Joe Carr: Regional Council Transport Committee Chair on the Government's plan for a new Northern Expressway

The Government has unveiled a new Northern Expressway that goes over Northland's Brynderwyn Hills rather than around.

It's released its planned route for Northern Expressway taking it from Warkworth east of State Highway one, over the hills to the east of the current route,  then through Whangarei.

This comes instead of a proposed bypass to the west.

Northland Regional Council Transport Committee Chair Joe Carr has voiced support for this move. 

"People aren't secure in making decisions to do with holidaying and investing in Northland, so it's pretty serious stuff."

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Heather Duplessy Island.

Speaker 2 (00:02):
So, as we know, the government's revealed its plans for
the New Northland Expressway today over the brin Durwin Hills.
It's tipped to be one of the country's most expensive
infrastructure projects, with about a dollar per ten dollars spent
by the government on infrastructure projects estimated to be spent
on it for the next couple of decades. Northland Regional
Council Chair Joe Carr calls us a crucial move for
the region and he's with us.

Speaker 1 (00:22):
Hey, Joe, Well, good evening, Heather.

Speaker 2 (00:25):
Why a crucial move.

Speaker 1 (00:27):
Well, it's absolutely vital.

Speaker 3 (00:28):
We've got two really scary sections of the State Highway
between Auckland and fung Array Dome Valley and the Brindeurs
and we've had it shut for periods of up to
four months. It comes to huge economic and disruptive costs
to the northern community and it comes to the cost

(00:50):
to New Zealand too.

Speaker 2 (00:51):
Why the cost of New Zealand, Well, it's.

Speaker 3 (00:54):
A huge amount of export product and international tourists are
interrupted that there's a lot of logging traffic that was
canceled that would have gone out from places like Helensville
out through Northport, and it's sort of a reputational cost
is that people aren't secure in making decisions to do

(01:20):
with holidaying and investing in Northland. So it's pretty serious stuff.

Speaker 2 (01:26):
Now, are you okay with the possibility that it might
be a toll road?

Speaker 1 (01:31):
Yes.

Speaker 3 (01:33):
I've been on the Transport Committee, Regional Transport Committee since
nineteen ninety eight, mostly on and sometimes off.

Speaker 1 (01:41):
We got right behind tolling.

Speaker 3 (01:42):
Our pert it wouldn't have happened without a toll, and
we unreservedly backed tolling it and it wouldn't have happened
without it. So you know, we support toll They've got
to be realistic and affordable, but you know there's a way.
One thing we do question is this this cost for

(02:04):
the brindou In section. Okay, so we're looking at sort
of six six odd kilometers of road and if you
cost it out at what the Johnson's Tunnel through the
Walkworth costs at fifty thousand a linear meter, we're only
only looking at three hundred odd million now, so that

(02:28):
just gives you an indication we don't have the extensive
viaducts involved. So the figures figures are being thrown around
about the cost of this section. There's a vital section
because we don't have decent detail routes and it just
needs to be done. So we just we can't determine

(02:50):
that the real cost until the geotechnic investigations are completed
and we've had assurances from the Minister of Transport, mister Bishrip.
We are very appreciative of these assurances that the geotech crews,
when they finished with the section between Walkworth and Tihana,

(03:13):
are going to move on to this section. So you know,
that's that's great news. So look, it's excellent news today,
but we we really really want to see that spade
go on the ground.

Speaker 2 (03:26):
Yeah, absolutely, I bet you do. Joe, Thanks very much
and good luck with the Jokha Council chairf of Northland
Regional Council. For more from Hither Duplessy Allen Drive, listen
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