KEY POINTS:
Auckland local body councillors concerned about a new regional fuel tax are being assured the public will be consulted before decisions are made.
Some councillors expressed concern to the Auckland Regional Land Transport Committee yesterday that it would be difficult to persuade their constituents to accept a new tax of up to 10c to pay for transport benefits that might not flow directly to them.
Franklin District councillor Jill Morris said the tax boundary should be north of her area "because we won't be getting much in the way of public transport".
Her concern was shared by North Shore City councillor Julia Parfitt, who said many of her ratepayers were unable to see benefits from the proposed tax, up to two-thirds of which is expected to go towards repaying loans to be raised for a $1 billion-plus rail electrification project.
She noted statements by proponents of the tax, notably the Auckland Regional Council, that it was important for motorists paying the tax to be able to see benefits from it.
Opposition to the tax has been running almost two to one among more than 200 messages to the Herald Online. At least 10 of those opposed said they were North Shore residents who did not use trains.
But Rodney District Mayor John Law, whose council stands to gain almost 1c of the tax to bridge a funding gap on a $160 million toll road it wants to build to Whangaparaoa Peninsula, reminded the meeting of the $290 million busway being developed in North Shore City. "The busway took money out of the pot, and the pot has to be refilled," he said.
ARC transport committee chairman Joel Cayford said the busway would be the North Shore equivalent of a railway line, given the high number of commuters it would be able to carry from next February on a two-lane carriageway beside the Northern Motorway.
Environmental consultant and committee member Kathleen Ryan said electric rail was of such strategic importance to Auckland's development that she was extremely disappointed the Government could not pay for it without raising another tax. She also wondered why it could not be ready for the 2011 Rugby World Cup.
The Government said last week that it investigated having electric trains available by then, but concluded it would be too risky to rush the project, so was working to a deadline of 2013.
Dr Cayford said a modern rail network was being developed to meet Auckland's needs for 50 to 70 years "and it is important we get it right".
He said the region should bear in mind that public transport offered benefits to all road users by easing congestion. The Automobile Association agreed and supported the proposed tax, despite the Road Transport Forum's insistence that freight firms should not have to pay it.
AA official Simon Lambourne, a new appointee to the transport committee, said Transport Minister Annette King had been adamant a fuel tax would be introduced only if the Auckland region wanted it.
The regional council intends finalising a tax proposal to put up for public consultation early next year as part of its annual budget round, ready to start phasing it in from July 1, 2008. Council staff promised the transport committee a more detailed report next month on procedures for raising the tax, and what territory it should cover.
* BP has halved a price rise of 8c a litre it imposed on Monday, after lesser increases by other oil suppliers.
It cut its main centre prices by 4c yesterday to 156.9c a litre of 91-octane petrol and to 102.9c for diesel, to match those set by its competitors.
BP led a 5c discount skirmish at the weekend, after being the first supplier to lift its prices last week.
