terms of topography and weather to create a modern airport. It would operate in a compromised operational setting and require new infrastucture.''
That said, Waitakere City Council is continuing its campaign to save Whenuapai.
It published the results of an independent opinion poll last month revealing that 53 per cent of residents in the Auckland region support the idea of commercial air services being developed in Whenuapai as soon as possible compared with 15 per cent who oppose the idea.
Waitakere City has the backing of airport operator Infratil which would fund the conversion of the air base to civilian use. Infratil says there is no reason why commercial flights could not co-exist with military use of the base well before the RNZAF completes its planned relocation to Ohakea in 2014.
The pro-Whenuapai lobby also received support from the international team which peer-reviewed the Metro Project in July.
The team noted the ``strong appeal'' from the three northwestern councils for redeveloping the air base for civilian use.
It said the issue should be resolved through long-term transport planning.
``If a second airport were to proceed at Whenuapai,'' the team reported, ``this should not detract from the primacy of the current international airport, nor should it detract from the absolute necessity to connect the Mangere Airport to Auckland's CBD (and the rest of Auckland).''
Waitakere City supports other features of the Metro Project Action Plan, including the commitments to upgrade infrastructure and improve productivity, but notes that projects such as motorway widening and expansion and double-tracking of parts of the suburban rail network were happening anyway.
Indeed, the new Henderson railway station _ one of the few suburban passenger rail projects since the opening of the Britomart train station in 2001 _ is integrated with Waitakere council's new civil centre via a $5.5 million airbridge as the only way of reaching a new platform.
The council has built the airbridge with financial help from the Auckland Regional Transport Authority and Land Transport New Zealand as part of a yet-to-be-completed transport centre.
The council has also been negotiating to put the rail underground in part of New Lynn to remove a major traffic bottleneck and allow New Lynn to develop on both sides of the railway line.
