Public Transport stories
Such partnerships could help regions fund long-term projects, curb political meddling and ease New Zealand’s housing, transport and water strains.
Funding will still fall short of fixing decades of underinvestment, with experts warning roads and rail need more to meet safety and climate goals.
Cities with lower poverty and stronger infrastructure are likelier to attract workers and firms as pandemic-era habits reshape where people live and invest.
A new University of Colorado Boulder model suggests crowded, poorly ventilated spaces raise coronavirus risk, especially without masks.
Sweeping planning and infrastructure reforms could speed housing and business land supply, although transport pricing still awaits progress.
City-centre footfall is rebounding, with new mobility data hinting at a steadier office market and a faster retail and tourism recovery.
Transport industry groups say decades of stop-start planning could end if National’s $31 billion road and rail programme goes ahead.
The proposed $31 billion programme would reshape commuting in the upper North Island, while relying on RMA repeal and borrowing powers.
Auckland still faces unresolved transport and housing pressures after Cabinet ended the twin-track light rail process and sent it back to officials.
Global cooperation and heavy state intervention would favour low-carbon infrastructure, while fossil-fuel projects and greenfield builds are marginalised.
Rail operators under pressure from Covid-19 can join a 24-hour virtual summit with 50 speakers live or on-demand.
Domestic travel spending could help cushion the sector as international arrivals slump and businesses await the effect of a new campaign.
Experts say the $50 billion COVID-19 recovery plan will lift jobs and infrastructure, but warn it leaves big tax and housing gaps.
Better freight services and more reliable trains are set to follow, as the funding also covers new ferries and ageing locomotives.
Buyers in Auckland’s Belmont are being offered sustainably built terraced homes with electric bikes as New Zealand eases property viewing restrictions.
New Zealand’s wage subsidy extension and infrastructure spending are meant to blunt soaring unemployment as the economy heads into recession.
Lockdowns are set to cut CO2 emissions by at least 5% this year, but any climate gain could be erased unless stimulus backs cleaner growth.
Construction jobs and council investment could restart quickly, as Auckland submits 73 infrastructure projects for the Government’s stimulus list.
Remote work, home schooling and digital healthcare could outlast the pandemic, reshaping cities, travel and emissions for years to come.
Auckland’s southern land values could rise as the transport package unlocks new homes, jobs and development, Colliers says.
