Editorial: Road benefits

OPINION: The announcement this week that the Government is fast-tracking parts of the planned $730 million Christchurch motorways package is good news from several angles.

The first immediate benefit is to those involved in the actual building work. According to the Transport Minister, Steven Joyce, work on the $140m southern motorway extension will directly employ 150 people doing contracting, sub-contracting and design work, not to mention more involved in the supply of supporting goods and services.

Starting this work four months ahead of schedule at a time when at least some of those people would have been feeling the pinch of the straitened economy will bring welcome relief. The extension project's commencement ahead of schedule is a tangible outcome of the Government's action to meet the economic downturn – it was one of five national short-term spending projects confirmed in a fiscal stimulus package last year.

The roading projects are also undoubtedly needed to improve access for vital areas of the Christchurch and Canterbury economy. Other projects in the package include further stages of the southern motorway, the northern motorway extension and the western corridor. Work on the western bypass is due to begin this year and all the projects are expected to be completed within 10 years.

The aim is to provide better access to the Christchurch central business district, Christchurch International Airport and Lyttelton port, and so produce significant economic benefits to the region. The increase in transport efficiency will also get heavy traffic away from the city and suburbs, and make travelling around the city safer. The projects recognise, as the minister said, that Christchurch is the gateway for business and tourism for the South Island. This is unquestionably important for the city and the region. If transport bottlenecks develop at any point, there are rivals for the business who will seek to take advantage and lure it away.

Some have criticised the roading package for its failure to look at alternatives in transport. The co-leader of the Greens, Russel Norman, for instance, has accused the Government of being brain-dead on the issue and locking the country into reliance on fossil fuels. The chairwoman of the Canterbury Regional Transport Committee, Jo Kane, while welcoming the investment, was disappointed there was not more for public transport.

Taking a long-term view, there is some merit to the criticism. Our use of fossil fuels will have to decline. As part of that, public transport of all kinds will probably expand. The mayor, Bob Parker, has recently floated the tantalising notion of a light rail system for Christchurch. But that, and other such ideas, are very long-term projects, and thus not concerned with the economy's immediate needs.

The economic performance of the region must be preserved and improved now. Neglect of necessary roading projects in Auckland and Wellington in the past have contributed to the transport difficulties both those cities have, and the vast expense necessary to try to fix them. It is right that Christchurch is doing all it can to avoid the same problems before they develop.

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