I’m very happy to be writing about our community’s new ferry pier at Half Moon Bay that opened last week with significant Government funding. On Friday, we were able to witness its official opening.
Ferries are a growing part of how locals in Botany, Howick and Pakuranga travel in to Auckland CBD, and it is important for services to match this growing demand. This significant upgrade for ferry passengers at the Half Moon Bay Ferry Terminal has been long in the making.
I have long been a supporter of better ferry options in Half Moon Bay and I am proud to see the $2.75 million Government transport grant has made this happen.
Our funding contribution makes the Government the single largest funding partner, through NZ Transport Agency. Without this funding the project may never have started.
I’d also like to thank Auckland Transport and Howick Local Board for their contributions towards the project.
This ferry pier has been designed with the strong-westerly prevailing winds in mind, to ensure that passengers enjoy more comfort and much less exposure to the strong winds. A ferry-bus hub in the near future will also ensure commuters and other marina users are separated, to improve passenger flows.
This will make commuting to the CBD easier and faster with ferry and bus services at Half Moon Bay located in one area.
Increasing public transport usage is a crucial part of our transport jigsaw for the future. That’s why our funding for public transport has grown by 55 percent since we have been in government. In the last financial year the Government put $200m into public transport. Auckland’s local authorities funded $163m.
Public transport usage in Auckland this year has now passed 87 million trips per annum. This number needs to keep climbing though.
The upgraded Half Moon Bay Ferry Terminal will provide better transport options for our community. I look forward to seeing it getting great use in the future.
By Jami-Lee Ross
MP for Botany
