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Blogs / October 2019

November 2019 | September 2019
    • Waiting for light rail? Let’s build a busway now!
      • One question on the mind of everyone suffering from Wellington’s transport problems is – when will Let’s Get Wellington Moving actually get us moving? Guest poster Marko Garlick sees a supercharger hiding in plain sight There seem to be lots of abstract projects planned to be delivered, maybe years from now: urban State Highway 1 “improvement” with more tunnels, and a rapid (or maybe just frequent) mass transit line from Lambton through Newtown and to the Airport.  But where will these actually go? And how do we deal with difficult questions about flows around the Basin Reserve? Wellingtonians waiting for new transport infrastructure to be built… Where does mass transit go? For mass transit, there are many things to consider. Is it along the waterfront quays or along Lambton Quay / the Golden Mile? Along Taranaki St or along Cambridge Terrace? Where does it go through the Basin Reserve? Many people are speculating. And the big one: light rail or trackless trams, or both? Mock-up of a route down Taranaki St What about the urban motorway? The LGWM proposal has a pretty good plan to maintain the amenity of the city above. They want to underground the motorway from the Terrace to Mt Vic. A new Te Aro park will be created on top. However people are questioning the need for more lanes created by a new Terrace and a new general traffic Mt Vic tunnel. More lanes in urban motorways creates induced demand. More lanes means make people drive more which kills off any travel savings created by the bigger road. It’s a transport strategy just as smart as trying to lose weight by buying bigger pants! Bigger roads take up valuable space and just fill up with more traffic (looking at you Auckland, thanks for showing us what not to do) This uncertainty is paralysing! Those who are in the “pro-car” camp say they like mass-transit but that must come after their bigger road. Those in the “pro-PT” camp want light rail first and a smaller road. Finger-pointing and party lines are drawn. Tough and costly decisions will have to be made about irreversible projects around the Basin. Once you make a flyover, tunnel or lay down tracks you can’t (quickly) go back. I think we can break out of this inaction and stupor with an interim middle ground: a busway. Case Study: Auckland’s Northern busway The idea for this has come from the success of Auckland’s northern busway. It is a dedicated two-lanes for buses from the northern foot of the Harbour Bridge up SH1 to Constellation Drive with world-class stations and frequent congestion-free services into the city.  It has seen year-on-year double-digit growth numbers over its 11 years in service, and is being extended to Albany and beyond shortly. Eventually tracks will be laid down for a second-harbour crossing for light-rail. Radical incrementalism Initially the busway was just a narrow shoulder each side of the northern motorway. People were sceptical initially but its success was undeniable and has provided the basis for upgrades and extensions. What the Northern busway shows is that doing something now, and building on it, is more practical and politically palatable than trying to justify a massive spend up front. This is applicable to Wellington’s light rail situation. It is relatively low-cost initially, can display almost mass-transit qualities and is more flexible as progress is made towards light-rail. Why a busway? A busway is what Wellington needs now. We cannot wait another 10-15 years for a big decision on the Basin and Mt Vic tunnel. A busway will provide many benefits: It is far cheaper to implement right away and far quicker to implement (I envisage 3 years for the first stage).It also demonstrates demand for mass-transit and will allow us to see whether a certain route is a good idea or not.It also allows for land-use intensification now, providing greater density and amenity to a future light rail line. What will it look like? So what would this look like? I think that the busway should start at the train station, go along the waterfront quays, and then either go along Taranaki St or Cambridge/Kent Terrace. Ideally, it should run in the centre of street with weather protected stops and room for cycleway and signal-priority. Stops should mirror light rail ones, being spaced out for speed and reliability.  Along most of the route the buses could probably hit 60km/h speeds, congestion free, all day. [Ed: just let that sink in. Congestion free. A clear run.] Separate branding would be an excellent addition. The Northern Express (NEX) is what Auckland has; the Wellington Express (WEX) is what we could have. This post is about incrementalism and the key takeaway is something half-done is better than waiting ages for the ‘perfect’ solution. If the busway is barebones at first before getting upgrades then so be it. The mess at the Basin can be avoided by stopping bus priority at the start, then resuming it into Newtown. This is what the Northern Busway does with dedicated lanes ending at the Harbour Bridge, then resuming on Fanshawe St. What the waterfront quays look like now (shudders). Hardly the “walkable city”. A thing of beauty: What a complete Wellington busway could look like The busway can be upgraded over time. Greenspace, cycleways, better stops, a possible underpass on Waterloo Quay to connect to the railway station. Summing up In an ideal world, we can all agree on the light-rail and grade-separation issues at the Basin and they may already have been implemented. But that is not the case. Although there is lots of details to work, the principle of a busway now then future conversion to higher-capacity light-rail is a sound one in my mind. Do you have any ideas why Wellington has not had bus priority – via a busway, or anything else – for so long? What do you think of fast buses in the city centre, and in the suburbs? A version of this post was originally published on TraNZport; see the original here. Image credits Cover image by Smarter TransportSkeleton waiting, original unknownTaranaki mock-up by LGWMAuckland rush hour by Getty imagesAuckland busway by Greater AucklandQuays now, screen grabBusway by AT
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        • Newtown, Wellington, Wellington City, Wellington, New Zealand (OpenStreetMap)


    • Newsletter Week Ending 13 October
      • Who's Who?! Over the next couple of months we will be introducing one member of staff per week so that you can get to know who’s on the team, what they’re responsible for and what kind of snacks they like… Name: Geoffrey Lee Job Title: Property Manager (Call me on 0274457190 anytime) Key Responsibilities: – Repairs and maintenance for all KAC properties – Support for property and grounds volunteers – Respond to repair requests from ministry leaders, ECEC and SMASH – Actioning Health and Safety matters relating to property – Property reporting and decision papers for Vestry – Management of the Seismic Repair Programme – Management of the design and construction aspects of the New Build – Purchasing of repair services and materials – On call person for security alerts A Typical Day at  Work:  My hours are not set and depend on how much work there is to do. On average you will see me three or four days a week at KAC.  If you add all the hours up I would spend about 24 hours (3 days) a week on the various roles.  If you need to bribe me for some reason… then offer me food or a meal You will also find me… on Vestry, Finance Committee and ECEC Management Committee (Chair), supporting the Stewardship team, or at the 9am service as a Server, doing Ministry of the Word or Prayer Ministry. We Remember Rob Burton’s funeral was held at St Mary’s on Friday. Please keep Barbara and their family in your prayers at this time. Morning Prayer Morning prayer resumed today, and will continue 7.30—8.30 am on weekdays during term time. St Marys Playgarden We are on to the next phase of the play garden:  Our next task is to put in the safety surfacing underneath which will take a few weeks.  The play equipment is fenced off, but please ask your kids to stay clear of the equipment until we have a soft landing for them. We will let you know as soon as it’s ready for use, and look forward to celebrating the creation of this new space with you at a joint event with SMASH and ECEC in mid-October.  Any questions please contact Yvette, Kate or Geoff.  Tea towel Amnesty If you have taken any KAC tea towels home to be washed, please bring them back! We are running very low on them.  Also if you are willing to wash the office tea towels from time to time, please see Zoe. Need a Visit or a Chat?  Wendy would love to meet with you for a chat or to pray together.  She can come and visit you.  Ring or email her to arrange a time. Church On Wheels! Come and bike with your church friends! Age 8+ – but if you are a really confident biker and you are under 8 then feel free to join in Sunday the 20th of October 2:30pm to around 4:30pm at Makara mountain bike park, 122 South Karori Road If the weather is not suitable we’ll reschedule (will confirm via email) If interested please talk to Aren at church on Sunday   Rugby World Cup Progressive Watch Party During the Rugby World Cup we will be gathering at different peoples’ houses to watch the games. Keep an eye on the newsletter for times and locations. Join us this Saturday 19 October at the Harvey Green’s house. Quarter finals from 8.15 pm (ABs playing at 11.15 pm).  The post Newsletter Week Ending 13 October appeared first on Karori Anglican Church.
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        • Karori, Wellington, New Zealand (OpenStreetMap)


    • Newsletter Week Ending 29 September
      • Who’s Who?! Over the next couple of months we will be introducing one member of staff per week so that you can get to know who’s on the team, what they’re responsible for and what kind of snacks they like… Name: Ian Cook Job Title:  Priest in Charge (9/10ths fulltime) Key Responsibilities: I’m a husband and dad of three kids. Oversight of worship and all associated ministries from and within Karori Anglican. Mission and discipleship as well as overseeing and coordinating operational and contracted staff. A Typical Day at Work: No one day is the same. I start each morning with silent prayer in the church. This is followed by a staff devotion for 15 minutes. On Mondays I meet with individual staff on a rotating basis, this includes the heads of SMASH and ECEC. I then take the music and storytelling at Playgroup.  In the afternoon we have a weekly staff meeting.  The rest of the week is taken up writing sermons, preparing services and /or music and partaking in various meetings including discipleship, management, 9 am service or building project groups. Then there are the evening vestry, ECEC management and finance meetings plus special pastoral visits as well as any funerals, weddings or baptisms that I have been asked to take. Every Wednesday I spend a morning at Massey University, Wellington where I oversee the student chaplaincy morning service, breakfast and café and chaplaincy team. If you need to bribe me for some reason: it won’t work! I enjoy: Music (particularly guitars), watching any rugby and playing touch rugby. We Remember Patricia Ussher passed away early on Thursday morning. Her funeral will be 1.30 pm on Tuesday, here at St Mary’s church.  All are welcome. Morning Prayer During the school holidays we will not be having morning prayer in the church.  Morning prayer will resume on Monday 14 October 7.30—8.30 am.   Tea towel Amnesty If you have taken any KAC tea towels home to be washed, please bring them back! We are running very low on them.  Also if you are willing to wash the office tea towels from time to time, please see Zoe. Save the Date! 16 November, Parish Event. More details to come… Refugee Household Collection Many thanks for the generous offers to provide selected household goods for the adult female refugee arriving early October. Goods may be left at the Parish Office or bring them to church by the end of September. Call Mike or Judy Scrivener on 04 970 3069 if you would like items collected.  If you haven’t dropped your donations in yet please make sure you do so before the weekend. St Marys Playgarden The installation of the new play equipment has begun! Our next task is to put in the safety surfacing underneath which will take a few weeks.  The play equipment is fenced off, but please ask your kids to stay clear of the equipment until we have a soft landing for them. We will let you know as soon as it’s ready for use, and look forward to celebrating the creation of this new space with you at a joint event with SMASH and ECEC in mid-October.  Any questions please contact Yvette, Kate or Geoff. Need a Visit or a Chat?  Wendy would love to meet with you for a chat or to pray together.  She can come and visit you.  Ring or email her to arrange a time. Young Families Lunch  – Next Sunday Do you have a young family?  Would you like to meet some more people?  Come and join us for a potluck lunch first Sunday in the month.   When:  after the 10.30 service. Where:  Lucy and Scott’s house Next Lunch:  6 October For info contact Nikki and Scott scottandnikki@gmail.com Rugby World Cup Progressive Watch Party During the Rugby World Cup we will be gathering at different peoples’ houses to watch the games. Keep an eye on the newsletter for times and locations. We won’t be watching the next ABs game together because it is at 11.15 pm on a Tuesday night. Join us instead on Sunday 6 October for NZ vs Namibia at 5.45 pm. The Cooks will be hosting us at 5 Birdwood st.    The post Newsletter Week Ending 29 September appeared first on Karori Anglican Church.
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        • Karori, Wellington, New Zealand (OpenStreetMap)


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