Second Harbour Crossing, Auckland facts for kids
The Second Harbour Crossing is a big plan for a new transport link across the Waitematā Harbour in Auckland, New Zealand. This new link would help the Auckland Harbour Bridge, which is almost full of traffic. It would also make sure that if something happened to the bridge, people could still travel between Auckland City and North Shore City.
Sometimes, people call it the Third Harbour Crossing because there is already an Upper Harbour Bridge (also known as the Greenhithe Bridge). More recently, official documents call it the Additional Waitematā Harbour Crossing (AWHC).
People started talking about a second crossing soon after the Auckland Harbour Bridge was built. The bridge quickly became too busy, even after it was made wider. By 2008, planners had narrowed down about 160 ideas to a multi-tunnel link. This tunnel would go a bit east of the current bridge.
However, getting money for the project was still many years away in the late 2000s. The NZ Transport Agency said that once started, the project could take 5 to 15 years to finish. In 2009, the National government said it was a top priority. In June 2013, Prime Minister John Key announced a new Harbour Tunnel. He said it would be ready by 2025-2030, and the exact path would be chosen by December 2013.
Why a Second Crossing?
When extra lanes were added to the Auckland Harbour Bridge in 1969, experts thought the bridge would be busy again by 1985. Even with the new lanes and traffic rules, the Harbour Bridge soon had traffic jams during busy times. Over the years, many ideas for a second link were suggested. One idea was to connect Meola Reef to Birkenhead, but this was stopped in the 1970s after people complained.
Traffic was expected to get much worse as North Shore City grew and Auckland City became more crowded. So, there was more and more pressure for another harbour crossing. People also worried that relying only on the Harbour Bridge was risky. If an earthquake or other disaster damaged it, Auckland and New Zealand would have a big problem.
However, a study in 2007 by the Auckland Regional Council (ARC) showed something surprising. Traffic during busy times was actually lower than in the early 1990s. For example, in the morning, fewer cars were going towards Auckland City in 2006 than in 1991.
This change happened because people were managing their travel better. Drivers were avoiding busy hours, and more people were using buses. The Northern Busway was very successful. About 40% of people crossing the bridge during busy times were using buses, not cars. By 2017, more than half of the people crossing the bridge were on buses. This made some people wonder if a second crossing was still needed right away.
It was thought that the new Western Ring Route would delay the need for a second harbour crossing. This route is a set of upgraded and new motorways that go around the western side of Auckland. It helps traffic travelling between the North Shore and West Auckland. This route was finished in 2017 when the Waterview Connection opened.
The Auckland City District Plan, updated in 2011, also said that a second harbour crossing should be delayed. District plans are official documents that guide city development. The plan stated:
- The Auckland City Council will work with other groups to make the most of the current Harbour Bridge. This is to avoid or greatly delay building a second crossing of the Waitematā Harbour.*
But there was also pressure to build the crossing sooner. In 2017, Auckland Transport (AT) predicted that the North Shore's Northern Busway would be full by 2026. This was 20 years earlier than first expected. AT's report said that more bus users would cause problems at some bus stations. A decision about turning the busway into a train line was expected in 2017. An AT spokesperson said that a train line could not be built before the second crossing (AWHC) was finished.
What Changed in 2019?
In 2019, about 170,000 vehicles crossed the bridge every day. This included 11,000 trucks and over 1,000 buses. Here are some interesting facts for the busy morning period (7-9 am):
- 38% of all people using the bridge were bus passengers.
- 58% of people going to Auckland CBD (the city centre) by bridge were bus passengers.
- About 20,000 people travelled to the CBD in cars. This number had not changed for 25 years.
- 53% of car users were travelling past the CBD to places further south or west.
- 11,000 trucks crossed the bridge, and this number was growing fast. It was expected to reach 26,000 by 2046.
A report from the New Zealand Transport Agency suggested a new idea. Since the number of private cars was not growing much (due to traffic jams on roads leading to the bridge), and public transport use was rising, it might be better to build only a train crossing, not a road-plus-rail one. With more trucks and freight, a heavy rail line (for bigger trains) might be better than a light rail passenger service (like a tram).
Other Ways to Cross
Plans for the new motorway links via the second crossing aimed to free up space on the existing bridge. This extra space could then be used for walking and cycling paths. However, groups that support walking and cycling have pointed out that a second crossing might not be built for many decades, if at all. They believe that walking and cycling links should be provided much sooner, without waiting for the new crossing.
