Auckland Council itself divvied out $1bn, Watercare $2bn, but most of it, a remarkable $7bn was funnelled through Auckland Transport. So extensive are its powers and influence it’s impossible to discuss anything about Auckland transport without mentioning ‘Auckland Transport’. So now it seems we have the worst of both worlds fully privatised public transport and an enormous largely unaccountable, very expensive public sector bureaucracy. The next agreed step was to complete the missing link between the western and eastern components of Auckland’s rail network – the City Rail Link. The CRL became a very popular campaign pledge in 2010 by the first Super City Mayor Len Brown.

Source: New Zealand Herald September 20, 2022 02:01 UTC