How to wreck a busway

20 comments on “How to wreck a busway ”

• Comments are now closed

1. alwyn 1

   19 July 2016 at 3:58 pm

   According to this story the Minister wasn’t going to allow the vehicles to use bus lanes willy-nilly.
   http://www.newshub.co.nz/politics/electric-cars-in-bus-lanes-silent-killers-2016050608#axzz4Ep58saXN

   He claimed, back in May, that it would give councils the option of allowing it. It doesn’t say they must allow it. Has something changed in the proposal, was Bridges wrong in his statement in May, or is this post following the Green Party in misinterpreting what the Minister proposed?

   From the story it says
   “But Mr Bridges says it’ll be up to councils and local transport agencies to decide whether to let electric vehicles use bus lanes.
   “What we’re doing — and the Green Party’s got this wrong — is simply allowing this rule change,” he told Paul Henry on Friday.
   “Clearly the councils and the transport agencies are going to consult with communities, and let’s see where we get to.”

   Incidentally are cycles allowed to use the bus lanes in Auckland, or do they just do so because they can’t be identified?
   • Keith 1.1

     19 July 2016 at 4:07 pm

     Push bikes and motorcycles are allowed to use “bus lanes” but not “Bus only” lanes such as lanes exclusively for buses on motorways and on ramps!
     • alwyn 1.1.1

       19 July 2016 at 4:41 pm

       Thank you. I didn’t realise they had two kinds. In Wellington cycles can use all the bus lanes. Of course there aren’t any bus lanes on the motorways. Can be a real pain when the lane is winding up a hill, and the cyclist is doing about 5 kph with the bus unable to pass.
2. Keith 2

   19 July 2016 at 4:03 pm

   Am I being too cynical to think somewhere in the National Party business there are generous donors and or people who are making money out of selling new and used Hybrids and full electric vehicles, both of which are expensive and largely non attractive to buyers (Taxi’s excluded) unless substantial incentives are made available?

   Why else would you illogically degrade the operation of bus lanes, obviously getting worse over time especially when overseas experience tells you this will happen? And how will authorities tell the difference between the hybrid model and its petrol only clone without substantial resources being used to study footage of transit lanes? None of this makes sense unless someone is making a quick buck out of it!
3. TC 3

   19 July 2016 at 4:18 pm

   Wtf is that lying toady still a minister anyway after the northland by election bridges issue amongst other lies hes been caught out on.

   Hes clearly destined for a much larger bus to be thrown under when it suits them.
4. Richard Christie 4

   19 July 2016 at 6:20 pm

   When did the plural of a bus become busses rather than buses?

   Is “busses” US usage?
5. Macro 5

   19 July 2016 at 8:44 pm

   But! Nats are not interested in efficient public transport and saving the Planet! That sort of stuff is for the looney Greenies. This is about Simon and his mates being able to get about the city quicker in their Tesla’s. Now that is a priority – F**K the plebs…
   • weka 5.1

     19 July 2016 at 11:10 pm

     Might be time to swap the limos for some Ministerial buses perhaps.
     • Stuart Munro 5.1.1

       20 July 2016 at 1:53 am

       Tumbrels.
   • James 5.2

     20 July 2016 at 8:21 am

     I looked at a tesla the other day. Bloody impressive. I would seriously give consideration to one.
6. weka 6

   19 July 2016 at 11:13 pm

   Transport Minister Simon Bridges ignored official advice to consult with councils before announcing he would allow electric cars to use bus lanes.

   He now faces a backlash with one council indicating it won’t implement the policy and another considering whether to enforce it.

   Does that mean that it’s not a government issue, it’s local body? i.e. the government can’t enforce it anyway.
   • Lanthanide 6.1

     19 July 2016 at 11:23 pm

     Parliament is sovereign, it can do what it likes.
     • weka 6.1.1

       19 July 2016 at 11:50 pm

       Yeah, that’s not what I meant though. I meant that roads managed by councils probably can’t be managed by government (as opposed to state highwways).
       • ropata 6.1.1.1

         20 July 2016 at 12:03 am

         Bloody great, the councils get to pay for all the development and expense of building busways, then some tosspot in wellington decides to fuck it up on behalf of his rich mates driving hybrids
       • Lanthanide 6.1.1.2

         20 July 2016 at 9:25 am

         Sure they can, the government just has to pass a particular act saying that their EV bus-lane rule overrides anything that a council does.

         Yes, it might be the case that the current proposal by the minister would not legally work. But the minister is fully able to draft a new proposal that does.
         • weka 6.1.1.2.1

           20 July 2016 at 10:19 am

           Yes, but again, that’s not what I am asking (how the govt can rule). I’m asking about within existing systems and whether the govt can even tell councils what to do in this regard. I’m guessing they can’t and that’s part of the fuck up with the announcement.
           • Lanthanide 6.1.1.2.1.1

             20 July 2016 at 10:25 am

             Well that’s already answered in the original article anyway:

             The proposal trespasses over areas where local authorities have primary responsibility.
7. mac1 7

   20 July 2016 at 12:50 am

   Watch the Ministerial limos move to electricity.

   The cynic in me also says that this will apply to hybrids, to cars with a tiny electric motor fitted to circumvent the regulation, and to people who can get another opinion that their petrol engine is ekshully electric.

   Some wise spark will then postulate that his engine is electric because it uses high voltage current passed through an air-fuel mix for propulsion.

   The diesel fraternity will demand equality based on their low demand for free electrons, and anyway their engines are started electrically.

   Add-on electrical accessories will then become a trendy thing with solar panels and wind turbine generators being mounted on bonnets and roofs to attest to their electrifricity. However, special wardens issued with volt meters will be appointed to check that such vehicles meet the current standard.
8. Macro 8

   20 July 2016 at 12:50 am

   There is a difference between hybrids and EV’s (Electric Vehicles).

   Hybrids still rely on an internal combustion engine (fossil fuels) for their primary energy source. They are more efficient than conventional cars because the ic engine runs for the majority of its time at its most efficient speed charging a battery as well as providing motive force to drive the vehicle. An EV’s primary source of energy is electricity stored in a battery and charged externally from a power source.
   Hybrids such as the Toyota Prius achieve economies of around 4.5 L of petrol for 100 km compared to cars of a similar size averaging around 7 – 9 L ( or more) per 100 km.
   EV’s are currently rather expensive and the cheapest the Nissan Leaf is around $30,000 for a good second hand car. They have a range of around 250 km.
   The Tesla is in a class of its own – but is expensive and well out of the reach of the average buyer. It has an impressive performance for a car buff (0 – 100kph in around 6 secs!) and the most up to day battery technology gives it a 365 km range. Still not enough to drive from Auckland to Wellington though.
   I gather that it is only the EV’s that Simon is considering from the post above. Peasant own hybrids and so they would have to travel in the car lanes like every one else. This is an elite society we live in now folks – get used to it. (don’t forget on Air NZ their elite customers get on and off first- the peasants wait.)
   • James 8.1

     20 July 2016 at 8:26 am

     It’s the model s that you want not the one you linked. 0-100 in as little as 2.8 sec it’s the mutts mutts. Sadly still a bit expensive but still sharper than a lot of cars with the same spec.

• Comments are now closed

• Log in
• Donate
• Contribute post

• Articles RSS