By Laura Kvigstad, Auckland Council reporter
Funded by New Zealand on Air
Congestion, crime and the cost of living have been highlighted as the big issues affecting the quality of life for Aucklanders in a recent survey.
The bi-annual quality of life survey looks at residents perception of living in eight major cities across Aotearoa including Auckland.
The latest results showed 79 per cent of Aucklanders surveyed found traffic congestion to be a problem and 48 per cent did not agree that their current housing costs were affordable.
One anonymous Aucklander who was surveyed said the cost of living was through the roof.
“Wages do not match or come close what we are worth. The likes of Australia respect their people with good wages, houses are way cheaper and living costs are decent,” they said.
Crime was also a big worry for the overall respondents with 70 per cent concerned about theft and burglary, 66 per cent worried about dangerous driving and 61 per cent were uneasy about vandalism in their local areas.
Covid-19 also had a large impact on many Aucklanders who were surveyed. Covid negatively impacted 48 per cent of respondents physical healthy, 65 per cent reported mental health effects and 47 per cent said their financial wellbeing was affected by the pandemic.
Auckland Council stood out in one significant way within the survey by being the only council not to include measures on the publics confidence in council’s decision making.
When asked why the measure was not included, Auckland Council’s research team responded that they currently conduct quarterly monitoring on the trust in council decision making.
While the quality of life survey found the seven other councils averaged 27 per cent trust in council’s decision making Auckland Councils own monitoring in the latest quarter found 22 per cent of Aucklanders trusted council decision making.
Auckland Council’s Economic and Social Research and Evaluation team manager Alison Reid highlighted the positives within the report and said the majority of respondents were happy with their quality of life.
Three quarters of respondents said their local area was a great place to live and 56 per cent responded that they felt proud of the way their local area looked, Reid said.
“As the population continues to increase, and the cost of living rises, we see continued reporting among some of a lack of pride in their local area, economic stress and social isolation,” Reid said.
“The survey findings highlight the significant impact that Covid-19 and associated economic ramifications has had on people’s wellbeing.”
“It also shows that many Aucklanders are worried about the impacts of climate change on the future of Auckland,” with 44 per cent reporting to be worried about how climate change would impact the city.
Reid said the survey would be used to help outline council plans like Auckland Plan 2050 and Ngā Hapori Momoho, our Thriving Communities Strategy.
