Let’s Get Wellington Moving project cancelled

Let's Get Wellington Moving, new zealand, Wellington,

December 19, 2023

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New Zealand’s Let’s Get Wellington Moving project will be cancelled, and building and funding the Basin Reserve upgrade and second Mt Victoria tunnel will now be the focus.

• The Government, Wellington City Council and Greater Wellington Regional Council have agreed in principle to dissolve Let’s Get Wellington Moving. 
• Central government will build and fund the Basin Reserve upgrade and second Mt Victoria tunnel, creating opportunities for urban development and housing.  
• Wellington City Council will bring the Golden Mile project in-house and work to cost efficiencies, better bus routes, greater pedestrian access and closer engagement with local businesses.
• Accelerating the North-South, East-West, and Harbour Quays’ bus corridors will be priority projects, which will support and complement the investment in the Basin and the Tunnel and improve access to the airport and hospital.
• Conversations will begin on City/Regional Deals for the benefit of Wellington and the Wellington Region.

An agreement to dissolve Let’s Get Wellington Moving has been reached by Infrastructure & Housing Minister Chris Bishop, Transport Minister Simeon Brown, Mayor of Wellington City Council Tory Whanau, and Chair of Greater Wellington Regional Council Daran Ponter.   

“Local, regional and central government are in agreement about the way forward for Wellington. It is important to me that we work constructively with the new government to deliver the infrastructure that Wellington desperately needs. It is good to have a clear sense of direction from the Government and commitment to investing in the infrastructure for our growing population,” Mayor Tory Whanau says. 

Delivering a second Mt Victoria tunnel together with an upgrade to the Basin Reserve is a key commitment of the new coalition Government. This policy fulfils a commitment made as part of the National-ACT coalition agreement. Under the old Let’s Get Wellington Moving deal, Wellington City Council and Greater Wellington Regional Council would have been responsible for 40 per cent of the programme investment, which includes the Basin upgrade and new tunnel’s construction costs. 

“Wellingtonians are sick of all the backwards and forwards on the second Mt Vic tunnel. The plan now is for central government to fully fund the new tunnel. The tunnel will create exciting opportunities for more urban development and housing, and the government will work with Wellington City Council to explore these opportunities,” Infrastructure and Housing Minister Chris Bishop says.  

“I have been clear that I do not support a second Mt Victoria car tunnel. However, the Government has said that this is a priority for them this term and have committed to funding 100 per cent of the costs. I am also glad to have found areas of collaboration where we can look to develop a housing and urban growth precinct with the acquisition of land for this development”, Mayor Whanau says.

“I am focused on delivering effective and efficient transport solutions for the people and businesses of Wellington. With the Golden Mile project, we need to ensure efficiencies are made and that the design meets everyone’s needs such as better bus routes and access for pedestrians,” Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. 

“We’ve agreed that Wellington City Council will take over delivery of the Golden Mile revitalisation project.  I believe that by bringing this important project in-house we can ensure it is delivered as cost effectively as possible and we can better engage with local businesses,” Mayor Whanau says.

“Thousands of Wellingtonians commute to work every day, making it essential that our public transport network is fit for purpose,” Greater Wellington Regional Council Chair Daran Ponter says. “It is important that we super-charge bus priority routes on our core transport spines and open up a new public transport spine on the Harbour Quays.”

“As we move through the next stages of building Wellington’s future transport solutions, we are all looking forward to having discussions on creating a Regional/City Deal for Wellington city and the wider region. This would mean having strategic objectives for road, rail, public transport, housing and environmental resilience investments for Wellington that are shared by central, regional and local government, along with long-term funding commitments to enable certainty of planning,” Simeon Brown says.  

“We are all pleased to have reached agreement on some key issues facing Wellington as we plan and build the infrastructure Wellington needs to actually, at long last, really get moving,” Chris Bishop says.

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Image Source: Copyright Let’s Get Wellington Moving 2023

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