Fenton Darien: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to MinistersText is incorporated into the Bound VolumeFenton Darien: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers[Sitting date: 18 February 2014. Volume:696;Page:15984. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.]9.DARIEN FENTON (Labour) to theMinister of Transport: Why is the construction of the City Rail Link only beginning in 2020?Hon GERRY BROWNLEE (Minister of Transport): That is the Government’s preferred time line. The proposed construction date has been set from our perspective at 2020 even though analysis suggests that this is 5 years before it is required to meetdemand generated from employment and passenger patronage. We are moving forward to that date because we believe in the future of Auckland as a powerhouse of our economy.Darien Fenton: What does he say to Precinct Properties the owner of the Downtown Shopping Centre which is offering to dig part of the tunnel itself so it can get started on the redevelopment of its site and the owners of the $300 million Elliot Tower project which would like to start by 2016 but because of his playing politics with Auckland’s future will be held up by 5 years?Hon GERRY BROWNLEE: There are a couple of points. Firstly there is nothing to stop the Downtown project progressing as the owners have suggested. There is no particular involvement of the rail loop with the other project that is mentioned there. In any event it would be odd for the Government to commit to a $3 billion project for a $200 million project. I think the other point is that this was well signalled in June of last year and there were criteria laid down that were perfectly reasonable. The City Centre Future Access Study suggested that there would be 46 percent growth in employment and up to 20 million passenger movements by 2020. The most recent information we have is that neither of those statistics is likely to be anywhere near achieved and nor are the much lesser and more generous criteria laid down by the Prime Minister—those being 25 percent growth in employment in the central business district and 20 million passenger movements as a trend. Neither of those is happening.Phil Twyford: Why did he deliberately pick the trigger of rail passenger trips exceeding 20 million for the release of funding when he knew full well that rail passenger trips are not projected to reach that target even by 2020 and is this just another example of playing politics with the prosperity and growth of Auckland?Hon GERRY BROWNLEE: No the figure was in fact from the City Centre Future Access Study not cooked up by the Government. We are not playing politics. We have made it clear that we would like to fund the project from 2020. If those two criteria can be met—two criteria that are about half of what the access study claimed would happen—then it could come forward. But there is no trend in the December 2013 analysis to suggest that the time line of 2020 is anything other than reasonable.Darien Fenton: Is he aware that by next year the Britomart station will be at capacity for train movements and that by 2020 morning traffic in Auckland will be so congested that it will have slowed to 7 kilometres per hour?Hon GERRY BROWNLEE: There are two things. Firstly there is the commitment that the Government has made to electrification: $1.6 billion including new electric trains. But once you have got those trains and once you have got the electrified system what is really important to make it work is to have people on it. Although the train stations might be chocker with trains if people are not using them there is little point in investing further.Phil Twyford: Was the Government’s backflip on the City Rail Link a genuine commitment to the project—[Interruption]Mr SPEAKER: Order! Can I ask the member to start again.Phil Twyford: Was the Government’s backflip on the City Rail Link a genuine commitment to the project or an act of political expediency and given that bringing the start date forward to 2015-16 would not cost the taxpayer or the ratepayer an extra cent does his refusal to bring it forward not indicate the latter?Hon GERRY BROWNLEE: The Government has not done a backflip on the City Rail Link. What we have said is that we will fund it from 2020 or sooner if the criteria set down by the Government—much more generous criteria and much more easily achieved than the City Centre Future Access Study suggested—are met. Then it would be brought forward.