frogblog » Basin Reserve

Wellington’s unpopular new tunnel still going ahead

frog — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 02:57:05 +0000

Wellingtonista quickly summarises the protest this morning about the City Council’s plans to go on a massively expensive road building spree from Ngauranga to Wellington airport. The plans include a Basin Reserve flyover and further car tunnels under Mount Victoria and The Terrace (just as we enter a financial crisis, peak oil and the need to reduce our greenhouse gases):

Of course, the GWRC transport plans (PDF) are well worth protesting about: more roads, no light rail? Despite the hundreds (and the great majority) of submissions asking for the opposite?

As Wellington City Councillor and Greens’ spokesperson Iona Pannett points out…

The Plan ignores Wellingtonians’ huge support for more public transport, their opposition to new tunnels and Wellington City’s commitment to carbon neutrality … Over 4,500 people made submissions on the study the Plan is based on, with 3,750 people supporting light rail, more buses and walking and cycling options whilst opposing the two tunnels and flyover. In contrast only 480 people submitted that the tunnels should be built. So, by a ratio of nearly 8 to 1 there was huge support for public transport and opposition to roads…

Quite.

But, what really caught the eye was the many protesters’ placards. Not so much the front of them, but the back. It was heartening to see the Greens and their allies recycling (presumably) discarded Real Estate signage upon which to display their protest slogans. Nice.

I suspect that recycling was as much to do with economy as it was environmentalism, but we’ll take the praise thanks.

Rolling out the covers

frog — Wed, 08 Oct 2008 19:48:04 +0000

Another sign that spring is springing and summer is on the way has been seeing the grounds-keepers preparing the pitch at the Basin Reserve over the last two mornings on my way to work. I bet they’re glad they work at one of the cricket grounds in New Zealand that does not require them to squirt the poisonous chemical endosulfan on their pitch. And I am sure Wellington star Jesse Ryder probably feels the same now that he has declared he’s off the chemicals.

Sacrilege

frog — Mon, 05 May 2008 23:39:54 +0000

Wellington Mayor Kerry Prendergast wants to build a flyover beside the Basin Reserve within 5 years. Sue Kedgley, voicing the concerns of some of this blog’s cricket lovers noted:

“I’ve got no doubt that you’re not going to hear the thud of the cricket ball because it’s going to be drowned out by the dull roar of traffic.”

Gahh! I mean putting aside my Green expectation that a city with carbon neutral ambitions would invest in public transport rather than new roads, why pick on the Basin Reserve of all things? Especially given that even the proponents of the plan in the news article say it will not ease congestion. Isn’t there like some sort of heritage site or historic graveyard they could flatten instead, like last time?

Photo Credit: wiifm69