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Better transport network keeps New Zealand moving

Bill English

Wellington, February 21, 2017

Infrastructure supports our daily lives.

It delivers the electricity we use, the water we drink and the roads we drive on.

That is why the National-led Government is investing more than ever in transport infrastructure right across the country. We are utterly committed to keeping a growing New Zealand moving.

Last week, Transport Minister Simon Bridges and local MP Nathan Guy opened the MacKays to Peka Peka Expressway – four months ahead of schedule.

The Expressway is a $630 million, 18 kms four-lane motorway on the Kpiti Coast, and includes 18 bridges and 16 kms of walking and cycle ways.

It will result in faster, more reliable and safer journeys through the region.

It will also improve the Kpiti Coasts resilience to major weather events like those we have recently experienced in Wellington.

This is just one part of the Governments $11 billion investment in seven roads of national significance and 13 important regional roading projects across New Zealand.

Waterview Connection

In April, Aucklands critically important $1.4 billion Waterview Connection will open. And work on the $2.4 billion Western Ring Route, an alternative to State Highway 1 around Auckland, is also well advanced and expected to be completed in the next two years.

In Christchurch, two major projects are underway, including the new $240 million Christchurch Northern Corridor project, which includes a new eight-kilometre, four-lane motorway, starting at the Waimakariri River and finishing in the city.

The second project is a $195 million extension to the Christchurch Southern Motorway, which will halve travel time between Rolleston and the city.

In the Waikato, construction on the seventh and final section of the $2.1 billion Waikato Expressway has begun. This 102-kilometre-long road is a game-changer for the region as it will provide stronger links between the business and agricultural centres of Auckland and the Waikato, as well as the Bay of Plenty.

Safe transport network

As a small, sparsely populated country, New Zealand relies on its transport network to move people, goods and services safely and efficiently.

That is why we are getting ahead of this issue by investing in infrastructure now to encourage future economic growth. We dont want to wait until the strain on the network becomes a handbrake on progress.

Our investment in infrastructure continues to build a strong platform for growth. A more competitive and productive economy is the only way we will create jobs, boost incomes, and provide the high-quality public services New Zealanders expect.

On a final note, I had been planning to open the MacKays to Peka Peka Expressway myself. However, I changed my plans to head to Christchurch in support of the people who were battling the fires. Id like to acknowledge here the incredibly hard work of the many firefighters who helped get the fire under control, and I express my sincere sympathies to all who were affected,

Apart from witnessing the devastation, what I also saw was the incredible community spirit that comes to the fore in these situations. People helping people.

It made me proud to be a New Zealander.

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