Council sceptical of rail plan target

By BERNARD ORSMAN

The first cracks are appearing in a business plan to modernise Auckland's rail network after the Auckland Regional Council yesterday called for yet more reports.

The ARC remains unconvinced about the plan's ambitious target of 25 million journeys a year on fast electric trains by 2015 and the financial risks to regional ratepayers if the targets fall short.

The ARC is already under fire for the way it is passing a 65 per cent jump in public transport costs to $104.1 million, largely for improved rail services, to householders in the region.

ARC chairwoman Gwen Bull said regional councillors supported the business plan but it was flagging a number of issues to make sure the risks were covered.

Transport committee chairwoman Catherine Harland said it was simply "draconian" for the plan to suggest measures, such as doubling the price of a litre of petrol to $2, to help reach the target.

A big concern of the ARC and a key issue in the business plan is electrification of the Auckland rail network by 2009 at a cost of $109 million. ARC officials regard electrification as a desirable "long-term" solution for Auckland and want to be able to cancel it, if necessary.

Councillor Paul Walbran strongly supported electrification but was concerned about the lack of work on the risks to regional ratepayers and potential dire consequences for council finances.

Another councillor, Mike Lee, saw the call for more work on electrification as a delaying tactic and more of the same "dysfunctional nonsense" that has marred the rail project.

On another key issue in the business plan - double-tracking of the western line - the ARC wanted to urgently start design work.

Having participated in the drawing-up of the business plan, it is imperative that the ARC and the local councils get behind its implementation. This is especially the case for the ARC, whose job it is to implement the plan by providing and paying for services.

The Auckland City Council last week endorsed the two-week-old plan, saying it provided a sound basis for moving forward.

Representatives from Infrastructure Auckland and the Auckland Regional Transport Network, who were the other main partners in the draft business plan, cautiously welcomed the ARC's response to the plan, which has three more months of discussion and consultation.