Background and aims
Let’s Get Wellington Moving (LGWM) is a partnership between Wellington City Council, Greater Wellington Regional Council, and the NZ Transport Agency. It is working with the people of Wellington to develop a transport system that supports their aspirations for how the city looks, feels, and functions. The programme partners want to support Wellington’s growth while making it safer and easier for you to get around.
LGWM’s $6.4 billion investment aims to ensuring better walking facilities, connected cycleways, and high-quality mass rapid transit, along with more reliable buses, improvements at the Basin Reserve and an extra Mt Victoria Tunnel. It will transform how Wellingtonians get around.
In late 2017, a public engagement process was conducted to let the people of Wellington area have their say regarding Wellington’s transport system in the future.
The LGWM public engagement document presented four scenarios that built from a basic plan to prioritise public and active transport within the central city, to a bigger and more complex plan for multiple transport modes. The public were asked in an open survey to state what they liked, didn’t like, what they would change, and how far they would go regarding each of the Scenarios.
Our role
LGWM commissioned Global Research as an independent consultant to analyse and report on the responses. Global Research’s summary report and more information about the public engagement is available here.
Global Research identified nine key themes from the feedback:
Support for better public transport – now and long-term
Universal support for less congestion
Widespread support for walking and cycling improvements and priority
Opposition to new infrastructure that encourages car use
A regional, integrated approach is required
It is time to act, while being mindful of cost
Future-proofed solutions are required
Basin traffic flow issues need to be solved, but diverse views are held
Wellington-specific solutions required
LGWM summary of public feedback on Wellington transport scenarios (13 March 2018) explains Global Research’s role in the summary of the public’s feedback on four scenarios for Wellington’s transport future:
“The scenarios we took to public engagement in November and December 2017 are complex. We’re pleased more than 2000 people and 50 stakeholder groups took the time to work through our scenarios and give us feedback” ~ Let’s Get Wellington Moving programme director Barry Mein.
Design and method
2,000 Survey responses, general feedback and stakeholder submissions were analysed. Each idea was coded to topics using specialist qualitative analysis software. As each submission contains multiple comments or ideas, Global Research was responsible for effectively analysing and summarising over 49,000 ideas and opinions.
Key themes were identified and reported in summary and in detail. In addition, each scenario was analysed in detail, with discussion centering on what people liked, disliked and what they would change about each scenario.
Result
Global Research maintained close contact with the LGWM team throughout, providing incremental reporting as analysis occurred. The final report displayed visual representation of key themes, extensive appendices, and participants’ voices to illustrate key views. In addition, a summary report informatively distilled community sentiment on scenarios, and on key themes that emerged. LGWM was able to report back with confidence to the community their preferred scenario, develop this further, and plan the programme of investment accordingly.
Outcome
The Global Research report informed the $6.4 billion that The New Zealand Government endorsed in May 2019.
The Honorable Phil Twyford said in making the announcement: “We’ll reduce congestion by integrating modern rapid transit, walking and cycling upgrades, and better public transport with the city’s motorways and roads.”, and “Better public transport infrastructure and more services will encourage people out of their cars – freeing up the roads for those that have to drive.”
Julie Anne Genter, the Associate Minister of Transport, used the Global Research report to support her argument during question time (3:30) in the New Zealand parliament. Wellingtonians can be assured that their opinions have been well considered and included in the decisions made for the future of their city.
Check out some other projects we have completed for Wellington:
Central Library Redevelopment ~ WCC
The Wellington Central Library was closed to the public in March 2019 due to new guidelines for concrete buildings revealing a high level of potential failure in a significant earthquake.
A public engagement consultation ran between 27 July and 7 September 2020 to examine preferences for the Central Library redevelopment. The consultation process invited the public to comment on five options for a redevelopment of the Central Library, three with different levels of remediation, and two which proposed a new build.
Planning for Growth builds on the goals from Our City Tomorrow — Wellington’s Ten Year Plan — and includes a review of the Wellington Urban Growth Plan, as well as the District Plan — both of which impact and shape Wellington's urban environment.
In the next 30 years, Wellington is projected to become home to 50,000 to 80,000 more people. That will have a big impact on the city — not just on where people live, but how they live. Wellingtonians had their say via an online survey on the pros and cons of four growth scenarios proposed to accommodate anticipated population growth.