$90m flyover for 90 seconds doesn’t add up

The travel time saved by the proposed Basin Reserve flyover amounts to only 90 seconds, not the claimed seven-and-a-half minutes, a new statement by experts and witnesses shows, Labour’s MP for Wellington Central Grant Robertson says.

“This flyover is costing $90 million but in the end will only save commuters 90 seconds. That is a colossal waste of money when they are other alternatives available to improve traffic flow.

“The claim has been made that the flyover will give seven-and-a-half minutes of travel time savings, but in material released late last week. The experts now agree six of those minutes actually come from a third lane in the Memorial Park tunnel and changes to the Taranaki Street intersection. These are completely separate developments from the flyover.

“It is significant that witnesses and experts agree on this. It puts into question the cost benefit claims about the project and should weigh heavily on the Board of Inquiry.

“The experts have also agreed with peer reviewers that the Basin Reserve itself is not the main cause of bottlenecks. That is essentially caused by only having one tunnel through Mount Victoria. Other alternatives which involve a second tunnel and improvements to traffic flow around the Basin would provide more benefits than the flyover.

“The flyover is a flawed project. It would provide very little benefit while ruining the historic precinct around the Basin.

“Experts now agree it will not provide the benefits that have been claimed and the evidence against it continues to mount. It’s time for other alternatives to be given a fair hearing,” Grant Robertson says.

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