Blog
Response to "Dave B" - Scoop article "Mayoral Hopefuls & Red Flags" [5/8/22]
Island Bay Meeting 25/8/22
The Island Bay candidates meeting was the first of the season and reasonably interesting – but there was the usual passive-aggresive nonsense from the “cyclopaths” who had previously high jacked the association in order to push through the abomination they call a cycleway. Public opinion matters little when the single minded, self absorbed advocates from the lunatic fringe of the cycling community decide that they want to dump their kids in cargo bikes and then expect ratepayers to expend vast amounts of money to make them “feel safe”. They conveniently forget about the fact that they and their associates in council have turned an iconic roadway into a dangerous, shambolic shambles. There have already been hit and run incidents in which cyclists have caused serious injury to people and simply cycled away. This behaviour is despicable and by all accounts criminal. We need the police to follow up on the incidents to date.
The blinkered, self serving advocates and those encumbered with an egocentric sense of entitlement are decimating communities, businesses and the city generally. Unfortunately they really don’t give a damn about how much damage they cause as a result of their self righteous, philosophically simplistic crusades. It is now time to push back and to demand that the cycleways in Island Bay, Newtown and Brooklyn are removed and that lost car parks are reinstated.
The cycleways along Thorndon Quay also need to be completely reassessed. The entire Bike Network Plan must be put on hold and decisions made by the current crop of cycleway obsesssed councillors must be revoked.
The 11th hour decisions rushed through council by the red and green councillors pushing party agendas is a scandal – and underscores the need to vote for candidates who have no political affiliations or “endorsements” from political parties.
The rot started in this city with the first “Green” mayor and continued under the Lester/Eagle partnership. Right now however, we need another “Green” mayor like we need another exploding sewer main.
Response to Scoop article "Who's the Most Visible? [29/8/22]
The point of this article evades me. Is it suggesting that degree of visibility is an indication of someone’s depth of political vision? Clearly it is not, because none of the 3 candidates mentioned have impressed with the extent, depth and boldness of their policies – or even the very existence of substantive policies in one or two cases.
I agree the VUWSA has been letting itself down lately with some petty, self righteous banalities – but their interpretation of mayoral “front runners” obviously excludes some of the essential mayoral qualities.
Reporters also need to delve deeper into the issues rather than pursue an apparent obsession with the throw-away social media blabbering of one or two mayoral hopefuls. To reproduce blabs suggesting that other candidates and some attendees were “rude and mean” at the recent Island Bay meeting is somewhat pathetic.
The last time I checked we were part way through a political campaign – not a group therapy session or love fest.
The last thing Wellington needs right now is another mayor pushing party political doctrine.
Submissions on Newtown to City cycleway.
I took the time to make submissions and oppose the proposed cycleway. I also put arguments on behalf of those needing help and car parking from the Cancer Society at a difficult time in their lives. The fact that people undergoing chemo-therapy or radiation treatment now have to drive around trying to find a car park is unforgivable.
Of course those councillors pushing these abominations pushed their decision to proceed in spite of opposition from a number of submissions. The fact that these decisions were made in the 11th hour is also particularly loathsome behaviour. Unsurprisingly, the entire consultation process agreed to by council was turned into a complete sham. Integrity matters in the City Council and the behaviour of some councillors needs full scrutiny. Wellington’s voters can now get rid of the agenda driven councillors responsible for this inexcusable arrogance and single minded advocacy. We can ask questions later.
This is a really important election. Make sure you vote! The red and green agenda needs to be swept from council and replaced with common sense, fiscal responsibility and a sense of civic duty. Like I’ve said before, the rot started in this city with the first “Green” mayor. We need another one of those like we need another exploding sewer line.
Response to Scoop article
There are 2 aspects to this article.
Firstly:
The Chamber of Commerce speaks of greater consultation between NZTA, WCC and Wellington businesses – which I agree with. However, they were happy to conduct a mayoral forum that excluded most of the mayoral candidates and instead offered up another routine session from “The 3 Stooges” – as have Stuff, RNZ, VUWSA, Arts Wellington, Spinoff, etc.
This is contrary to the idea of a free and fair, inclusive and open democratic process.
In addition, overt media manipulation of these elections is worsening by the day as newspapers and others report on “forums” or “debates” involving the uninspiring 3 – without making mention of the fact that the other mayoral candidates were deliberately excluded.
The situation is untenable and the voters of Wellington are the victims of a huge disservice. Those mayoral candidates who make up the full complement are in turn victims of self-righteous, judgemental and censorial behaviour by the media.
So, when the Chamber of Commerce speaks of “inclusive consultation, rather than unilateral decision-making”, it therefore needs to embrace that philosophy as part of its own operational policy when it comes to local body intervention.
Secondly:
The Council’s 11th hour decision to continue with that abomination called the “Newtown to City Cycleway” is hardly surprising, because they have now been ignoring public opinion and input for years. I’m not sure what the “out of court settlement” of the injunction might have entailed, but it’s obvious the latest “consultation” was nothing more than a charade.
I made submissions in support of the Cancer Society and the patients undergoing chemotherapy and radiation treatment who now have to drive around the block looking for car parks. I suggested that the entire cycleway plan should be put on hold pending a full assessment of need, design, impact and cost.
But nothing gets through the sense of entitlement, the self interest and the blind, obsessive advocacy. They don’t give a damn about how they impact the residents, businesses and motorists. The greens with their fuzzy, vaporous notions and the Labour crew with their agenda laden luggage have been decimating our city for years. The rot started with our first green mayor and continued under the Lester/Eagle partnership. Therefore the last thing Wellington needs at this critical juncture is another green or red mayor in the guise of an independent.
The 11th hour decisions being made now are inflicting maximum damage before an election. Therefore it’s time they were all removed from Council. You know the ones I mean – those running around sprinkling green pixie dust or wearing red ‘L’ plates on their backs. These are important elections because they will determine whether or not our city continues its decline or reverses course toward an era of collaboration, common sense, fiscal responsibility and informed decision making – powered by inclusive democracy and a sense of civic duty. So brush off the media manipulation, discard the meaningless straw polls and vote accordingly.
Visiting the Devastation on the South Coast
I visited Owhiro Bay and the area just south of Te Kopahou Visitor Centre. What an absolute embarrasment this place is at the moment! There are furrows that could break a leg if you inadvertently step into one of them. There are even one or two that you might need to crawl out of after disappearing from view.
If you ever have any doubts about the threats to life and property along Owhiro Bay Pde, a visit to this western end of the sealed road will be a sobering experience. The impact of climate change has arrived and the threat to the residents of this bay cannot be ignored. WCC needs to start some serious mitigation planning. Expensive little concrete sea walls won’t do the job and some integrated dyke construction is needed.
My Policies page outlines suggestions for protection of the southern bays and Wellington harbour. There’s no point in spending ratepayers money on futile measures that are doomed to fail. Do it once – do it right!
To Dave B:
Contrary to what you might think, I have an old Scott mountain bike and I still like using it to get out and about. Nor do I have an intrinsic problem with cycleways generally. The problem we have here is that the cycleways and the associated plastic garbage plastered all over our streets are abominations – ill-conceived, badly designed, excessively expensive, often dangerous, an impediment to traffic flow, a life threatening impediment to rescue service vehicles and totally underutilised. They are the brain child of the lunatic fringe element of the cycling community – or the “cyclopaths” as I prefer to call them – who, together with like minded consultants, have infiltrated the mindset of some WCC councillors and staff, to the point where decisions are based on ‘feel good’ fuzzy notions unattached to reality.
Lets be brutally honest – removing car parks from outside the hospital, the Cancer Society and medical labs on Riddiford Street is unconscionable. Meanwhile, the cycle lanes remain almost completely unused – except for the occasional ridiculous cargo bike with unrestrained children on board zipping through bus stops and nearly taking out the elderly or infirm as they get on and off the buses. Many cyclists have been seen avoiding the cycleways altogether. A measure of their success no doubt. I won’t even start on the ludicrous cycle lane on Brooklyn Hill – where opposing articulated dump trucks and buses have been pushed close together and motorists are stuck behind those same dump trucks crawling up the hill – because an overtaking lane has been allocated to a few dozen cyclists. Nor will I dwell on the fiasco in Island Bay – where it is now not possible to park outside homes as a visitor or caregiver and where opposing traffic has again been pushed closer together and oversized buses regularly cross the centre line.
The idea that cycleways will suddenly make a lot of “closet” cyclists suddenly break out and pedal to work is another simplistic green tinged fantasy. It is also becoming clear that cycleways do not significantly reduce bike related accidents. One of the few cycleways that work in Wellington is the one running along the northern side of Cobham Drive. My suggestion therefore is that the design and implementation of cycleways should be an integral part of road upgrades and widening, so that the finished product is not a fiscal black hole – constantly being altered because of design errors, mistakes, public push-back and changes to roads. In the meantime, a white line set away from kerbside parks (with green paint between if you so desire) is a perfectly good option. It worked for me when cycling on 6 lane arterial roads in Sydney for a few months. The secret is for motorists AND cyclists to take care, follow road rules and show each other some courtesy. It works both ways!!
Finally I would say don’t expect Wellington ratepayers to finance your need to feel safe. If you are unable to accept the risks associated with sharing a street with cars when riding your bike, buy a small hybrid car or take the bus. If you are a parent dumping your children into cargo bikes or carry baskets unrestrained on Wellington roads, then you need to start thinking seriously about the responsibility you have as a parent to ensure the safety and welfare of your children.