KEY POINTS:
Auckland City's proposed $43 million bus corridor to Newmarket is among a raft of transport projects under financial review by the new council, despite being assured of hefty Government and regional funding.
New transport committee chairman Ken Baguley said yesterday that he did not want to second-guess any decisions by the Citizens and Ratepayers-dominated council on the bus corridor or up to 40 other projects ahead of a full briefing by officers this week.
But he said of the list of projects, the largest of which is the 20-year $1.33 billion Auckland Manukau Eastern Transport Initiative (AMETI): "There's an awful lot of money planned to be spent. C and R have certainly made it pretty clear they want to review all the spending, but we want to do that in a responsible manner."
Without wanting to give a general assessment of the bus corridor project - called the Central Connector - he also expressed reservations about a plan to close Grafton Bridge to general traffic from 7am to 7pm each weekday to make way for buses using a 4km route between Britomart and Newmarket.
"As a ratepayer travelling to the city from the east, I just question how Grafton Bridge can be realistically closed for vehicles."
Mr Baguley's comments follow the closure last week of tenders for the bulk of the project, which will include installing bus lanes, footpath canopies and raised pedestrian crossings along Symonds St and Park Rd on each side of the bridge.
Project manager Graham Long said officers were assessing three tenders for a report for the transport committee to consider next month at its first meeting, before it makes a recommendation to the council on whether to let a contract.
He said the cost of the streetwork was estimated at about $28.5 million, and a separate contract round next year was envisaged for strengthening the bridge for about $9 million.
Other costs such as for property purchases and design would push the cost of the project to a best estimate of $42.6 million by its completion late in 2009.
Land Transport NZ has approved a Government subsidy of almost $20.5 million in addition to regional funding of $13.66 million, leaving city ratepayers with a likely bill of about $8.5 million.
Mr Baguley acknowledged that the level of subsidisation was in the project's favour, but said the council had to weigh it against other big commitments, particularly AMETI.
Although that is a much longer-term project - in which the council's share of $893 million will include subsidies, development levies and possibly tolls - Land Transport NZ's board is due to consider a joint subsidy application of $22 million next month from Auckland and Manukau for design and consent funding over several years.
"There's some fantastic vision - you can't help but admire the people on the staff who have come up with some of the vision for some of this stuff," Mr Baguley said.
"But Auckland City ratepayers can't be the only ones standing up and paying for it."
Planning for the project, including closing Grafton Bridge to general traffic, was initially approved in 2004 under the previous term of newly re-elected Auckland City Mayor John Banks.
