Chhour KarenKAREN CHHOUR (ACT): Thank you Mr Speaker. I have major concern about the quality and safety and value for money in Auckland Transport (AT) road renewal works in the Upper Harbour - Unsworth Heights area. This work is delivered by Auckland Transport and their contractors funded partly by ratepayers and partly by taxpayers via the New Zealand Transport Agency. Many residents believe the work is simply not necessary as the existing asphalt surface is fine. Twenty years ago when the housing area was developed the developers were required to lay asphalt but now AT are laying chip seal in these very lovely residential areas. It appears the work is done to a very poor standard and is already failing in many locations. AT have failed to manage quality and safety and have not delivered value for money with these works. It has been brought to my attention over the last few months that many residents are not happy with AT's performance. In my area it seems a very high percentage of roads have been selected for resealing much to the confusion of the residents living in said streets who don't see the need for the work. They are not happy with the safety issues from loose chip. They are not happy with the bitumen—road tar as I know it—melting and being tracked into their homes and they are not happy with the apparent waste of money. While this is not my area of expertise I have listened to the residents' concerns and looked into the issue. I found that AT made a decision in 2014 that would adapt a policy to downgrade all suburban roads from asphalt to chip seal where they carry less than 10000 vehicles a day. This would include most Auckland residential streets. This sounds good in theory because as I've been told the chip seal is a quarter of the price of asphalt. But upon investigation it appears the other costs may outweigh the savings. I've seen comments from multiple sources—including media articles and social media as well as in person—where the people are expressing their concern from many angles. The roads are noisier. There seems to be loose chip for months and in some cases up to two years after the work is complete. There's injuries from slipping and falling on the loose stones. Cyclists have stated that it's dangerous as stone chips are being flicked at them from passing cars. Stone chips collect on the side of the road where they are trying to ride. Children can no longer play on their scooters and bikes and skateboards as they come to abrupt stops when hitting the loose stone. Parents have noted that kids are getting hit by loose stone when walking to school. It gathers in driveways and in the grass. Mowing lawns is no longer safe with reports of broken windows from flying stones. There are many complaints about chipped or broken windscreens and paint damage to cars. Another common problem is stones getting stuck in the car disk brakes scratching the disks which means they have to be skimmed at some cost. One expensive event of damage was a brake pad sensor costing around $200 to repair. In a time when people are struggling to pay their bills and feed their children the added pressure when these kinds of costs hit them are enormous and must not be swept under the carpet any longer. Residents are asking if this is safe for their environment when stones are being washed down the stormwater system. Will this cause issues in the winter months by clogging the pipes and causing flooding? How much of this is going out to sea? A petition has been started and has 1600 signatures and climbing. I am asking for AT to look into the quality safety and value for money issues and report back to our community.