Some residents on Auckland’s Karangahape Road fear antisocial behaviour will spoil the City Rail Link’s reputation before it even opens.
Two men are appearing at the Auckland District Court on Tuesday following an altercation near the soon-to-open Karanga-a-Hape Train Station on Monday night.
Police said they were called to a venue on Mercury Lane at about 7.10pm on Monday.
A 28-year-old man was charged with disorderly behaviour, alongside a 33-year-old facing the same charge as well as possession of utensils for methamphetamine.
The night before, seven people were arrested following a brawl at a bar on Karangahape Road.
William Keung, the chair of Karangahape Precinct Collective, a recently established group of residents and homeowners on Karangahape Road, said the CRL construction sites had become a magnet for crime.
“[There’s] drug dealing and drug taking, and general criminal activity,” Keung told RNZ.
He noted that the area opposite Karanga-a-Hape Station’s Mercury Lane entrance was a go-to spot for drug dealing and prostitution.
“This is one of New Zealand’s biggest infrastructure investments, we want to see it succeed,” he said.
“But this type of behaviour, it’s going to impact the station’s actual success.”
Keung called for authorities to bring the area under control before the CRL opened.
“We want to see a more collaborative approach between Auckland Transport, Auckland Council, the government, particularly the Minister of Police and Minister of Auckland, to come together and develop a coordinated response to what’s happening up here,” he said.
“We also want to have more police presence, just to build confidence back among the general public that it’s a safe area.
“Look, it’s urgent. The City Rail Link’s going to open very soon. It needs to be addressed before the stations open.”
Police inspector Mark Clayton told RNZ his officers had been patrolling areas around the under-construction train stations.
“Across May and June, police have also taken part in multi-agency emergency exercises testing real operational scenarios within the new CRL infrastructure,” he said.
“We understand when events like those that took place on Mercury Lane on Monday night occur, this can make people uneasy.
Our staff responded quickly to the events that unfolded last night and ultimately we have put two people before the court.”
Auckland Council compliance manager Adrian Wilson said it was working with police ahead of the CRL’s opening.
“We are working with Auckland Transport, Police and other key stakeholders to share planned arrangements, strengthen cross-agency coordination and identify any operational risks, gaps or opportunities ahead of the CRL go-live. This will be across all the new CRL stations,” he said in a statement to RNZ.