Transport experts dispute the National Party’s claim its road-building plans “will cut congestion”.
National unveiled a policy on Monday to spend $16.8 billion on 12 four-lane motorways and bypasses, $600m on a new highway, $5.6b on public transport and $313 million on road resilience.
Unveiling the policy, party leader Christopher Luxon [said](https://www.1news.co.nz/2023/07/31/national-unveils-24-billion-transport-policy/#:~:text=%22New%20Zealanders%20will%20be%20able,cost%20%2424%20billion%20in%20total.) “New Zealanders will be able to get where they want to go faster and spend less time in their cars and more time doing what they love.”
But transport research suggests the opposite: that over the long-term, urban traffic will remain steady or even increase.
Transport advocate Matt Lowrie says Aucklanders have already experienced this with the Waterview Tunnel, a six-lane bypass connecting south and central parts of the city that opened in 2017.
