So, just 10km of cycleway has been constructed in the 15 months since John Key announced it as a panacea for the recession.
The budget for the 2000km national cycleway (affectionately known as the John Key Memorial Cycleway), which was going to run the length of the country and host an international cycle race called the Sir Edmund Hillary Explorator, was $50 million. That’s $25,000 a kilometre. In reality building just 10km has cost $600,000.
At this rate, the thing will take 250 years to build and cost $120 million. And I don’t think we’ll be hosting any international races on gravel tracks.
The Standard ran a guest post half an hour after the announcement of the cycleway pointing out how silly and under-budgeted the concept was. It’s nice the rest of the media is finally catching up.
Last year, Key repeatedly boasted that he would take Phil Goff on a ride on his cycleway. I’d like to see Goff take Key up on his offer. They’d be done in half an hour.
Key’s flagship policy was always a joke and, now, everyone’s laughing. Come next year, voters are going to look at this record and say ‘on yer bike, John’.
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