Auckland Transport is to look into options to build a light rail system in the city centre to relieve traffic congestion in and around the central business district.
The authority said that light rail had been discussed previously as a way of complementing the $2.86 billion City Rail Link (CRL) – a 3.5-kilometre underground rail link which will link Britomart to Mt Eden.
Queen Street, Symonds Street, Sandringham Road, Manukau Road and Mt Eden Road are all being considered as potential tram routes.
Auckland Transport has said that light rail would be able to transport three times as many people per hour than buses and would offer a solution to the city’s looming congestion crisis.
Auckland Transport chairman Dr Lester Levy said: “It is perhaps unsurprising that routes that have been identified are similar to those which operated in the 1930s and 40s when trams moved large numbers of Aucklanders around.
“They would service a large part of urban Auckland which currently has limited access to and from the city centre, while the City Rail Link will significantly increase the capacity on the existing rail/commuter network across the region.”
