NZ Herald
  • Home
  • Latest news
  • Herald NOW
  • Video
  • New Zealand
  • Sport
  • World
  • Business
  • Entertainment
  • Podcasts
  • Quizzes
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
  • Viva
  • Weather

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • New Zealand
    • All New Zealand
    • Crime
    • Politics
    • Education
    • Open Justice
    • Scam Update
  • Herald NOW
  • On The Up
  • World
    • All World
    • Australia
    • Asia
    • UK
    • United States
    • Middle East
    • Europe
    • Pacific
  • Business
    • All Business
    • MarketsSharesCurrencyCommoditiesStock TakesCrypto
    • Markets with Madison
    • Media Insider
    • Business analysis
    • Personal financeKiwiSaverInterest ratesTaxInvestment
    • EconomyInflationGDPOfficial cash rateEmployment
    • Small business
    • Business reportsMood of the BoardroomProject AucklandSustainable business and financeCapital markets reportAgribusiness reportInfrastructure reportDynamic business
    • Deloitte Top 200 Awards
    • CompaniesAged CareAgribusinessAirlinesBanking and financeConstructionEnergyFreight and logisticsHealthcareManufacturingMedia and MarketingRetailTelecommunicationsTourism
  • Opinion
    • All Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Editorials
    • Business analysis
    • Premium opinion
    • Letters to the editor
  • Politics
  • Sport
    • All Sport
    • OlympicsParalympics
    • RugbySuper RugbyNPCAll BlacksBlack FernsRugby sevensSchool rugby
    • CricketBlack CapsWhite Ferns
    • Racing
    • NetballSilver Ferns
    • LeagueWarriorsNRL
    • FootballWellington PhoenixAuckland FCAll WhitesFootball FernsEnglish Premier League
    • GolfNZ Open
    • MotorsportFormula 1
    • Boxing
    • UFC
    • BasketballNBABreakersTall BlacksTall Ferns
    • Tennis
    • Cycling
    • Athletics
    • SailingAmerica's CupSailGP
    • Rowing
  • Lifestyle
    • All Lifestyle
    • Viva - Food, fashion & beauty
    • Society Insider
    • Royals
    • Sex & relationships
    • Food & drinkRecipesRecipe collectionsRestaurant reviewsRestaurant bookings
    • Health & wellbeing
    • Fashion & beauty
    • Pets & animals
    • The Selection - Shop the trendsShop fashionShop beautyShop entertainmentShop giftsShop home & living
    • Milford's Investing Place
  • Entertainment
    • All Entertainment
    • TV
    • MoviesMovie reviews
    • MusicMusic reviews
    • BooksBook reviews
    • Culture
    • ReviewsBook reviewsMovie reviewsMusic reviewsRestaurant reviews
  • Travel
    • All Travel
    • News
    • New ZealandNorthlandAucklandWellingtonCanterburyOtago / QueenstownNelson-TasmanBest NZ beaches
    • International travelAustraliaPacific IslandsEuropeUKUSAAfricaAsia
    • Rail holidays
    • Cruise holidays
    • Ski holidays
    • Luxury travel
    • Adventure travel
  • Kāhu Māori news
  • Environment
    • All Environment
    • Our Green Future
  • Talanoa Pacific news
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Property Insider
    • Interest rates tracker
    • Residential property listings
    • Commercial property listings
  • Health
  • Technology
    • All Technology
    • AI
    • Social media
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
    • Opinion
    • Audio & podcasts
  • Weather forecasts
    • All Weather forecasts
    • Kaitaia
    • Whangārei
    • Dargaville
    • Auckland
    • Thames
    • Tauranga
    • Hamilton
    • Whakatāne
    • Rotorua
    • Tokoroa
    • Te Kuiti
    • Taumaranui
    • Taupō
    • Gisborne
    • New Plymouth
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Dannevirke
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Levin
    • Paraparaumu
    • Masterton
    • Wellington
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Blenheim
    • Westport
    • Reefton
    • Kaikōura
    • Greymouth
    • Hokitika
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
    • Wānaka
    • Oamaru
    • Queenstown
    • Dunedin
    • Gore
    • Invercargill
  • Meet the journalists
  • Promotions & competitions
  • OneRoof property listings
  • Driven car news

Puzzles & Quizzes

  • Puzzles
    • All Puzzles
    • Sudoku
    • Code Cracker
    • Crosswords
    • Cryptic crossword
    • Wordsearch
  • Quizzes
    • All Quizzes
    • Morning quiz
    • Afternoon quiz
    • Sports quiz

Regions

  • Northland
    • All Northland
    • Far North
    • Kaitaia
    • Kerikeri
    • Kaikohe
    • Bay of Islands
    • Whangarei
    • Dargaville
    • Kaipara
    • Mangawhai
  • Auckland
  • Waikato
    • All Waikato
    • Hamilton
    • Coromandel & Hauraki
    • Matamata & Piako
    • Cambridge
    • Te Awamutu
    • Tokoroa & South Waikato
    • Taupō & Tūrangi
  • Bay of Plenty
    • All Bay of Plenty
    • Katikati
    • Tauranga
    • Mount Maunganui
    • Pāpāmoa
    • Te Puke
    • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua
  • Hawke's Bay
    • All Hawke's Bay
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Havelock North
    • Central Hawke's Bay
    • Wairoa
  • Taranaki
    • All Taranaki
    • Stratford
    • New Plymouth
    • Hāwera
  • Manawatū - Whanganui
    • All Manawatū - Whanganui
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Manawatū
    • Tararua
    • Horowhenua
  • Wellington
    • All Wellington
    • Kapiti
    • Wairarapa
    • Upper Hutt
    • Lower Hutt
  • Nelson & Tasman
    • All Nelson & Tasman
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Tasman
  • Marlborough
  • West Coast
  • Canterbury
    • All Canterbury
    • Kaikōura
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
  • Otago
    • All Otago
    • Oamaru
    • Dunedin
    • Balclutha
    • Alexandra
    • Queenstown
    • Wanaka
  • Southland
    • All Southland
    • Invercargill
    • Gore
    • Stewart Island
  • Gisborne

Media

  • Video
    • All Video
    • NZ news video
    • Herald NOW
    • Business news video
    • Politics news video
    • Sport video
    • World news video
    • Lifestyle video
    • Entertainment video
    • Travel video
    • Markets with Madison
    • Kea Kids news
  • Podcasts
    • All Podcasts
    • The Front Page
    • On the Tiles
    • Ask me Anything
    • The Little Things
  • Cartoons
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / New Zealand

John Roughan: Canning new Auckland bridge not end of the road for cycle commuters

John Roughan
By John Roughan
Opinion Writer·NZ Herald·
22 Oct, 2021 04:00 PM5 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

    Reminder, this is a Premium article and requires a subscription to read.

Cyclists are calling for a three-month cycle lane trial on the Auckland Harbour Bridge. At a 'Liberate the Lane' rally in May, hundreds of cyclists broke police lines and rode over the bridge. Video / Dean Purcell
John Roughan
Opinion by John Roughan
Former editorial writer and columnist, NZ Herald
Learn more

OPINION:

So it goes on. Shops closed, events cancelled, nowhere to go. Auckland is now 70 per cent fully vaccinated, the level at which Sydney and Melbourne are returning to life. But we know we have the world's most cautious Government. Let's talk about something else.

Let's talk about something grand and lively that enabled many of us to go somewhere every day - the Auckland Harbour Bridge, assuming it's still there.

A few weeks ago Transport Minister Michael Wood read the last rites on the decision to build a companion bridge purely for bicycles and pedestrians, which must rank as the most bizarre decision by any New Zealand government within memory.

At an estimated cost of $785 million, almost nobody in Auckland thought it value for money and it was greeted with a chorus of derision. But what impressed me was that in that chorus – in fact taking a leading part in it – were Auckland's keenest apostles of cycling.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

I am not a cyclist and it annoys me that so much petrol tax revenue has been wasted on dedicated cycleways that are empty every time I see them. But I am grateful and deeply impressed that cycling enthusiasts drew the line at this egregious indulgence of their desires.

Concept drawing for the Northern Pathway.
Concept drawing for the Northern Pathway.

I don't think the public responsibility shown by those cyclists has been sufficiently acknowledged. It would have been easy for them to get loudly in behind the bike bridge and the Government would have been counting on them to do so. Their numbers might not be electorally significant but they are an articulate and effective lobby.

The cycling and walking bridge announced by Wood and Finance Minister Grant Robertson together on June 4 was not a mere "proposal" as Robertson called it later. It was announced as a definite decision, construction to begin next year. They were committing big money for an economic stimulus and this project qualified as climate-friendly infrastructure.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

The derision would have died down in time and it was all too possible we would have seen a white elephant erected across Auckland harbour. It was going to be standing right alongside the lovely old grey elephant that has graced the city for 62 years.

Conceptual drawings of the companion bridge tried to make it almost imperceptible beside the existing structure, but it was hard to believe it would be. More likely, it would visually detract from that icon on Auckland's landscape.

Discover more

Opinion

John Roughan: Why the harbour bridge cycling invasion backfired

04 Jun 05:00 PM
Opinion

John Roughan: Light rail heavy on cash, light on practicality

09 Jul 05:00 PM
Opinion

John Roughan: Power cut a cold blast of reality for Government

13 Aug 05:00 PM
Opinion

John Roughan: The moment the Olympics jumped the shark

06 Aug 05:00 PM

So for all these reasons, I think we owe something to the cycling fraternity who said, "No, thanks," to their own bridge.

They are still pressing for a section of the existing bridge to be permanently set aside for cycling, probably the outer northbound lanes they "liberated" for a morning ride back in May. I think a permanent loss of capacity for cars would cause too much congestion but a proposal has been floated for two lanes to be closed once a month. Something like that could be done.

The Liberate the Lane bike protest in May. Perhaps we could try this every Sunday? Photo / Dean Purcell
The Liberate the Lane bike protest in May. Perhaps we could try this every Sunday? Photo / Dean Purcell

In fact it would do little harm to close those lanes every Sunday morning for cyclists to ride across the harbour. Bridge traffic is usually light on a Sunday morning before Aucklanders start returning from weekends away. There's no reason I can see that the northbound clip-on could not be closed to motor vehicles from dawn to midday.
I remain to be convinced there are 5000 commuters anxious to bike across the bridge to work every day, as the cycling lobby claims, but there might be plenty of recreational cyclists on both sides of the harbour who would relish the ability to cross the bridge on a weekend.

It would certainly beat crossing by some sort of special ferry that has been suggested as an alternative. Even a non-cyclist can see how that would reduce the attraction of a ride.
So why not give them a clip-on? (A single lane is considered unsafe by traffic engineers. Cyclists would be too close to cars moving at motorway speeds.) If nothing else, a weekly opportunity would show whether there is really much enthusiasm for biking and walking over the coat hanger.

The bridge is a high and fairly steep hill. Engineers designing a companion were including plenty of resting bays for cyclists who under-estimated the climb. The bridge is also windy, noisy and it moves. If you stall in traffic up there it is not a pleasant place to be.

May's "Liberate the Lane" folk claimed to have enjoyed their ride and I'm sure it was exhilarating coming down. I'm less sure many would want to do it more than once. But cyclists deserve a chance to show I'm wrong.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

What better way to celebrate freedom if it ever returns.

Save

    Share this article

    Reminder, this is a Premium article and requires a subscription to read.

Latest from New Zealand

Crime

'No bad blood': Inmate apologises for shanking prison officer

06 Jul 08:00 AM
Wellington

'Exercise caution': Investigation into Kiwi's death in elephant attack

06 Jul 06:58 AM
New Zealand

Police respond to assault at pool: One hospitalised, charges laid

06 Jul 06:31 AM

There’s more to Hawai‘i than beaches and buffets – here’s how to see it differently

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from New Zealand

'No bad blood': Inmate apologises for shanking prison officer

'No bad blood': Inmate apologises for shanking prison officer

06 Jul 08:00 AM

The guard was lured from his office and then attacked by the prisoner.

'Exercise caution': Investigation into Kiwi's death in elephant attack

'Exercise caution': Investigation into Kiwi's death in elephant attack

06 Jul 06:58 AM
Police respond to assault at pool: One hospitalised, charges laid

Police respond to assault at pool: One hospitalised, charges laid

06 Jul 06:31 AM
'Harrowing incident': Coastguard rescues boaties after 3m waves hit vessel near Motunau

'Harrowing incident': Coastguard rescues boaties after 3m waves hit vessel near Motunau

06 Jul 06:20 AM
From early mornings to easy living
sponsored

From early mornings to easy living

NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • NZ Herald e-editions
  • Daily puzzles & quizzes
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Subscribe to the NZ Herald newspaper
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP