- This is a submission on behalf of Te Atatū Peninsula Business Association (TAPBA), our members, commercial property owners, and strategic partners, to the Henderson Massey Local Board Plan 2023.
Te Atatū Peninsula comes to a standstill twice a day and sometimes all day on weekends. The population growth that has occurred has exacerbated an already serious issue of there being just one road on and one road off the Peninsula. Traffic backs up from the motorway, right up the main street through the town centre.
TAPBA has asked since 2019 via submissions, for a traffic/transport review. This would take a wholistic look at possible solutions to the crippling congestion, including a service lane or secondary road, light phases on and off the Peninsula and diverting heavy traffic around the town centre. It could give an opportunity to work with schools and the community, seeking ‘outside of the box’ solutions. To date our requests have gone unheard.
TAPBA was aware that the planned housing and population growth would quickly make an already difficult situation untenable and wanted to get ahead of the situation. The community is now angry, and rightly so. We all wonder how it could possibly get worse, and with the on-going in-fill housing, we know it will. The congestion has a massive impact on productivity, economic development, the environment, and the wellbeing of our residents.
We need a commitment from the Henderson Massey Local Board, to work with us on this issue. Once again, we submit that Te Atatū urgently needs a review of traffic/transport on and off the Peninsula.