Letter of the week: Ditch road reliance and embrace rail
We are hardwired for short-term thinking. Therefore, when I recently made comparisons between road and rail travel it was based on the potential of both, but very quickly there were responses based on the here and now, which is precisely my point. John Strevens and Al Corkin base their views on a system of urban sprawl, whereby the nearest bus stop is 500 to 1000m away from one’s home and the same, or more, at the destination. A lot of lines in New Zealand are single track, but it is double track in the urban areas of Auckland and Wellington and as far south as Hamilton and as far north from Wellington to Waikanae. When I speak of capacity, I am speaking of urban use and pointing to the amount of arable land needed to build a railway compared to a road and, in an urban sense, what is the most efficient way of moving a lot of people around a city. Valerie Green-Moss says it all. She is a superannuitant who “must” rely on her car to go everywhere as there is no public transport for her. What I am talking about is investment, from now on, must be in the design of cities with more reliance on public transport. We believe that designing communities in ribbons, such as from Kumeu to Silverdale via Kaukapakapa, and from Silverdale to Albany, prevents urban sprawl and reduces the stresses of inner-city densification, which can promote social problems. Ribbon development will create communities with a mix of high rise, terraced housing and where no one is more than a five-minute bike ride to a train and no more than 10-minute train ride to a supermarket. In the Northwest, the flood plain could be returned to a wetland to deal with flooding. However, we also need good passenger rail throughout the country. My point is that rail has been neglected in favour of roads. This needs to change now.
Niall Robertson, Public Transport Users Association chair
Education only way to end cycle
Paul Cheshire (HoS, July 16) seems to draw a rather long bow in laying the blame for poverty and crime at the feet of big business and wilful disregard by the affluent. He correctly points out that children suffer disadvantage from being born into families with a history of deprivation and violence. Too often the focus goes on the short-term measures required to manage the present manifestations of poverty and crime. The long-term solution will hinge on recognition of the steady decline in educational achievement over recent decades and the steps required to reverse that. Instead of a growing cohort of poorly-served school leavers with few options, our youth need to be equipped with the fundamentals that provide aspiration and the tools to a better life. A system that shuns mediocrity, rewards excellence in its educators, inspires best effort and caters for all abilities will deliver the long-term solution to a perennial malaise.
George Williams, Whangamata
Rebrand foolhardy now
What a bad move in these tough economic times, with food prices going through the roof , for Countdown to embark on a $400 million rebranding exercise. You would have thought they would have put this on hold until things improve?
Jock MacVicar, Hauraki
Dream start
What an amazing start to the Fifa Women’s World Cup. In front of a record-breaking 42,137 spectators at Eden Park, the Football Ferns beat a higher-ranked Norway 1-0. This was absolutely the dream start to what is the biggest women’s tournament ever held in our country. Hopefully our girls can carry on and beat the Philippines and/or Switzerland and progress out of the group stage. Guessing there will be sell-out crowds in both Wellington and Dunedin. Whatever the outcome I predict this tournament will be a huge success both here and across the ditch with our co-hosts Australia. Truly a dream start. Well done, girls.
Glen Stanton, Mairangi Bay
Respect for the ref
What a joy to watch the opening game of the Women’s World Cup and especially the complete absence of any protestations and harassment towards the referee.
John Norris, Whangamatā
Downtown shooting
Commiserations to all those affected by the tragic events in Auckland. Following this tragic event, surely the question must be asked about the Government’s policy of reducing the prison population through a greater use of home detention.
J Porter, Taradale
Early intervention
As New Zealand mourns the dead and injured on 20/07 in stunned disbelief, questions will be asked, reviews undertaken, and eventually blame apportioned. We’ve been lucky to live in such a safe country and it’s shocking to discover our vulnerability in such an ordinary workday setting. Since Christchurch, we’ve known, (though we didn’t want to face it), that guns could fall into the wrong hands with tragic results. Can things be turned around? Of course, they can, because we will never reach the “wild west “mentality so pervasive in the US, where even minor grudges are resolved at the end of a gun. Before the rhetoric rolls out about being soft on crime, etc, it would be helpful to get to the core of why that gun was picked up in the first place. Children live what they learn, and it’s been reported that Matu Tangi Matua Reid came from a background where violence was commonplace. No, I will never excuse what he did, but if we don’t seriously start prioritising meaningful early intervention programmes, there won’t be enough jails to lock these young offenders up.
Mary Hearn, Glendowie
Ankle bracelet vs jail?
This will create a lot of debate, especially given the violent history of the now-deceased perpetrator. Too much trust and hope lazily creeping into our justice system, and two good lives have been lost.
Glenn Forsyth, Taupō
Waste of money
It is shocking that our woeful Government is wasting $15 million on helping restore the falling apart St James Theatre. I have been their many times and it was never anything special. Laurence Olivier, the Queen etc had been there - so what! The money would have far better use elsewhere.
Lars Lungren, St Heliers
Home detention
When home detention was first introduced we were assured it was to be reserved for non-violent offending only. Now I’m wondering what part of domestic violence is non-violent.
Colleen Wright, Botany Downs
Women and crime
It’s well known poverty, racism, poor housing and unemployment underlie crime, particularly violent crime. Why is it that there is a huge group that is poor, unemployed, lives in crowded, substandard housing, and is of Māori or Pacific origin, thus the victim of racism, yet commits few crimes, especially violent crimes. I’m talking about women, who commit about 5per cent of violent crime, and less than 20per cent of all crime. Women don’t seem to need to get their sense of worth from stealing cars and ramming them into shops. There’s plenty of research to help us understand why there’s this difference but I don’t hear politicians quoting this research at any stage when they rave on about reducing crime. If we don’t understand the causes, we won’t stop the actions.
Susan Grimsdell, Auckland Central
Build jails if needed
Paul Cheshire (Letters, July 16) blames the rich for the increase in the prison population, together with Britain joining the EU for the closing of meatworks and the resulting formation of gangs. What rot. Having some experience as a contractor and supplier to the meatworks industry, it largely was the intransigence of its trade unions and their total opposition to the introduction of new technology — Longburn, for example. New technology and better ways of doing things is always evolving and the results have been a win for the largest proportion of the population, although it reduced the need for manual processes, typing pools and the now-extinct car and television assembling industries in New Zealand. The failure to adapt, the lack of discipline and breakdown of family values together with the opting out of education has contributed to some of our population taking what they want, illegally and often violently. Of course we need to have rehabilitation programmes in prison, but if more prisons are necessary to protect us until the message gets through, then build them.
David Hallett, Mount Maunganui