Direction 2: Increase genuine travel choices for a healthy, vibrant and equitable Auckland

Many of us lack reliable, safe and affordable choices about how we travel. This means we often depend on using private vehicles for most trips.

A lack of travel choice is often a particular problem for lower income households and in rural areas. Transport costs can be a large and unaffordable part of the household budget, making financial pressures worse.

Giving people more travel choices enables them to travel in a way that best suits their particular needs.

A lack of choice also means that travel is often long and unreliable, with Aucklanders unable to avoid congestion that wastes precious time and reduces life quality.

By developing Auckland’s rapid transit network and separating public transport from general traffic, as described on the Rapid Transit Network page, we can reduce the impact of congestion on people's lives and provide more certainty about how long a trip will take.

As Auckland grows it is essential that more people walk, cycle or travel by public transport. This will reduce pressure on our roads and free up room for freight and commercial trips, which are reliant on road travel and make major contributions to Auckland’s economic prosperity. More walking and cycling will also have significant health benefits through increased physical activity. See more on the Healthy Auckland website.

People-oriented streets are fundamental to the quality of experiences people have in our urban areas. We must therefore also transform how we design the transport network, so it's about people and places, not just moving vehicles.

Streets are used for a number of purposes, and should be attractive, suitable and enjoyable public spaces for residents, workers and visitors, particularly when travelling by foot.

Ideal street design

Achieving this will require a change in the way we design, manage and operate our streets and transport networks.

Our streets need to better reflect the role they play in making up a large part of our public space and in shaping Auckland's character and the way we live.

At the same time, it's important to acknowledge that moving large numbers of people, goods and services along some key corridors is important for Auckland's economic success. This means a good balance must be struck between transport and place functions.

Allocating space for vehicles, cyclists, pedestrians, and amenities such as street furniture and trees, is a challenge. This challenge will increase as our population grows.