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Articles by Timothy Welch
Auckland now has a plan for congestion charging. But where are the extra buses?
For city commuters, the slow crawl through peak hour traffic each day is an annoyance as unavoidable as blustery spring weather. Call it the cost of living in the big smoke. But Auckland is now on a path to join a small group of cities that have decided the cost is negotiable. Last week, Auckland Council’s transport committee signed off three options for public engagement in November. The price of the proposed congestion charge, ranging from $2 to $7 per trip, is still unsettled.
Auckland now has a plan for congestion charging. But where are the extra buses? Original
For city commuters, the slow crawl through peak hour traffic each day is an annoyance as unavoidable as blustery spring weather. Call it the cost of living in the big smoke. But Auckland is now on a path to join a small group of cities that have decided the cost is negotiable. Last week, Auckland Council’s transport committee signed off three options for public engagement in November. The price of the proposed congestion charge, ranging from NZ$2 to $7 per trip, is still unsettled.
Auckland now has a plan for congestion charging. But where are the extra buses?
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Another Auckland harbour crossing study, right on schedule
Comment: Seventeen years ago, Google started teaching cars to drive themselves. At the time, fully autonomous vehicles were still somewhere between serious engineering and science fiction. Auckland’s modern search for another Auckland harbour crossing was already 21 years old. A lot has happened since. Driverless taxis now carry paying passengers around several American cities. Google’s project became Waymo and has completed millions of fully autonomous trips. Auckland has made progress too.
Cheaper fares won’t fix NZ’s public transport woes – and neither will a few extra buses
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Cheaper fares won’t fix NZ’s public transport woes – and neither will a few extra buses
Last week, within the space of 24 hours, voters heard two very different proposals to improve New Zealand’s public transport system. On Wednesday, Labour promised to cap weekly fares at NZ$20 in Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch – and $10 everywhere else – if elected to power in November. On Thursday, Transport Minister Chris Bishop, of incumbent National, responded by suggesting the government could use its $450 million fuel emergency fund for more trains and buses at peak times.
Cheaper fares won’t fix NZ’s public transport woes – and neither will a few extra buses
Timothy Welch, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau Mon 15 June 2026 at 11:57 pm UTC 4 min read Add Yahoo as a preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Last week, within the space of 24 hours, voters heard two very different proposals to improve New Zealand’s public transport system. On Wednesday, Labour promised to cap weekly fares at NZ$20 in Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch – and $10 everywhere else – if elected to power in November.
As global fuel risk rises, NZ Budget 2026 puts roads first – again
By Timothy Welch, Senior Lecturer in Urban Planning, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau Three months into the war in Iran, the largest disruption to New Zealand’s oil supply in living memory appears to have done nothing to change the government’s approach to transport. Budget 2026 spends more on roads, less on rail and nothing on walking or cycling. It also raids bus decarbonisation to fund a review of pipes. Read complete article © The Conversation -
As global fuel risk rises, NZ Budget 2026 puts roads first – again Original
Three months into the war in Iran, the largest disruption to New Zealand’s oil supply in living memory appears to have done nothing to change the government’s approach to transport. Budget 2026 spends more on roads, less on rail and nothing on walking or cycling. It also raids bus decarbonisation to fund a review of pipes.
The economics of a $9 toll
The original bridge cost less than $250 million in today’s dollars.RICKY WILSON/STUFF Dr Timothy Welch is senior lecturer at the faculty of engineering and design, architecture and planning at the University of Auckland. He specialises in transportation, infrastructure and urban modelling with a focus on the use of big data and technology. OPINION: When the Auckland Harbour Bridge opened 67 years ago, drivers paid two shillings and sixpence to cross, roughly $9 in today's money.
The government has boxed itself in over fuel saving strategies – but there is a way out
By Timothy Welch, Senior Lecturer in Urban Planning, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau Promoting fuel saving measures as vital to energy security would help frame the oil shock as a technical problem to be solved, not a political issue to be fought. Read complete article © The Conversation -
The government has boxed itself in over fuel saving strategies – but there is a way out
While the government works to reassure New Zealanders that fuel stocks are stable, the numbers tell an uncomfortable story: the country has about 27 days of onshore cover for petrol and 17 days of diesel. Meanwhile, the Middle East crisis remains volatile, even after today’s announcement of a two-week ceasefire. In a country that imports all of its refined petrol, diesel and jet fuel, petrol is above NZ$3 a litre and diesel has overtaken it for the first time in history.
Iran oil crisis: why NZ’s car dependence is now a strategic liability
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Iran oil crisis: why NZ’s car dependence is now a strategic liability
The war in Iran and the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz have sent oil prices past US$100 a barrel – and Kiwis flocking to fill up. Petrol just hit NZ$3 a litre and some stations have reported running dry. In response to about 20% of the world’s oil supply being shut off in just a few days, the International Energy Agency announced its largest-ever coordinated reserve release of 400 million barrels. But analysts warn oil could reach US$150 a barrel if the strait stays closed.
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Australia Day Remarks 2026 By Australia High Commissioner Will Robinson
Tālofa lava. E iate a’u le ava ma le mīgao, ou te fa’atālofa, ma fa’afeiloa’i atu ai, i le pa’ia ma le mamalu, ua aofia mai. Faafetai lava mo le fa’a-ava-noaina, o lō outou taimi, auā le fa’amanatuina o le Aso’ o’ Ausetalia. O lēnei fa’amoemoe tāua, e lē gata ona tatou patipatia ai … le atunu’u, ma tagatānu’u o Ausetalia, Ae o se avanoa tāua fo’i, e fa’amanatuina ai le faigā-pa’aga, i le vā o tatou malo. Welcome My warmest welcome to you all.
Higher speeds lower productivity: what the data shows crash delays really cost Auckland
Another morning, another crash on one of Auckland’s major roads. Traffic isn’t moving. Drivers sit in their cars rehearsing reasons for being late again. Radio hosts offer the usual advice: leave earlier and find an alternative route. It happens so often we barely notice anymore. But the costs add up fast, and they’re far bigger than a few delayed meetings. Auckland had 34,628 reported crashes between 2022 and 2025.
Timothy Welch, Author at Switzer Daily
How car crashes affect national productivity, and why speed limits should be lower Using GPS travel time data and traffic counts, researchers tracked how crashes create congestion that extends far beyond the crash scene and persists long after vehicles are cleared, affecting national productivity figures. Get the latest financial, business, and political expert commentary delivered to your inbox. When you sign up, we will never give away or sell or barter or trade your email address.
Higher speeds lower productivity: what the data shows crash delays really cost Auckland Original
Another morning, another crash on one of Auckland’s major roads. Traffic isn’t moving. Drivers sit in their cars rehearsing reasons for being late again. Radio hosts offer the usual advice: leave earlier and find an alternative route. It happens so often we barely notice anymore. But the costs add up fast, and they’re far bigger than a few delayed meetings. Auckland had 34,628 reported crashes between 2022 and 2025.
Higher speeds lower productivity: what the data shows crash delays really cost Auckland
© 2025 Tolerance.ca ® Inc. All reproduction rights reserved. All information reproduced on the Web pages of www.tolerance.ca (including articles, images, photographs, and logos) is protected by intellectual property rights owned by Tolerance.ca ® Inc. or, in certain cases, by its author. Any reproduction of the information for use other than personal use is prohibited.
Auckland is NZ’s ‘primate city’ but its potential remains caged in by poor planning and vision
The recent report comparing Auckland to nine international peer cities delivered an uncomfortable truth: our largest city is falling behind, hampered by car dependency, low-density housing and “weak economic performance”. The Deloitte State of the City analysis was no surprise to anyone who has watched successive governments treat the city as a problem to manage, rather than an engine to fuel.
Auckland is NZ’s ‘primate city’ but its potential remains caged in by poor planning and vision
The recent report comparing Auckland to nine international peer cities delivered an uncomfortable truth: our largest city is falling behind, hampered by car dependency, low-density housing and “weak economic performance”. The Deloitte State of the City analysis was no surprise to anyone who has watched successive governments treat the city as a problem to manage, rather than an engine to fuel.
Auckland is NZ’s ‘primate city’ but its potential remains caged in by poor planning and vision
© 2025 Tolerance.ca ® Inc. All reproduction rights reserved. All information reproduced on the Web pages of www.tolerance.ca (including articles, images, photographs, and logos) is protected by intellectual property rights owned by Tolerance.ca ® Inc. or, in certain cases, by its author. Any reproduction of the information for use other than personal use is prohibited.
NZ will soon have no real interisland rail-ferry link – why are we so bad at infrastructure planning?
Another week, another Cook Strait ferry breakdown. As the winter maintenance season approaches and the Aratere prepares for its final months of service, New Zealand faces a self-imposed crisis. The government has spent NZ$507.3 million on cancelled iReX ferry plans, the country’s fleet has an average age of 28 years, and the earliest New Zealanders can hope for promised replacements is 2029. The Marlborough Chamber of Commerce warns unreliable ferries already shake tourist confidence.
NZ will soon have no real interisland rail-ferry link - why are we so bad at infrastructure planning?
Another week, another Cook Strait ferry breakdown. As the winter maintenance season approaches and the Aratere prepares for its final months of service, New Zealand faces a self-imposed crisis. The government has spent NZ$507.3 million on cancelled iReX ferry plans, the country’s fleet has an average age of 28 years, and the earliest New Zealanders can hope for promised replacements is 2029. The Marlborough Chamber of Commerce warns unreliable ferries already shake tourist confidence.
NZ cities are getting hotter: 5 things councils can do now to keep us cooler when summer comes
Stand on any car park on a sunny day in February and the heat will radiate through your shoes. At 30°C air temperature, that asphalt hits 50–55°C – hot enough to cause second-degree burns to skin in seconds. Right now, in the northern hemisphere summer, 100 million Americans are dealing with 38°C temperatures. Britain is preparing for hundreds of heat deaths. In New Zealand, of course, we’re still lighting fires and complaining about the cold. But that gives us time to prepare for our own heatwaves.
NZ cities are getting hotter: 5 things councils can do now to keep us cooler when summer comes
Stand on any car park on a sunny day in February and the heat will radiate through your shoes. At 30°C air temperature, that asphalt hits 50–55°C – hot enough to cause second-degree burns to skin in seconds. Right now, in the northern hemisphere summer, 100 million Americans are dealing with 38°C temperatures. Britain is preparing for hundreds of heat deaths. In New Zealand, of course, we’re still lighting fires and complaining about the cold. But that gives us time to prepare for our own heatwaves.
Making it easier to build a granny flat makes sense - but it’s no solution to a housing crisis
As part of its resource management reforms, the government will soon allow “super-sized granny flats” to be built without consent – potentially adding 13,000 dwellings over the next decade to provide “families with more housing options”. This represents genuine progress in reducing regulatory barriers. But the scale of the housing crisis means we have to ask whether incremental reforms can deliver meaningful change. The numbers provide important context.
Making it easier to build a granny flat makes sense - but it’s no solution to a housing crisis
© 2025 Tolerance.ca ® Inc. All reproduction rights reserved. All information reproduced on the Web pages of www.tolerance.ca (including articles, images, photographs, and logos) is protected by intellectual property rights owned by Tolerance.ca ® Inc. or, in certain cases, by its author. Any reproduction of the information for use other than personal use is prohibited.
False economies: the evidence shows higher speed limits don’t make financial sense | CiTTi Magazine
Documents show the government is going against expert advice and strong economic evidence by insisting higher speed limits will improve productivity. Despite community resistance and legal push-back, the government isn’t slowing down on its plan to roll back speed limit reductions on many roads. In the process, it’s going against expert advice from transport officials and solid economic evidence showing the benefits of slower speeds.
False economies: the evidence shows higher speed limits don’t make financial sense
Despite community resistance and legal push-back, the government isn’t slowing down on its plan to roll back speed limit reductions on many roads. In the process, it’s going against expert advice from transport officials and solid economic evidence showing the benefits of slower speeds.
False economies: the evidence shows higher speed limits don’t make financial sense
Despite community resistance and legal push-back, the government isn’t slowing down on its plan to roll back speed limit reductions on many roads. In the process, it’s going against expert advice from transport officials and solid economic evidence showing the benefits of slower speeds.
False economies: the evidence shows higher speed limits don’t make financial sense
© 2025 Tolerance.ca ® Inc. All reproduction rights reserved. All information reproduced on the Web pages of www.tolerance.ca (including articles, images, photographs, and logos) is protected by intellectual property rights owned by Tolerance.ca ® Inc. or, in certain cases, by its author. Any reproduction of the information for use other than personal use is prohibited.
New Zealand public service workforce flatlines
The New Zealand Public Service Commission’s (Te Kawa Mataaho) latest workforce data shows public service growth has flatlined. Net full-time equivalent(FTE) positions in the whole service grew 0.67% in the 2024 financial year. The five-year average is 4.9%. But this number doesn’t give a full account of FTE changes over the past 12 months. Quarterly figures show FTE peaked in December last year at 65,699 before falling to the current figure of 63,537 (-2,162 FTE).
Winston Peters’ $100 billion infrastructure fund is the right idea. Politics-as-usual is the problem
By Timothy Welch, Senior Lecturer in Urban Planning, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau The proposed Future Fund is right on the money given New Zealand’s needs. But the three-year electoral cycle and lack of cross-party agreement could see it become just another political football. Read complete article © The Conversation -
Winston Peters’ $100 billion infrastructure fund is the right idea. Politics-as-usual is the problem
New Zealand’s infrastructure woes are a constant political pain point. From ageing water systems to congested roads and assets increasingly threatened by climate change, the country faces mammoth upgrading and future-proofing challenges. Enter Winston Peters and NZ First with a surprise proposal for a NZ$100 billion “Future Fund” dedicated to infrastructure investment.
Faster is not always better: Why New Zealand's case for higher speed limits is fatally flawed
As the government's plan to increase speed limits begins to roll out, a group of local and international road safety and health experts has warned the move will lead to more death and injury, and disputed claims higher speed limits will bring economic gains. The group's open letter echoes concerns raised since the policy was announced—that roads will become less predictable to use, less efficient and significantly more dangerous, particularly for children and other vulnerable people.
Faster is not always better: why the case for higher speed limits is fatally flawed
By Timothy Welch, Senior Lecturer in Urban Planning, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau Higher speed limits are coming. But the case against them isn’t based on road safety alone – claims of increased economic efficiency are not supported by the evidence, either. Read complete article © The Conversation -
Faster is not always better: why the case for higher speed limits is fatally flawed
As the government’s plan to increase speed limits begins to roll out, a group of local and international road safety and health experts has warned the move will lead to more death and injury, and disputed claims higher speed limits will bring economic gains. The group’s open letter echoes concerns raised since the policy was announced – that roads will become less predictable to use, less efficient and significantly more dangerous, particularly for children and other vulnerable people.
Why the case for higher speed limits is fatally flawed
Written by Timothy Welch, Senior Lecturer in Urban Planning, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau As the government’s plan to increase speed limits begins to roll out[1], a group of local and international road safety and health experts has warned[2] the move will lead to more death and injury, and disputed claims higher speed limits will bring economic gains.
Spinning its wheels: the new national transport plan steers NZ back to a car-dependent past
© 2024 Tolerance.ca ® Inc. All reproduction rights reserved. All information reproduced on the Web pages of www.tolerance.ca (including articles, images, photographs, and logos) is protected by intellectual property rights owned by Tolerance.ca ® Inc. or, in certain cases, by its author. Any reproduction of the information for use other than personal use is prohibited.
Spinning its wheels: the new national transport plan steers NZ back to a car-dependent past
The government’s new National Land Transport Programme (NLTP) could easily have been renamed the “highway funding project”, given its intense focus on road building. Released yesterday, the plan outlines funding priorities for the next three years. If it comes to fruition, much of the spending will be driven into major highway schemes, and steered away from sustainable transport alternatives for the main cities.
NZ Budget 2024: ‘tax relief’ for the ‘squeezed middle’ - but who’s paying? 7 experts follow the money
Craig Elliffe: Small cuts, big consequences Honestly, who would want to be Nicola Willis at this point? The effect of $14.7 billion of tax cuts is going to mean a dramatic rethink on expenditure in New Zealand in the long term, and about what sort of public services we expect as a country. The government’s cut-it-back strategy appears focused on the next four years, not a longer horizon. From a broader economic perspective, the hope is the cuts will provide help for households.
NZ Budget 2024: ‘tax relief’ for the ‘squeezed middle’ - but who’s paying? 7 experts follow the money
Craig Elliffe: Small cuts, big consequences Honestly, who would want to be Nicola Willis at this point? The effect of $14.7 billion of tax cuts is going to mean a dramatic rethink on expenditure in New Zealand in the long term, and about what sort of public services we expect as a country. The government’s cut-it-back strategy appears focused on the next four years, not a longer horizon. From a broader economic perspective, the hope is the cuts will provide help for households.
How to end the wasteful boom-bust cycle driving NZ’s infrastructure gap: new report
By Timothy Welch, Senior Lecturer in Urban Planning, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau A report released next week argues the real problem with New Zealand’s inadequate infrastructure is not money – it’s the three-year political cycle. We need a 30-year, cross-party national plan. Read complete article © The Conversation -
How to end the wasteful boom-bust cycle driving NZ’s infrastructure gap: new report
Debates about infrastructure often turn around money – with good reason. It’s estimated New Zealand’s infrastructure deficit – the amount we would need to spend to modernise, upgrade and build what we need today – is more than NZ$100 billion. And this will double by 2030 if we don’t significantly increase spending now to avoid the even higher cost of falling further behind and having to catch up. These are big numbers, but they are just numbers. The real problem is political.
Axing the Auckland fuel tax reveals the lack of a real transport plan for NZ’s biggest city | CiTTi Magazine
By moving to scrap Auckland’s regional fuel tax, New Zealand’s government continues a decades-long pattern of transport policy U-turns that leave the city – and country – without a sustainable way forward… The New Zealand government’s recent announcement that it would bring forward legislation to in June – four years early – is the third time in 30 years a National-led government has repealed such a tax.
Axing the Auckland fuel tax reveals the lack of a real transport plan for NZ’s biggest city
By Timothy Welch, Senior Lecturer in Urban Planning, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau By moving to scrap the Auckland regional fuel tax, the government continues a decades-long pattern of transport policy U-turns that leave the city – and country – without a sustainable way forward. Read complete article © The Conversation -
Axing the Auckland fuel tax reveals the lack of a real transport plan for NZ’s biggest city
The government’s recent announcement that it would bring forward legislation to in June – four years early – is the third time in 30 years a National-led government has repealed such a tax. Pulling the plug seems less about the cost of living or misuse of tax revenue than simply sweeping clear the previous administration’s legislation. Transport policies, plans and projects have fallen at an astonishing speed since the coalition government was formed.
SUV and ute sales slowed due to NZ's Clean Car Discount – expect that to reverse under a new government
With National, ACT and NZ First locked in coalition negotiations, various urgent and climate-related transport challenges hang in the balance. Based on pre-election rhetoric, the Clean Car Discount (CCD) scheme may soon be gone. While popular with the public, National has criticised the electric vehicle rebate portion as a “Tesla subsidy”, and the fees charged for high-emissions vehicles as a “ute tax”.
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