North Western residents fed up with noise

Rachel Buckley, a nurse at Waitakere Hospital, finds it hard to sleep with the noise of roadworks on the North-western motorway. Photo: Susan Epskamp

Some residents living by Auckland's North Western motorway are fed up with the disruption caused by the ongoing reconstruction project and the time it is taking.

The works for the Lincoln Road Interchange are visible from Rachel Buckley's home and she says the associated noise is hard to bear.

Ms Buckley is a nurse at Waitakere Hospital and finds it difficult to sleep during the day with the constant "banging, beeping of trucks and sounds of heavy machinery".

On average it takes Ms Buckley 40 minutes to get to work, just 6km from her house.

"It's always stop and start, stop and start and this is all because of the roadworks."

Kathy Macdonald lives in Redwood Drive and is fed up with the noise.

"I am already sleep deprived from doing shift work and I need sleep during the day and they make it impossible. It totally disrupts your life."

Ms Macdonald is also frustrated by the constant change to the layout of the road, and the multiple detours in place, which often add another 5km to her journey.

The Auckland Council's finance and performance committee last week supported an Accelerated Transport Programme funded by the city's new Interim Transport Levy for the next three years.

The accelerated programme includes the Te Atatu Road Interchange which is one of five projects underway to complete the Western Ring Route connecting Lincoln Road, Te Atatu, Waterview and St Lukes. This means the residents near the north-western motorway will have to bear with the noise for a while longer.

Mayor Len Brown says: "This issue of transport is the number one issue for our region, and through the Accelerated Transport Network we are addressing issues that need immediate action."

- This article was originally published on AUT's Te Waha Nui website.