Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Greater Auckland @greaterauckland.bsky.social · 11h

And after all, you can’t spell “street” without “tree” 😊

GeorgeWeeks2014 @georgeweeks2014.bsky.social · 10h

More street trees 🌴 being planted in Pitt Street.

This work means that Pitt St will have a similar cross section and materiality to Karangahape Road.

Previously, Pitt St felt very arterial. A relic of its pre-motorway function.

Now it reflects the presence of a soon-to-open railway station 🚇

Roadworkers and lorries delivering nikau palm to Pitt St, Auckland.

Newly-planted nikau palms in Pitt St, Auckland.

1 8

Reposted by Greater Auckland

GeorgeWeeks2014 @georgeweeks2014.bsky.social · 11h

More street trees 🌴 being planted in Pitt Street.

This work means that Pitt St will have a similar cross section and materiality to Karangahape Road.

Previously, Pitt St felt very arterial. A relic of its pre-motorway function.

Now it reflects the presence of a soon-to-open railway station 🚇

1 3 22

Greater Auckland @greaterauckland.bsky.social · 1d

"Auckland Solutions for Wellington Problems" 🙃

@scootfoundation.bsky.social – the semi-serious and proudly Auckland-based candidate for mayor of Wellington – proposes a southern "city rail link", connecting the airport to the heart of the city.

A capital idea! How about it, cousins?

A tweet by ScootFoundation, aka Scott Caldwell, who is running semi-jocularly for Mayor of Wellington. It contains an image of a proposed Wellington City Rail Link, and the text: "Auckland and Wellington faced the same problem: the train system doesn’t take you into the heart of the city The difference? Auckland is doing something about it: the CRL.
As mayor, I promise to bring Auckland Solutions for Wellington Problems.
Vote scoot #1 today!"

1 2 10

Greater Auckland @greaterauckland.bsky.social · 1d

Cities rock.

The Daily Show @thedailyshow.com · 1d

The following is REAL footage from Portland, 2025. Viewer discretion is advised.

1 9 34

Greater Auckland @greaterauckland.bsky.social · 1d

It's local election eve! 🎅 You have until noon tomorrow to pop your ballot in the box. Every vote matters, and shapes how our city grows over the next three years. 🙏

While we wait for electoral elves to tot up the results, enjoy our regular Friday roundup of stories that caught our eye this week...

Weekly Roundup 10-October-2025 - Greater Auckland

It’s local government election eve – last chance to get your votes in before noon on Saturday 11 October! Voting is valuable. As Hayden Donnell puts it in his famously witty way,

www.greaterauckland.org.nz

2 5

Greater Auckland @greaterauckland.bsky.social · 1d

How are things going with the development on the former UNITEC site along Carrington Rd?

Find out, in this guest post by @urbanistfromwhk.bsky.social with heaps of nice photos of the new housing and emerging transport links – plus, a surprise playground! 🤸‍♂️ www.greaterauckland.org.nz/2025/10/09/p...

Progress on the Carrington (UNITEC) housing development - Greater Auckland

This is a guest post by Malcolm McCracken. It previously appeared on his blog

www.greaterauckland.org.nz

1 4 6

Greater Auckland @greaterauckland.bsky.social · 3d

“When it comes to our transport choices, whoever is elected to local boards and council seats in Auckland this year matters a LOT more than in the past.”

@connorsharp.bsky.social on how this local election will have an outsized impact on transport, including a “post code lottery” for safer streets.

What this local election means for transport in Auckland - Greater Auckland

Connor Sharp is running for the Waitematā Local Board in this year’s election. On Saturday (pending any close-run races), we’ll learn who will govern our city for the next three years. While the mayor...

www.greaterauckland.org.nz

1 11

Greater Auckland @greaterauckland.bsky.social · 10d

"Building a short section of cycleway, or proposing to take away a car park, gets more column inches in the media – and more scrutiny from both local and central government politicians – than any multi-billion-dollar mega-project ever experiences.

All of this is the opposite of how it should be."

The secrecy of mega-projects - Greater Auckland

How is it that mega-projects costing billions get such little public involvement and scrutiny? That’s a question that Mayor Wayne Brown effectively hits on in

www.greaterauckland.org.nz

8 10

Greater Auckland @greaterauckland.bsky.social · 11d

Perfectly good citywide bike network buried under all those cars, too, just awaiting daylighting.

2

Reposted by Greater Auckland

NZ Transit Buzz @nztransitbuzz.bsky.social · 11d

#RailNews: The Golden Triangle is home to 40% of NZ's population with huge flows of people and freight. Electrifying its rail could make a real difference to its mobility

By @darrendavis.bsky.social via Adventures in Transitland: adventuresintransitland.substack.com/p/electrifyi...

Electrifying the Golden Triangle

The Golden Triangle of Aotearoa's Upper North Island is home to 40% of the nation's population with huge flows of people and freight. Electrifying its rail could make a real difference to its mobility

adventuresintransitland.substack.com

7 18

Greater Auckland @greaterauckland.bsky.social · 11d

omg so true bestie, totes #twinning over here too 🚗✨

Oh The Urbanity! @ohtheurbanity.bsky.social · 12d

Despite the so-called “war on cars”, there are still lots of roads in Montreal to drive or park your car on. Most of them, actually.

1 4

Reposted by Greater Auckland

Doug Gordon @brooklynspoke.bsky.social · 11d

Here's one of Barcelona's famous superillas, or superblocks, on Rocafort-Consell de Cent. All of this used to be asphalt and space for moving and storing cars. Now it's green, quiet, calm, and safe.

paved sidewalk with grey squares next to green space on left and cafe tables and trees on right.

Light brown sand/park with trees overhead.

Grey pavement and green space and picnic tables.

3 56 310

Reposted by Greater Auckland

Oh The Urbanity! @ohtheurbanity.bsky.social · 12d

Despite the so-called “war on cars”, there are still lots of roads in Montreal to drive or park your car on. Most of them, actually.

4 22 230

Greater Auckland @greaterauckland.bsky.social · 11d

Three major crashes today on roads where the current NZ govt *increased* the speed limit (previously lowered for safety reasons) in pursuit of "productivity"?

Serious injuries. Lengthy closures. Costly disruptions to lives, whānau, the transport network, our health system. This is not productive. 😞

"Pedestrian seriously injured after being hit by car, Botany Rd in East Auckland closed." Screenshot of a news story in the NZ Herald from Monday 29 September 2025. The first line of the story reads: "A worker close to the site where a pedestrian was struck by a car in East Auckland said he heard a loud “bang” noise before a rush of sirens."

This year, Botany Rd was one of over 1400 Auckland streets that had its speed limit raised by order of the current government, in this case, from 50km/h back up to 60km/h. In a move that runs counter to evidence and good practice, the government's new Speed Rule (authored by Simeon Brown and rolled out by Chris Bishop) *reversed* speed reductions implemented since 2020 on the spurious grounds that safer speeds impacted "productivity".

The speed reductions were aimed at making roads safer for everyone using them, whether in a car or not. A quick search of "Botany Rd serious crash" explains why Botany was one of them.

Today's crash seems to have happened along a stretch of Botany Rd that has shops and bus stops on both sides of the road, but the nearest signalised crossings are around half a kilometre away in either direction.

"Six hurt in SH1 crash near Taupō." Screenshot of a Radio NZ news story from Monday 29 September 2025. This stretch of State Highway 1 recently had its speed limit raised back up to 100kmh from 60kmh. The speed limit had been lowered due to a history of serious and fatal crashes along this key route.

Many locals were appalled by the reversal, as the highway runs through popular and busy holiday towns. For context, see this story from June 2025, in which the Taupō District Council's deputy mayor describes it as "grossly inappropriate”. https://www.waikatotimes.co.nz/nz-news/360717092/holiday-communities-livid-about-speed-limit-reversals and this NZ Herald story https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/new-speed-rules-100kmh-through-a-lake-taupo-campground/G2VZI4VSJZCTLKP3K444D6H2VU/ which describes some of the worst crashes in this area. "Until 2020, the speed limit remained 100km/h. Between 2000 and August 2023, there were 284 crashes reported on the 10km stretch of road from Motutere to Hallets Bay. Nine were fatal and 22 others were serious."

"'Significant delays' afer stock truck rolls on SH5 Napier Taupō Road." Screenshot of a Radio NZ news story from Monday 29 September 2025. SH5 had its speed limit raised this year back up to 100km/h from 80km/h, as a priority of the current government.

Speeds had been reduced to 80km/h due to the ongoing history of serious and fatal crashes on this highway, which is the only link between Napier and Taupō. The return to 100km/h sparked concern from road safety experts.

For further context, see this story from February 2025: "An independent study released after the drop to 80km/h concluded the lower speed limit on Napier-Taupō Rd prevented 34 crashes in the first 12 months following its implementation. Crash data also showed there had been fewer crashes on Napier-Taupō Rd since the drop to 80km/h." https://www.nzherald.co.nz/hawkes-bay-today/news/napier-taupo-rd-speed-limit-rise-to-100kmh-sparks-safety-debate/5QTIH2LPTFGAFAAOWTME3AD7IE/

3 34 76

Reposted by Greater Auckland

Bike Auckland @bikeauckland.bsky.social · 12d

🎉🚲 It’s (nearly) the most wonderful time of the year… and no, it’s not Christmas! 😉

Biketober is here — a whole month packed with rides, workshops, and celebrations all across Tāmaki Makaurau.

Check out the full calendar at biketober.nz and join the fun!

#Biketober #BikeAKL #BetterByBike

1

Greater Auckland @greaterauckland.bsky.social · 12d

We’re in this list and we like it. 😊#GlobalUrbanists

Brent Toderian @brenttoderian.bsky.social · 13d

NEW STARTER PACK! This time I’m hoping to encourage and support global urbanists from OUTSIDE North America here on Bluesky, so hopefully this will help! Who’ve I missed? Just joined? Let me know! I’ll keep updating, so please keep checking & sharing this pack! And let’s try using #GlobalUrbanists.

Urbanists OUTSIDE North America Worth Following!

Join the conversation

go.bsky.app

1 4 33

Reposted by Greater Auckland

Darren Davis @darrendavis.bsky.social · 20d

It’s just over nine months until Te Huia’s five year trial comes to an end in mid-2026. There’s lots to be done to secure it as a permanent service between Auckland and Hamilton. Read on for what this involves.
open.substack.com/pub/adventur...

Making Te Huia a permanent service

Te Huia's five-year trial is fast coming towards its close on 30th June 2026. What needs to happen to make it a permanent part of Aotearoa's public transport system?

open.substack.com

11 22

Reposted by Greater Auckland

Darren Davis @darrendavis.bsky.social · 13d

In my latest blog post, I delve into KiwiRail's emerging thinking on the electrification of the Golden Triangle linking Auckland, Hamilton and Tauranga.
open.substack.com/pub/adventur...

Electrifying the Golden Triangle

The Golden Triangle of Aotearoa's Upper North Island is home to 40% of the nation's population with huge flows of people and freight. Electrifying its rail could make a real difference to its mobility

open.substack.com

1 2 7

Reposted by Greater Auckland

Carlton Reid @carltonreid.com · 13d

Happy 200th birthday to passenger rail travel!

Although, as my piece shows, actual history is messier than that: www.forbes.com/sites/carlto...

From Steam to Sustainability: How Railways Could Help Calm the Climate Crisis

Born in the age of coal, the rail industry helped ignite the climate crisis. Today, rail — celebrating its 200-year anniversary — is reinventing itself as the greenest mode of mass transport.

www.forbes.com

3 20 53

Reposted by Greater Auckland

Connor Sharp @connorsharp.bsky.social · 14d

Wow look at this street. There must be incredible productivity gains on this crucial economic route from Simeon Browns blanket speed increases. So safe, and so fitting at 50km/h!

3 10 41

Reposted by Greater Auckland

HowDoYou Guide @howdoyou.guide · 15d

Hi @npr.org! We worked late tonight putting together this handy pocket guide!

It doesn't address road design issues, but if we're going to educate road users, we should include drivers.

It's the size of a folded business card. Print it, fold it, put it in your wallet!

"How Do You Avoid Hitting People With Your Car" pocket guide. Instructs readers to Watch the Road and Slow Down. Further text humorously insists that watching the road and slowing down are indeed important.

41 1.1K 2.7K

Reposted by Greater Auckland

Patrick Reynolds for a greater Auckland @patrickreynolds.bsky.social · 17d

There’s a lot wisdom in here, thanks @haydendonnell.bsky.social
thespinoff.co.nz/politics/23-...

Four departing mayors tell us what they really think

They want to keep Māori wards, think rates capping will fail, and say the government is being patronising and paternalistic.

thespinoff.co.nz

1 10 24

Greater Auckland @greaterauckland.bsky.social · 14d

Our Friday roundup, featuring stories about cities and transport that caught our eye this week. Have a great weekend, and roll on Daylight Saving Time (and Biketober)! www.greaterauckland.org.nz/2025/09/26/w...

Weekly Roundup 26-September-2025 - Greater Auckland

Welcome to another Friday. Who’s ready for Daylight Saving Time this weekend? And it’s almost October, aka World Bank’s report puts it: “[…] there are no other risk factors that have such a substantia...

www.greaterauckland.org.nz

1

Reposted by Greater Auckland

American Fietser @americanfietser.bsky.social · 15d

I want to live in cities where a scene like this is fairly unremarkable.

MaiTheDane @maithedane.bsky.social · 15d

💕💗💕

2 12 94

Reposted by Greater Auckland

Patrick Reynolds for a greater Auckland @patrickreynolds.bsky.social · 15d

A viable cycling network is a vital safety-net for people and the economy. Is the cheapest transport network to install and maintain. A measure of a city’s competence and civility.

www.rnz.co.nz/news/pinchpo...

2 17 45