One of the biggest concerns of Newmarket retailers and residents is what effect Westfield's planned mall will have on traffic.
Unless major changes are made to Newmarket's streets and a northbound off-ramp from the Southern Motorway is built, log-jams will be created.
The mall will be more than twice as big as St Lukes, which gets 10 million-plus visits a year.
Traffic will be worst on Saturdays and in the evenings, says the Beca Carter/Tuohey Consulting report prepared for Westfield and now lodged with the Auckland City Council.
Problems will be worst around the mall's entry and exit points - off Remuera Rd between St Marks and Middleton Rd, at least two different points on Nuffield St, off Mahuru St near the Southern Motorway and off St Marks Rd.
As well, the mall will be built over the main North Island railway line.
The Beca Carter/Tuohey report says a new rail platform could be built under the mall for passengers.
The mall will also host a bus station.
To solve the problems, Westfield wants major street changes made.
It proposes a new one-way system, turning lanes, removing many street parking places, realigning other streets, banning some turning and new traffic signals. It also wants the new motorway off-ramp at the St Marks interchange, using airspace over the railway line for the accessway.
"A development of this size would have effects not only on the local street network, but also on the motorway system, which will likely carry a sizeable proportion of site traffic," the Beca/Tuohey report says.
The report said it had assumed "a minimal public transport component," but said scope existed for a more integrated approach.
It noted 84 per cent of St Lukes patrons arrived in cars.
Only 5 per cent used public transport and 11 per cent walked.
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