Back on track

File under: transport, Wellington

Apologies for the lack of posts recently: I've had quite a bit on my plate. Part of this is due to the number of consultations going on at the moment that could have a significant long-term impact on Wellington's future: there's the WCC draft long-term plan (submissions due 12th May), the Ngauranga to airport transport study (15th May) and the District Plan's Central Area design guide, which while not (apparently) open to public consultation, is being presented to the Architectural Centre for feedback.

There's one possibility that's particularly relevant to the first two: it appears that Wellington might finally be giving some serious consideration to light rail. While the reports in the media proved overly excitable when I investigated them, I have heard that light rail is indeed one of several options to be considered in a study of the northern corridor (i.e. Johnsonville), and that the report on this study will be coming out this week. I'm in the process of collating and examining all the past light rail proposals so that I can compare them, and I'll start a series of detailed posts on the various proposed routes and what I see as their relative benefits and drawbacks. One thing's clear: with trains and buses full to capacity, I don't think anyone can argue that people won't switch to public transport when it's available.

In the meantime, how about having some guesses at the current mystery bar?