The biggest challenge for the Council is being realistic about what we can pay for and when. We own a lot of infrastructure that we need to maintain and upgrade – buildings, roads, pipes and more.
We all know that a city’s infrastructure is crucial for residents to thrive and is often taken for granted. Poor infrastructure can have significant negative consequences on our city, affecting our environment, public health and safety, and community and business confidence.
We’ve identified five infrastructure challenges for this LTP that need long-term planning to solve them. There is no quick fix and these issues need funding across multiple years.
1. Population growth and changing demand
We need to ready our infrastructure for the future to serve our growing and changing population, so that we can foster liveable, safe, low-emission neighbourhoods and travel.
2. Ageing and declining condition of infrastructure
Much of the city’s infrastructure was built in waves when parts of the city were urbanised, including a sizeable portion that was built after World War II. This means a lot of our infrastructure will reach the end of its life in the next 30 years.
One example of this challenge is our three waters network. We are seeking feedback on the level of funding for Wellington Water as one of our key proposals of this consultation.
3. Mitigation and adaptation to climate change
Our city's infrastructure, including transportation and waste systems, play a key role in where we live, how we move around, and the industries we support. However, as a steep coastal city with many of our roads and other critical assets situated at or near sea level, the functioning of our city depends on adapting our infrastructure to be resilient to climate change.
4. Earthquake hazards and earthquake prone buildings
Wellington is built on shaky ground due to its location on an active tectonic boundary, and the challenges caused by climate change makes things worse as higher sea levels can cause land to sink and saturate soil in low-lying areas. This combination increases the likelihood and severity of natural disasters in the city.
5. Affording and delivering better infrastructure
The costs of maintaining, operating, renewing, and upgrading infrastructure are big and have been increasing quickly since the COVID-19 pandemic. Obtaining the funds to improve our infrastructure is also becoming challenging as the costs increase. Local government funding is therefore a pressing issue and councils are working with central government to address the funding issues and find a sustainable system for the future