One of the big issues facing New Zealanders in this election is what to do about our infrastructure, much of which is in a poor state. It is not just roading; it is also our public transport infrastructure, our water, wastewater and sewerage infrastructure and much else besides. In looking at proposals for dealing with these we have to ask the following questions: are the right priorities being addressed? Have we a clear idea about the costs of remediation, reconstruction or new construction? Will the solutions add to or alleviate our environmental challenges, especially those associated with climate change?
All of these questions are relevant to the grand transport plan announced by Judith Collins soon after taking over as National's third leader in the last three months. Grand it certainly is. There are roads, expressways often, from here to wherever you want to go (well, at least from Auckland to other parts of the so-called golden triangle — a term more normally applied to one of the world's largest opium growing areas). The vision even includes tunnels.
But does it stack up against the kinds of questions asked above? Many of the projects have been talked about for some time and some are already on the longer-term agenda. What is immediately noticeable, looking at the upper North Island part of it, is the great majority of the spending on major non-roading proposals is in the distant future. Given the life expectancy of National Party leaders these days, it is a little hard to take too seriously the promise of projects which are not due to start until at least three elections after the coming one.
Some of the grandest of these, such as a tunnel through the Kaimais, are not costed at all. Some, such as new harbour crossings, are costed, it would appear, by throwing a dart at a wall. One thing we know is that these big projects end up costing far more than their original estimates (think Auckland's City Rail Link and the light rail project).