A carriage ride back to the transport future

By BERNARD ORSMAN

The last rays of afternoon sun shone on the Oamaru stone and Coromandel granite of the old Chief Post Office yesterday as Auckland City Mayor John Banks officially opened the $211 million Britomart project.

Flanked by the 19 councillors, Mr Banks unveiled a marble plaque inside the historic building to mark the end of one of Auckland City's most contentious and ambitious civic projects.

"The journey of Britomart has already been long and colourful. However, this is not the end. The 25th of July 2003 marks the beginning," Mr Banks told about 460 invited guests.

Guests of honour Sir Edmund and Lady Hillaryhad ridden down Queen St, from the town hall to Queen Elizabeth Square, with Mr Banks in a horse-drawn carriage.

Amid frequent stops, a beaming Sir Edmund was applauded by the large crowd and workers waving from office windows.

Mr Banks later made no apologies for his past criticism of Britomart - "the temple at the bottom of Queen St" being his stock phrase - but said he was pleased with the restoration of the 1912 Chief Post Office building, the opportunities for better public transport and the future restoration of 19 heritage buildings around the transport centre.

He said Bluewater Consortium and Melview Developments had been shortlisted for the above-ground transformation of the 5.2ha Britomart precinct into an urban transport village. The winner should be known by October.

He praised architects Mario Madayag and Jasmax's Greg Boyden for their splendid adaptation of the Chief Post Office, and acknowledged the vision and tenacity of previous mayors Les Mills and Christine Fletcher and their councils.

Mr Mills was overseas. Mrs Fletcher boycotted the opening in protest against the $100,000 bill to open Britomart.

Transport committee chairman Greg McKeown said Britomart would be as important to Auckland as the Harbour Bridge.

Sir Edmund, who has just celebrated the 50th anniversary of climbing Mt Everest and was the first recipient of Auckland City Council's Distinguished Citizen Award, said Britomart was spectacular.

"We have to have this sort of place. The cars of the road are just a pain in the neck. We need some general transport," he said.

Transport Minister Paul Swain said Britomart was a world-class facility that Aucklanders could be proud of.

Legislation about to go before Parliament would provide no quick fix for traffic gridlock, he said, but a "creative" plan was in the pipeline.

Auckland's mayoral forum has called for road tolling on existing highways, congestion charges and regional fuel taxes to pay for transport projects.

The forum wanted the necessary law changes to be part of the Land Transport Management Bill.

But Mr Swain said these options would form a separate bill now being prepared.

He gave another hint that the Government would borrow millions of dollars for a handout to the region. The debt would not be financed by hitting motorists' pockets.

* An open day at Britomart today from 11am to 5pm features musicians, street performers, Thomas the Tank Engine and vintage vehicles. Festivities end at 5pm with a laser show outside the old Chief Post Office.