Even so, it\u2019s unlikely to fully rid residents of the daily smorgasbord of delay that\u2019s estimated to be costing them $2.6bn a year. Auckland\u2019s traffic problems are, in large part, structural and inevitable, baked into the shape of the city and the planning documents that govern its growth.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The root of the dilemma is starkly illustrated in a recent Statistics NZ release with the snappy title \u201cSubnational population estimates: At 30 June 2025<\/a>\u201d. It contains a map showing New Zealand\u2019s annual population change broken down by district. Selwyn is expanding. Ruapehu is shrinking. But inset is a breakdown of Auckland\u2019s population data organised by local board area, and it reveals the city has got things, to use the official planning terminology, arse backwards.<\/p>\n Not only are the central suburbs of our biggest city failing to grow; they\u2019re shrinking at a rate similar to the Tararua district, which is home to a place RNZ described as \u201cthe town you\u2019ve never heard of\u201d. Though that may have been harsh to Herbertville, its growth still shouldn\u2019t be on par with areas that sit next to the country\u2019s most productive economic centre<\/a> and a new $5.5bn rail line.\u00a0<\/p>\n Instead of concentrating the city\u2019s population in places with the best access to public transport, jobs and other amenities, Auckland has built the majority of its housing in Papakura, Howick, Hobsonville, the two<\/a> Mills<\/a>, and *gestures at every suburb west of the Te Atat\u016b causeway*.<\/p>\n This isn\u2019t a 2025 blip either. Back in 2019 and 2020, development data showed the exact same trends in motion. Auckland will do literally anything to avoid building houses in its central suburbs. Though its councillors like to talk about a \u201ccompact city\u201d, subtly inferring they\u2019re trying to encourage building around town centres and public transport, what they really mean is they\u2019re compacting the entire city into the Te Atat\u016b peninsula<\/a>. Together with their planners, they\u2019ve placed 42% of all residential land within 5km of the city centre under restrictive character protections<\/a>, while allowing developers to go hog wild in the outer south, north, and west.<\/p>\n The effects are visible in the traffic compacting nose to bumper at rush hour on the motorways every morning. Auckland\u2019s public transport is improving, and in some areas is even good<\/a>, but it\u2019s difficult to efficiently serve such a spread out city<\/a>. For most trips, the residents making their home in Kumeu and Papakura are still going to have to drive. Some will travel to the city centre, some will stay local, and some will go to jobs across town, but unfortunately all of them will require a car, and one little-known fact is that traffic is made of cars<\/a>. Greater Auckland\u2019s Matt Lowrie sums it up. \u201cAs a city we have focused on spreading people out and that has resulted in people being more likely to have to drive, and therefore we have more congestion,\u201d he says.\u00a0<\/p>\n By contrast, Auckland\u2019s inner suburbs have everything you need to minimise car journeys. They\u2019re right next to the job market that generates 8% of our nation\u2019s GDP and connected to both bike lanes and rapid transit. They\u2019ve got parks and playgrounds. Regional amenities like the zoo are close by. If you got a chance to design the city from scratch, the central suburbs are where you\u2019d put the housing.<\/p>\n Why haven\u2019t we? Last week, a story came out in the Herald<\/a> about a new nine-storey apartment development proposed for Freemans Bay. The Kubrick would be a landmark, with its striking purple brick facade and ground level circular windows. Neighboured on two sides by a park and another by a community centre, it could hardly make less of an impact on nearby residents. Despite that, 750 of those residents have banded together to protest. They\u2019ve found an ally in the Herald, which warns that nine storeys \u201cmight not be the worst of it\u201d, and a new plan pushed onto the council by the government could soon enable buildings of up to 15 storeys in the area.<\/p>\n Councillors have always tended to listen to these wealthy inner suburb residents, who vote in large numbers and reliably show up to grumble at weeknight meetings in community centres. The rest of Auckland has been paying for their inhospitality in the form of hour-long commutes.\u00a0<\/p>\n But the Herald is right. Plan change 120 could soon allow more growth close to jobs, council facilities and the City Rail Link<\/a>. For the first time in decades, Auckland is looking like it might approve housing in places where you don\u2019t need a car to get everywhere. The plan is currently out for consultation, and the denizens of Freemans Bay will be definitely sending in their feedback. It\u2019s unclear how many others will find the time. They might all be stuck in traffic.\u00a0<\/p>\nThe central suburbs of Auckland are dying while the rest grow. (Image: Statistics NZ)<\/p>\n
Wtf RNZ.<\/p>\n
The big circles show growth. The littlest circles are around the city centre.<\/p>\n
There could be more housing like this right next to the city centre. The horror. (Photo: Auckland Council)<\/p>\n
Where housing would go under a new plan change proposed by Auckland Council. (Image: Auckland Council)<\/p>\n