The Front Page podcast: What's in the way of fixing our traffic?

Traffic congestion on State Highway 1, Wellington. Photo / Mark Mitchell

Each week The Front Page takes you behind the scenes of the biggest story from the New Zealand Herald and Newstalk ZB. Today it's the mood for change in transport, and whether it will actually happen. Hosted by Frances Cook.

Audio from this video podcast is available on podcast apps one week after its release on Herald Premium. You can subscribe to this podcast on all the main apps, including Apple podcasts here, iHeartRadio here, Spotify here, and Google podcasts here.

Emotions run hot over traffic in this country, and it's no wonder when you see how frustrating our transport systems can be.

Well the debate is now wide open again, as the Government gave $1 billion for rail in the latest budget.

KiwiRail will get the funding over two years, with $375 million for new wagons and locomotives, and $331m earmarked for buying new tracks and supporting other infrastructure.

On the other hand, the NZTA is debating lowering speed limits for our dangerous roads.

The Agency estimates about 87 per cent of speed limits in New Zealand are too high for the conditions.

For the latest Front Page podcast I talked to Herald senior writer Simon Wilson about where this debate is headed.

We discussed whether there's a "war on cars", whether the funding boost for rail will be enough, and whether we're giving enough thought to alternative modes of transport.

For the episode, watch the video podcast.

If you have questions about Herald investigations, or want to stay up to date on social media, you can find host Frances Cook on Facebook here, Instagram here and Twitter here.