The Wrong Side of my Car
The blog that wants to go obsolete
The isthmus buses really are better
I often tell people that there is one little corner in Auckland with an existing functional public transport network: the western half of the isthmus. That’s it. Usually the response from public transport advocates lies somewhere between derision and bewilderment. I find this odd, because this is completely obvious if you just look at a bus map.
Highbury: bypass or not?
Bus line 97 (formerly known as 973 and 974) has an awkward dog-leg via Highbury Corner.
This is so slow. Why not go straight?
The case of the missing cross-town bus
Last year the New Network for the North Shore went live. Curiously, something is missing. These are the frequent bus routes on the lower North Shore, overlaid on the Unitary Plan map.
Wsomc’s handy old network to new network translator
And here comes the new public transport network for the North Shore. So, let’s have a look at the improvements around me, in the Kaipātiki area:
That looks familiar. Really familiar…
The Lantern Festival: how do you get to huge events in Auckland?
I went to the lantern festival, which happens now every year in the Auckland Domain.
I’ll leave taking pictures over there to proper photographers.
Getting to any event of any signficance is a pain in the ass, as it invariably attracts thousands of people trying to drive and park their car in that same spot. With this one, we’re talking about 100,000’s, so forewarned is forearmed. Do not proceed without planning ahead.
(This does not apply if you’re walking in from your apartment nearby. In that case, please spare a thought for those caught in traffic.)
Why do we hate cycle lanes and bus stops so much?
So, after this miserable saga around Skypath, and equally miserable saga in Grey Lynn, one could wonder why there’s such a backlash against any projects which involve non-cars. People had to coin a new term for it, bikelash. Not that it’s unique to cycling, bus improvements often get similar flak.
(By the way, it’s not a given that the people opposing those projects are a majority. But they definitely are the loudest.)
Why is that? You’d think after decades of trying and piling up debt building roads, it’s time to try something else. There are many rational arguments in favour of de-emphasizing cars and improving other ways to get around — walking, cycling, buses, trains, etc. But those arguments appear to fall on deaf ears.
Wsomc’s guide to the Midtown bus route consultation.
Auckland transport is doing another small consultation, this time to figure out how buses coming from New North Road (the successors of the current 221, 223 and others) will return to the west.
The 3 options for the return route are shown in dashed lines. The orange lines show a new proposed route for NEX buses.
What’s so special about those Link Buses?
Someone once told me that Ponsonby is about halfway from the city centre to Grafton.
Is it?
Yes it is: