It seems that every year during the Christmas/New Year break thousands of Aucklander”s flock to Long Bay to enjoy the sun, sand and water. Every year we also hear about the congestion that ensues as thousands of vehicles try to get into a carpark that is quickly overwhelmed. The experience often leaves people frustrated, not to mention hot after sitting in a metal box in the sun for some time. Some like reader Aaron Schiff manage to get it lucky and have a local offer them a place to park but many don’t.
One solution as suggested by Stu last year is for the council to start charging for parking in a bid to manage demand.
Now back to the issue at hand: In my mind the delays incurred by people who drive to Long Bay are unacceptable because they seem easily avoided – if we are prepared to pay for parking.
I’d suggest Auckland Council and Auckland Transport start charging for parking at Long Bay during busy summer times. Charging for parking would encourage a few more people to car-pool, catch the bus (yes there are buses to Long Bay), or postpone their visit – and thereby reduce delays.
My instinct is that most people would be prepared to pay $5 to enter the park during very busy summer periods – not all week or all year. Not only would charging for parking help save people time when they visit (1-2 hours is a long time to spend sitting in a car on a hot day with screaming kids), but it would also generate revenue that could be used to improve facilities at the park.
That is indeed the silver lining from charging for parking: Not only does it help to manage the demand for parking within the limits of the available supply, but it also provides AC with additional revenue to spend on park facilities and/or access, such as more/better toilets, more car-parks, and more frequent bus services. These improvements would otherwise have to be funded from general rates, or not be funded at all.
So what about the alternative of using public transport to get to the beach. Two things really highlight the issue of using PT to get to Long Bay. The first is exemplified in this tweet from Auckland Transport during delays on Jan 2.
Due to congestion in Long Bay Regional Park, all affected buses are currently terminating & starting from Torbay shops until further notice
— Auckland Transport (@AklTransport) January 2, 2015
So not only have PT users had to endure a long and frustrating trip by bus (more on this soon) but due to everyone else driving they get dumped about 1km from the beach and have to find their own way there. It wasn’t until after 5pm – four hours later – that AT said buses had returned to their normal routes.
Perhaps instead of terminating the buses, AT should do the opposite and stop any extra cars from entering the area and put on a shuttle bus to and from the beach. Even better is they could make use of the Albany Park n Ride – which is largely unused on weekends/public holidays – and divert vehicles to use that with a frequent shuttle from there to the beach which is a mere 10-15 minutes away.
The second issue is that the normal buses to the area are so rubbish I’d be surprised if anyone actually used them. The two main services that go to Long Bay are the 839 and 858 and both take well over an hour to get to Long Bay from the city compared with as little as 25 minutes in clear traffic. One look at the routes shows with them zig zagging all across the eastern bays before getting close to the beach.- not that the AT timetable map is any use in this regard, good luck working that mess out.
AT is going to need to seriously change their thinking about how they manage congestion in summer to long bay because right now it only seems to be getting worse. Why not at least try a few ideas out some weekends.
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Maybe Long beach needs a 1920’s Robert Moses type of person to add more roads, car parking. http://goo.gl/maps/e0dnO
I used to catch the 858 and 839 busses when we lived in Willis St in the late 80’s. Generally it would be the 858 as the 839 spent so long wondering around Torbay that if felt like it took 20 minutes just to reach Browns Bay. Seem the bus routes in Torbay haven’t changed one bit since then!
Are you suggesting some kind of “Holiday-busway”? Shame on you Transport blog, you are as bad a Brownlee etc… 😉
I turned up on New Year’s day at 10am and there was plenty of car parks. The beach wasn’t anywhere as impressive as I remember it as a kid though.
As an aside, there doesn’t seem to be an alternative access for residents living at the new Long Bay development. I pity the enormous delays they must have to put up with to come home!
They are building the alternative road now comes out by my dad’s place
Anyone looking to park at Albany and bus into Long Bay should be looking at the 887 bus route (shown on the Albany, Massey University Timetables) … it take 20 minutes from Albany but would probably be the easiest route for AT to look at making more direct and more frequent over the summer period.
1 to 2 hours is a long time to spend in a hot car with angelic children.
Why not express buses? The park and ride shuttle could – should – be free. People being willing to pay $5 to park is not the same as paying four fares for a family to ride a bus. That wouldn’t fly, so make it – the shuttle – free. How about a little e. coli scare to keep the crowds down?
I think there’s also some self regulation amongst park users too. Anecdotally, the large groups that often use Long Bay are now using other beaches close by (Browns Bay, Rothesay Bay etc) instead. As word gets round that Long Bay is a difficult beach to get to, the users spread themselves out more down the coast.
Isn’t there a project to upgrade Glenvar Rd in the pipeline? Thought I read that somewhere in relation to the further building works in the Long Bay area. You can see how much more building there is to come: http://www.longbay.co.nz/#!/AvailableProperties.
Yep, it’s here: https://at.govt.nz/projects-roadworks/long-bay-transport-programme/east-coast-glenvar-roads/
Of course the proposal includes the obligatory missing pedestrian leg, and roundabout without any pedestrian crossing.
No great surprise to see that cycling and walking don’t get much of a look in at the proposed intersections.
The other issue with taking the bus to go to the beach is that most people cart several bags, kids toys, sun umbrella, ice box….. Not exactly easy to carry on board the bus.
But not that difficult either. Did it many times in Wellington when the kids were little.
Use of the park & ride is a brilliant simple solution.
In the UK this is a common practice for popular areas including Cambridge & Cantubury. They are easy to use and people can easily carry bags, kids toys, sun umbrella, ice box Fabienne. If you can walk along the beach with it you can load it into a bus.
People don’t usually carry sun umbrellas or ice boxes in Cambridge or Canterbury.
Truely. It’s clear that PT will never work in New Zealand whilst the icebox conundrum remains unsolved.
These fools planning to grow lettuce on Mars have more pressing problems closer to home…..
http://www.lettuceonmars.com
Sun-umbrellas will surely be our doom!
The bus needs a reserved spot right by the sand. Those bigger chilly bins have wheels. I don’t really think a show stopper.The good thing is you can drink all sorts of beverages, including wine without worrying about your breath limit.
Totally agree with your suggestion in your post Matt. With 1000 buses in Auckland over the holidays public transport should absolutely shine. Express feeds to beaches, and shopping centres . even with no network priority yet. We don’t have a schefuled plus a flexible rapid fleet that can adjust resourcing on the fly and go where need be. One advantage of buses is that they can go practically anywhere. Again a disadvantage of a privatized bus service that is not thinking in the best interests of transport or public at large or maximising their capacity or use potential. These high demand areas are not rocket science where are carparks most heavily stressed at various times?
I’d rather have 1000 new diesel buses at $300m under public ownership really maximising their use potential 365 days per year/ 24 hrs a day than parked up doing diddly squat and not helping this mode in the slightest. Shopping Centre carparks full don’t think so when a dedicated team has a scheduled and a flexible rapid fleet under control. 600 buses on a scheduled run. 400 flexible adding speed to core system or in holidays or emergencies just going where they need to. Even with no bus priority believe could get bus from 1 star to a 3 star.
Right now Auckland is probably running with maximum 100 buses doing anything positive close to sensible routing. Routes locked up, not trying to reduce frequencies on the network core, not thinking about improvements, just focussed on contracts and maximising those. Forget tying this mode up in contracts. There are the buses, how do we best use them at all times, while working with all other modes. A 24 hr management team focussed on increasing patronage, quality of service, keeping costs and emissions down, looking at fleet improvements like propulsion or capacity- double decker .Able to change schedules and routes instantaneously. A rapid team flexible to take over a rail line in 5 minutes, boosting core frequencies, holidays doing services up to the edge of the sand, shopping centers every 5 min or less. This is the next hierarchy down from rail, it should be maximised not profitised. Right now we have rail stations that are not bring maximised. Even north shore busway bet that could be improved with more frequencies and a better/ wider feeder service. 3 years to plan, 3 years to change routes is absolutely criminal when congestion costing $1.25b pet year. You can have a full new diesel fleet in 3 months congestion or hybrid 6 months congestion. But what we still don’t have the buses under full control after this time? This mode is so critical for the whole city? So for $300m why are we still bothering with a privatized bus mode. when it has been such a disaster for Auckland and now we need it to step up and fight with rail against a whole network setup for cars which is clearly the wrong mode balance even for them.
Cycle I understand, needs the width and physical protection on all main roads pref two way. In most cases a remark and substantial concrete planters with nice hedging or colourful low maint plants. This bus fleet is a real problem and a major concern to me. Contracting this hasn’t been a solution and never will be. I want a public owned and operated fleet directing to Auckland Transport monthly at their board meetings, reporting true costs against fares and constantly looking to increase mode share from car. Actively implementing network improvements and able to direct those immediately to road maintenance without consultation.
Constantly looking at network, looking at demand, looking at rail capacity , looking at this blog for recommendations, AT web etc. AT PT guys being part of this team able to make changes on the RT. We will be missing all that and just contract rounds with new faces and zero clout every term. Save your contracts for constructing busways and rail.
Look at Wellington actually great have some electric trolley buses but looking to scrap them mainly probably not run by a council team that is actively looking at improvements but zero input by contractors leading to this and decisions with people who have no idea how to run the network or genuinely what is best transport wise. Privatisation of a public transport doesn’t pay, you need the control and unbiased expertise.
We need the majority of all buses under direct control. Do we need the full 1000? if managed smart. Opening up the arterials fully will reduce travel time and increase circulation by numerous times. I would like to have fleet under full control before we turn the tap on or we could make Dick Quax’s of ourselves. Do we hire bus/drivers while we get our own fleet and setup Auckland Bus straight away under Auckland Transport?Maybe some operators will choose to sell? What is status of all current contracts?
In Taipei Taiwan just before a new Metro line opens bus stops around the route will have signs announcing the opening date and giving directions to the nearest metro station. On the actual opening day, any bus routes paralleling or overlapping with the new line are shut down – the advantage here being that the City Government owns both the Metro and the bus company.. An example here would be the Howick and Eastern buses that go all the way into the city – with the opening of the Panmure Interchange why are these routes not terminated there and the freed-up capacity used to improve other services around East Auckland? (and don’t get me started on the subject of the Manukau Interchange – what a cock-up that is). I’m sure once the Rail LInk is built there many other bus routes that could be cancelled or converted to rail feeder services, and isn’t this also part of the point of AT’s new Network planning and consultation?
Agreed. Case and point 99% bus fleet ineffective and not self thinking making improvements themselves. It all isn’t rocket science. While on panmure why the hell no bus lanes on pakuranga rd are you all nuts for the sake of painted symbols every 50m. There are lanes to waste and lined up to go onto choked motorway when train interchange operational. AMETI come on full blown RTN and no bus lane?
“with the opening of the Panmure Interchange why are these routes not terminated there” – they were not terminated because not everyone on the bus is going to the CBD, and Panmure is on the Eastern Line, so does not serve Ellerslie or Newmarket.
One of the difficulties planning for Long Bay is the weather factor. A wet day does not get much traffic to the beach and hence no traffic jams. By using the back roads buses could get people to within 200 metres of the beach rather than Torbay shops . Torbay shops are only about a ten minute walk down hill to the beach. Would be a drag coming back up the hill though.