Genter Julie Anne: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume 
Genter Julie Anne: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
[Sitting date: 30 August 2012. Volume:683;Page:4990. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.] 
6. 
JULIE ANNE GENTER (Green) 
 to the  
Minister of Transport 
: What percentage of money announced yesterday in the National Land Transport Programme for 2012-2015 for public transport in Auckland will be paid for by the Auckland Council if any and what percentage will come from the National Land Transport fund itself? 
Hon GERRY BROWNLEE (Minister of Transport) 
: 
 Kia ora. It is 46 percent and 54 percent respectively. 
Julie Anne Genter 
: What new commitments has he made to invest in much-needed public transport infrastructure over the next 3 years excluding rail electrification and the purchase of the electric multiple units which were committed to under the previous Government? 
Hon GERRY BROWNLEE 
: I do not think that anyone should underestimate the cost of servicing the investment in those electric trains or in fact the whole of the public transport system. But what I would say is that we have in conjunction with the Auckland City Council and the transport authority up there currently got a central city access study going on that should produce a result looking at multi-nodal transport and the way in which the pressing problem of congestion as it is projected forward currently in Auckland can be dealt with. One of the things we look at of course is that four out of five Aucklanders answering surveys so far have said that for the foreseeable future they would expect to be using their cars for those journeys. So we do need to let that study run its course so that we do have a good basis of information on which to make our final decisions. The next aspect of the study of course will be to look at whether the— 
Mr SPEAKER 
: Order! 
Hon GERRY BROWNLEE 
: I am sorry. It is a fascinating topic as you know. 
Julie Anne Genter 
: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. I wonder whether you could offer your assistance in interpreting the Minister’s answer. It seems to me that he did not actually say that there were any new commitments to public transport infrastructure— 
Mr SPEAKER 
: Order! Forgive me; I thought I did hear the Minister refer to various investments that related to public transport. In fact he went on at some length in relation to them I thought. The member has further supplementary questions. 
Julie Anne Genter 
: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. I am sorry; my question was quite specific about infrastructure—what the new commitments to infrastructure were over the next 3 years. I do not believe that the Minister specifically addressed any infrastructure projects— 
Mr SPEAKER 
: Infrastructure does not relate just to the steel and the concrete and what have you. If I heard the Minister correctly he talked about plans that were being put in place that did require investment for study and that kind of thing. So that is investment in infrastructure even if it is not in the bricks and mortar. The member has further supplementary questions though. 
Julie Anne Genter 
: Would it not be smarter to invest in the transport modes that are growing rapidly rather than spending over a billion dollars on 4.5 kilometres of motorway which will not reduce congestion or protect the economy from oil shocks? 
Hon GERRY BROWNLEE 
: Moving forward it is projected that traffic movements—that is motor vehicle traffic—into Auckland city over a very short period of time are going to increase by about 1.5 million movements on an annual basis. That is a very rapidly growing transport statistic and it is a choice being made by Aucklanders and yes we are investing in it. 
Julie Anne Genter 
: How can he be meeting the economic and transport needs of Auckland when his Government is throwing the lion’s share of the transport budget at a few low-value motorways that will not reduce congestion or get Auckland moving? 
Hon GERRY BROWNLEE 
: That is the difference you see. We will just have to disagree because I think it will get Auckland moving. 
Julie Anne Genter 
: I seek leave to table  
The Fundamental Law of Road 
Congestion: Evidence from US Cities 
 a paper from the University of Toronto’s department of economics which categorically states that the fundamental law of traffic congestion is that new urban motorways do not reduce congestion. 
Mr SPEAKER 
: Leave is sought to table that document. Is there any objection? There is objection. 
Julie Anne Genter 
: I seek leave to table the public transport patronage growth statistics from Auckland Transport which show it has grown over 30 percent in the last 4 years. 
Mr SPEAKER 
: Leave is sought to table that document. Is there any objection? There is no objection. 









Document by leave laid on the Table of the House.