Aucklanders' call for action

Photo / Martin Sykes

Auckland is waiting. On the gridlocked roads, on the railway platforms, at the bus stops, the residents of the new Supercity are waiting.

Aucklanders say transport is their single biggest election issue - and most are waiting to see what solutions the candidates can offer before they decide how to cast their vote.

According to a readers' survey conducted for the Herald on Sunday, the Supercity mayoral race is still wide open: most Aucklanders haven't decided who to vote for.

One in 12 respondents probably won't make up their minds until the day they cast their postal ballot.

But they are clear on one thing: traffic, public transport and roads matter to them.

The finding puts the pressure on the 23 mayoral candidates to state the differences between their policies on "getting Auckland moving".

Manukau mayor Len Brown and Auckland mayor John Banks both promise to focus on a rail link to the airport, a CBD rail loop and another harbour crossing to take rail to Albany. They also promise to improve ferry connections and wharves.

Transport is the single most important issue for 27 per cent of survey respondents. And 44 per cent of voters say improving the train services should be the top priority for the new council.

Crowded motorways, inadequate bus routes and not enough ferry services were big areas of complaint.

One respondent said: "The traffic system ... needs to be integrated. I think a Supercity will ensure this happens."

Another said: "The traffic ruins my day, I would like to be able to take public transport but it would take me three buses."

Transport problems are even more important to voters than keeping rates down, the deciding issue for 26 per cent of respondents.

One wrote: "As a retired person the total rate is approaching 10 per cent of my net income."

Crime was the third-highest rating issue, with one in 10 voters identifying it as the most important issue.

One in four said they had always supported the amalgamation of the seven local authorities and the regional council, but one in eight said they would never support the new model.

* The survey canvassed 1266 readers, aged 18 or over. Responses were voluntary.