Ask Phoebe: Sports cars - outcasts of the transit lane system

The Harbour Bridge allows for some lane changing. Photo / Greg Bowker

Do you know what the rules are regarding using bus lanes for people with fewer than four seats in their vehicle? As the owner of a two-seater sports car, I suspect that if I were travelling with a full car I'd still be stopped and ticketed, even though I was using 100 per cent of my vehicle's capacity. Are my suspicions correct?
Jon Scrivin, Hibiscus Coast.

They are. Even though the council admits that three into two won't go, the bus or transit lanes, on the North Shore in particular, are for cars with three or more occupants, buses and taxis, motorcycles and cycles.

There is a curved bridge with triangular piers on the new Northern Motorway, just before the tunnel heading north. I have never seen a car on it, and it appears quite narrow. What is its purpose?
David Payne, Auckland.

The bridge, known as the Pukeko Bridge, provides access to property on the western side of the road. It is an extension of Hillcrest Rd, and without it, the owners of the property would have no way of getting to that part of their farm. It was built for their use, and the use of anyone else theynominate.

Recently you mentioned restrictions on changing lanes on the Harbour Bridge. I am not aware of any such restrictions, but as a frequent user of the bridge, I feel I should be. Can you help please?
Don McMorland, Glenfield.

It is my understanding that where lanes on the bridge are separated by a dashed line, you may change lanes with care. Where lanes are separated by a barrier of any sort, or a solid white line, you may not change lanes, unless it is an emergency.

On the Northwestern Motorway, westbound, between the Bond St overbridge and St Lukes offramp, earthworks are going on behind a sound wall. What are they for?
Alan McCullough, Auckland.

It's where the Transport Agency is building the "missing link" - a 1.24km section of the Northwestern cycleway, which, when finished, will provide a mainly offroad 12km stretch of cycleway between Newton Rd in Auckland and Te Atatu Rd in Waitakere.

Occasionally, in death notices in the Herald, particularly for Maori, I have seen the letters "W.A.O.P.H.M.T.Ae". What do they mean?
Nigel Christian, Sandringham.

The most I could find out is that the initials are a shortened form of a prayer from the Ratana religion. If anyone can enlighten me further, I'd be most grateful.