Help make your community a great place to get around safely by bike!
Every three years Auckland’s 21 local boards prepare strategic plans to help guide investment, funding, and local projects over the next three years. The plans also direct the local board input and advocacy into regional strategies, plans and policies.
These plans are open for public consultation right now, and, because the Mayor directed Auckland Transport to listen closely to Local Board input, it’s more important than ever that your local board hears from you! The consultation is open until 4pm on 14 August.
Read on to find out more about local boards, why the plans matter, and for inspiration for your submissions!
Local Boards and their plans
Local Boards are made up of representatives elected by their community during local elections. The current board members were elected last year in 2022. They usually spend a lot of time going to events in their local communities so that they stay connected with locals and can understand what is important to locals. They also have monthly meetings which you can present at, and you can write to them about local issues; they would love to hear from you!
Although Local Boards have small budgets, they can advocate on the community’s behalf for projects, and sometimes projects are postponed or cancelled if the Board is against them. As such, they can play a big role in shaping how you get around your community and local place making. Slower speeds, safe walking and cycling pathways connecting to local schools, and a vibrant people-focused town centre (all things which Local Boards have a say in) improve community well-being, cut household transport costs, reduce emissions, and benefit the local economy. You can find the Local Board draft plans here.
Still not sure which local board area is relevant to you? You can find out here. Their draft plans can be found here.
Each of the 21 draft local board plans, currently out for consultation until 4pm on 14 August, are generally structured around five key outcome (focus) areas:
- Our people: supporting people in our diverse communities.
- Our environment: protecting our natural environment.
- Our community: supporting community participation with our services and infrastructure.
- Our places: supporting our growth, development, transport and accessibility.
- Our economy: supporting our economic development.
For each key outcome the local board identifies what they want to achieve (objectives), the projects the local board aims to deliver over the next three years, and the advocacy they will undertake to the governing body (the Mayor and Councilors) and other agencies.
Where do I start?
You can give feedback on any aspect of the plan for the local board areas where you live, work, or frequently visit. Not sure which local board area is relevant to you? You can find out here.
You can make your submission by:
- Filling in the feedback form for your local board area; or
- Uploading a written submission
You can share your support or give feedback on what is already included in the draft plan, and you can suggest new initiatives or projects.
Below are our ideas to help make Auckland a great place to walk and cycle. You can use these for inspiration, but you should focus on the areas that are local to you; where you live, where you work, and areas that you frequently visit.
You can also ask for ideas from your local Bike Burb for making your area friendlier for bikes. We now have Bike Burbs across almost all the local board areas in the region!
Try to make sure your feedback is in your own words, explains why it is important to you personally, and is specific about location.
Bike Auckland’s ideas
Here’s what Bike Auckland would like to see in local board plans:
Objectives
- Public transport and active transport modes given priority
- Accessibility for all kinds of disabilities given priority
- Safe streets for kids to walk and cycle to school
- Vibrant town centres with well-designed, people-oriented public spaces
- Low traffic neighbourhoods
Key initiatives
- Safe speeds on residential streets, town centres, and around schools
- Use of modal filters to stop rat running and make residential streets quieter
- Use of greenways, “blue-green networks” and quiet areas to make safe cycle connections between local board areas
- An accessible, safe, efficient, and connected network of pathways and cycleways across our neighbourhoods. These should link people to schools, town centres, and public transport
- Secure bike parking at train stations, transport hubs, town centres, and community facilities (eg. more Lockydocks!)
- Wayfinding to help people find their way along the safe cycleways to their destinations
- Ferry service optimization, or other innovations
- Advocate to Auckland Transport to give effect to the Transport Emissions Reduction Pathway, the key strategy to de-carbonise Auckland’s transport system
- Support for bike hubs and community events with a cycle component
- We’ve listed some specific transport projects we would love to see supported below
Advocacy
You could ask your local board to advocate to Auckland Transport to:
- Align all projects and renewals with the Transport Emissions Reduction Pathway (TERP) and emission reduction goals
- Support the campaign to Liberate the Lane on the Auckland Harbour Bridge for walking, cycling, and wheeling
- Make streets safer by reducing speed limits to 30km/h around schools, residential streets, and town centres
- Use modal filters to stop rat running and make residential streets safer and quieter
- Provide an accessible, safe, and efficient local network of pathways and cycleways
- Improve cycle and pathway safety, including lighting, physical traffic barriers, non-slip surfaces etc
- Improve the local public transport network and bus lane priority
- Support local initiatives to reduce emissions by encouraging more use of public transport (eg. secure bike parking at transport hubs, safe cycleways connecting to public transport hubs)
Ideas for specific local board areas:
In alphabetical order…
Albert-Eden Local Board
- Advocate for delivery of the New North road and Symonds street upgrade
- Advocate for a safe cycle connection along St Luke’s road
- Support having a community bike hub in or near the Mt Eden area
- Ensure the Pt Chevalier to Westmere Improvements is delivered
Devonport-Takapuna Local Board
- Support the campaign to Liberate the Lane on the Auckland Harbour Bridge for walking, cycling, and wheeling
- Support safer speeds, cycle improvements, and raised pedestrian crossings in Devonport Village
- Support a protected cycleway along Bayswater Avenue (especially so the kids can safely cycle to school)
- Support a protected cycleway along Lake road to connect Devonport safely to Takapuna!
Franklin Local Board
- Support local trail connections throughout the area
- Advocate for, and support, a safer Pukekohe town centre
Henderson-Massey Local Board
- Advocate for a safe cycle connection from Te Atatū town centre to the North Western pathway
- Support protected cycleways through the Henderson town centre
- Advocate for a safe cycle connection from the Henderson town centre to the North Western pathway
- Advocate for improvements for Twin Streams paths (Opanuku and Oratia) – especially where they have been damaged by recent weather
Howick Local Board
- Support the safe cycleway which is part of the extension of the Eastern Busway project
- Advocate for safe cycleway connections to the Eastern Busway and the cycleway beside it
Kaipātiki Local Board
- Support a safe cycle connection from Upper Harbour Drive to Albany Highway
- Support extension of the Albany Highway cycleway to connect South to the Glenfield road cycleway as was planned a long time ago!
- Advocate and support the continuation of the Northern Pathway to Westhaven
- Advocate for safe cycle connections to the Northern Pathway
- Support the campaign to Liberate the Lane on the Auckland Harbour Bridge for walking, cycling, and wheeling
Māngere-Ōtāhuhu Local Board
- Advocate for the Waikaraka Cycleway to connect all the way around Manukau Harbour to Norana Esplanade for greater transport choice (especially for people who live or work in Ōtāhuhu) and for a beautiful scenic ride 🤩
- Advocate to make the slippery paths in Norana Esplanade safer for people using bikes!
- Support a safe cycleway connection from Māngere Town Centre and the Airport all the way to Nga Hau Māngere Bridge (connecting schools along the way!)
- Advocate for a safe cycle connection from Ōtāhuhu to Sylvia Park
Manurewa Local Board
- Pop up cycleways, such as using concrete tim tams to make a protected on road cycleway, are a fast and cheap way of creating a safe cycle network. Let this board know whether or not you support pop up cycleways for this area
- Support a safe, protected cycleway along Mahia and Roscommon roads
- Support and deliver a walking and cycling bridge over Papakura stream to connect Wattle Downs and Waiata Shores
- Advocate for an extension of the Southern Corridor further North to connect to the CBD (eg. along Great South road)
Maungakiekie-Tāmaki Local Board
- Advocate for the Waikaraka Cycleway to connect all the way around Manukau Harbour to Norana Esplanade for greater transport choice (especially for people who live or work in Ōtāhuhu) and for a beautiful scenic ride 🤩
- Advocate for safe cycle connections from the existing surrounding cycleways through Mt Wellington (eg. Waikaraka Cycleway, Eastern Busway cycleway in Panmure)
- Advocate for a safe cycle connection from Panmure through to the Glen Innes shared path (from which you can ride safely all the way to the CBD!)
- Advocate for a safe cycle network through Onehunga and connecting to Royal Oak roundabout
- Advocate to make Royal Oak roundabout safer for everyone (there are some glaring gaps in safety for people riding bikes!)
Ōrākei Local Board
- Advocate for and deliver the Gowing Drive connection to Te Ara ki Uta ki Tai, the Glen Innes to Tāmaki shared path
- Support the completion of Stage 4 of Te Ara ki Uta ki Tai
- Advocate for a space for local mountain bike tracks and skills equipment
- Advocate to make the slippery boardwalks safer for people using bikes!
Ōtara-Papatoetoe Local Board
- Support delivery of a local bike park
- Advocate for an extension of the Southern Corridor further North to connect to the CBD (eg. along Great South road)
Papakura Local Board
- Pop up cycleways, such as using concrete tim tams to make a protected on road cycleway, are a fast and cheap way of creating a safe cycle network. Let this board know whether or not you support pop up cycleways for this area
- Advocate for safe cycle connections to the Southern Corridor
Puketāpapa Local Board
- Continue to support safe cycle connections throughout the area
Rodney Local Board
- Support a safe cycle connection from the NorthWestern shared path to the Kumeū town centre
Upper Harbour Local Board
- Advocate for a safe cycleway along Oteha Valley Road
- Advocate and support the continuation of the Northern Pathway to Westhaven
- Advocate for safe cycle connections to the Northern Pathway
- Support extension of the Albany Highway cycleway southwards to connect to the Glenfield road cycleway as was planned a long time ago!
- Support the campaign to Liberate the Lane on the Auckland Harbour Bridge for walking, cycling, and wheeling
Waiheke Local Board
- Advocate for safe, protected cycleways throughout the island!
Waitematā Local Board
- Continue to support and implement the City Centre Masterplan
- Connect Te Hā Noa up to the rest of the Victoria Street cycleway; under current plans there will be a sad gap of a couple of blocks between them!
- Make sure the Strand has a safe connection for bikes to cross the bridge over the railway (to Tāmaki Drive / Quay st)
- Support safe walking and cycling connections around the Karanga-a-hape station and to the rest of the cycleway network
- Ensure the delivery of the Great North road street improvement project
- Support the Waitematā Safer Routes to get funded and delivered
- Support the campaign to Liberate the Lane on the Auckland Harbour Bridge for walking, cycling, and wheeling
Whau Local Board
- Support the completion of the next section of Te Whau Pathway
- Continuing open streets events through the Avondale town centre (eg. regularly on Sundays when the market is on)
- Support safe cycle connections through New Lynn and Kelston
- Support the New North road and Symonds street upgrade (it connects along the top of Rosebank road)
Did we miss anything for your local board area? Let us know.
The consultation is open until 4pm on 14 August.
Additional Resources:
Please see the below resources to gain a better understanding or find inspiration for your local board plan submission.
Te Tāruke-ā-Tāwhiri: Auckland’s Climate Plan
