Mayors' extra rail plans worry minister

John Banks (L) and Len Brown are supporting a central rail tunnel at Britomart. Photos / Herald on Sunday, Richard Robinson

The Government is becoming rattled by calls from Auckland Super City mayoral contenders for ambitious rail investment beyond the $1 billion electrification project.

Transport Minister Steven Joyce is trying to dampen early hopes for airport trains and for a central Auckland rail tunnel as officials continue to grapple with how to pay for electrification.

"What we are seeing is an attempt to create a bidding war to see who can wish for these things quicker," he said after announcing new ownership arrangements through KiwiRail for electric trains the Government has yet to start ordering for Auckland.

"We are a long way from that stuff, and we have got to be careful we don't get into a bidding war whereby the electrification is conflated together with the CBD rail tunnel or an airport rail link."

His comments follow strong support for a tunnel to double Britomart's rail capacity from the two contenders for the Super City leadership, Auckland City Mayor John Banks and Manukau Mayor Len Brown.

Mr Brown also rates airport rail as crucial for Auckland's development, although Mr Banks has yet to be persuaded it will be economically viable.

KiwiRail and the Auckland Regional Transport Authority have commissioned a $5 million route investigation study for a 3.5km rail tunnel from Britomart to Mt Eden, but Mr Joyce said he had yet to see any cost-benefit assessment.

"I am prepared to be convinced it's a good idea, but you need to know how much it is going to cost, which we are nowhere near knowing, and what does it do in terms of improved services and travel across the lines," he said.

But although the transport authority has yet to firm up an initial cost estimate ranging from $1 billion to $1.5 billion, it predicted last year that an inner rail loop would make downtown Auckland accessible to 370,000 people by train trips of 30 minutes or less.

Mr Banks re-affirmed yesterday that the project would be an important part of his mayoral campaign.

He says Britomart could become constrained by 2015 if it is left as a dead-end terminus, but turning it into a through station would double capacity to almost 40 trains an hour.

"Those are 40 good reasons - this is not about a wishing list; those comments are offensive," he said of Mr Joyce's words.

"The people will elect me to lead, not to follow. I don't follow the Minister of Transport, I lead the citizens of Auckland and will do my best to convince this Government and successive governments of the need for it."

Mr Banks said although he was confident the tunnel would be built "sooner rather than later", and he was looking forward to Auckland's ability to speak with one voice as the Super City, he could not promise it by 2015 because of New Zealand's heavy international indebtedness.

Mr Brown urged the minister to leave Aucklanders to debate their transport needs over the next 13 months before delivering a strong mandate to their new Super City leaders for a 15-year to 20-year work programme.

"I think it is important for the minister to not be overly-involved in this campaign - he is overly-enthusiastic on this issue."

He said Mr Joyce should take a "watching brief" until the Super City was ready to engage with the Government over its residents' priorities.

Regional chairman Mike Lee said it was absurd that the Government should want to spend $2.3 billion on a "holiday highway" between Puhoi and Wellsford, a route carrying about 15,000 vehicles a day, when Auckland was desperate for public transport to ease urban road congestion.

"Auckland needs the money for investment on the isthmus to enable more efficient use of all transport corridors, rail and road," he said.

"It is ridiculous having under-utilised rail corridors next to jammed up road corridors."