Appendix H. Onehunga Branch Line Challenge Workshop Report SMART (Rail to the Airport) Auckland Transport SMART Workshop 1: Onehunga Branch Line Document No.1 | Draft 27 May 2016 Client Reference SMART Wor kshop 1: Onehung a Br anch Li ne Auckland Transport Document history and status Revision Date Description By Review Approved 0 18/05/2016 Draft for Client review Kerry King Jeremy Hosking Jeremy Hosking 1 27/05/2016 Updated to include stakeholder comments Kerry King Jeremy Hosking Jeremy Hosking Distribution of copies Revision Issue Date issued Issued to Comments approved 0 18/05/2016 19/05/2016 Auckland Transport Draft for Client review 1 27/05/2016 30/06/2016 Auckland Transport Final draft for review SMART Workshop 1: Onehunga Branch Line SMART (Rail to the Airport) Project No: IZ032300 Document Title: SMART Workshop 1: Onehunga Branch Line Document No.: Document No.1 Revision: Draft Date: 27 May 2016 Client Name: Auckland Transport Client No: Client Reference Project Manager: Jeremy Hosking Author: Kerry King File Name: SMART Workshop 1: Onehunga Branch Line Jacobs New Zealand Limited Carlaw Park 12-16 Nicholls Lane, Parnell Auckland 1010 PO Box 9806, Newmarket 1149 Auckland New Zealand T +64 9 928 5500 F +64 9 928 5501 www.jacobs.com © Copyright 2016 Jacobs New Zealand Limited. The concepts and information contained in this document are the property of Jacobs. Use or copying of this document in whole or in part without the written permission of Jacobs constitutes an infringement of copyright. Limitation: This report has been prepared on behalf of, and for the exclusive use of Jacobs’ Client, and is subject to, and issued in accordance with, the provisions of the contract between Jacobs and the Client. Jacobs accepts no liability or responsibility whatsoever for, or in respect of, any use of, or reliance upon, this report by any third party. Document No.1 i SMART Workshop 1: Onehunga Branch Line Contents 1. Introduction ................................................................................................................................................ 3 2. Onehunga Branch Line context ............................................................................................................... 3 3. Grade separation ....................................................................................................................................... 4 4. Land use and impacts ............................................................................................................................... 5 5. Onehunga Branch Line specific issues .................................................................................................. 5 6. Grade separation experience ................................................................................................................... 7 7. Safety .......................................................................................................................................................... 8 8. Impacts to network operations ................................................................................................................ 8 9. Summary of actions .................................................................................................................................. 9 10. Further assessment to inform the SMART IBC ...................................................................................... 9 Appendix A. OBL Feasibility Investigation Summary Document No.1 ii SMART Workshop 1: Onehunga Branch Line 1. Introduction This document provides a record of discussions from Workshop 1: Onehunga Branch Line Double-tracking, held from 10:00am – 3:00pm on Friday 1 April 2016. The purpose of the workshop was to understand the current approach to grade separating and confirm the assumptions made for the previous Onehunga Branch Line work. The conclusions from discussions during this workshop will inform further option development to input into the Rail to the Airport Indicative Business Case. The workshop agenda covered the following items: 1. Introductions and workshop purpose; 2. Overview of the OBL project within the context of the SMART project; 3. Grade separation – policy and rest of network approach; 4. Land use changes; 5. OBL specific issues; 6. Grade separation experience; 7. Safety – at grade level crossings and grade separated crossings; and 8. Impacts to network operations. 2. Onehunga Branch Line context A summary document was circulated in advance of the workshop providing an overview of the previous investigations and is included in Appendix A. The workshop provided further information and context in relation to the earlier investigations undertaken in 2014 for double tracking the Onehunga Branch Line (OBL). This included an overview of how this fits into the wider SMART project context in providing rail to the airport. It was confirmed and agreed by workshop attendees that the OBL options were to be assessed in terms of their rail to the airport function. The OBL is currently a single track line extending 3.5km from Penrose Station to Onehunga Station and has 8 level crossings at the following locations along the line: 1. O’rorke Road; 2. Maurice Road; 3. Mays Road; 4. Captain Springs Road; 5. Church Street; 6. Alfred Street; 7. Victoria Street; and 8. Galway Street. The line previously extended further south of the Onehunga Station towards the Manukau Harbour connecting to the Port. The tracks have been decommissioned but the formation and rail corridor still exist. Costs were estimated for double-tracking and extending the existing line within the existing corridor by utilising the decommissioned rail corridor beyond the Onehunga Station. Three options were investigated which included lowered rail; realignment via Mt Smart; and elevated rail. As specified by Auckland Transport, the previous assessment assumed that the level crossings at O’rorke Road, Maurice Road, Mays Road and Church Street were to be replaced by grade separated facilities. The Document No.1 SMART Workshop 1: Onehunga Branch Line level crossings at Captain Springs Road, Alfred Street, Victoria Street and Galway Street were assumed to be closed permanently and the roads truncated on either side. The options that were considered and the costs estimated as part of the previous investigation are summarised in Table 2.1. Table 2.1Summary of previous options and cost estimates Cost Estimate Option Description P50 Contingency P95 Contingency OBL is double-tracked and lowered into a trench from Option 1 – Penrose Station to allow for grade separations and Heavy rail $458M $534M returns to grade west of Church Street. Option requires a lowered flat/at grade rail junction at Penrose. A new line would begin just south of Penrose Station Option 2 – grade separated from the North Island Main Trunk Heavy rail (NIMT) line and crosses over O’rorke Road to pass $578M $675M realignment through the Mt Smart Stadium grounds. The new line via Mt Smart then joins the Onehunga Line just north of Te Papapa Station. The OBL is double-tracked and elevated from Penrose Option 3 – Station to return to grade just before Onehunga Station. Heavy rail $488M $569M This option will involve elevating Te Papapa Station. elevated Option requires a flat/at grade rail junction at Penrose. Since the previous assessment, the following have become clear: Closing the Captain Springs Road level crossing would be undesirable from the point of view of the East West Connections project; With the implementation of the City Rail Link, there is a need for stations and platforms to accommodate six car trains and for the branch to operate services at a frequency of at least 20 minutes. This requires at least some double tracking, alteration to the length and potentially, the location of three platforms along the branch; and In terms of the SMART project, light rail to the Airport via Onehunga and heavy rail to the Airport via Onehunga are alternative options and whichever option progresses, there will be a requirement for an interchange between the two. 3. Grade separation Auckland Transport has been shifting towards removing level crossings from the rail network and is looking to remove or grade separate level crossings over the next 20 years. However, it was noted that this is more of an aspiration and no specific policies are in place for the treatment of level crossings. In terms of the approach adopted for the rest of the rail network, level crossings along the Western Line have been assessed to understand safety and network impacts and how these can be improved. Improvements include active pedestrian level crossings and implementing CCTV technology. Document No.1 SMART Workshop 1: Onehunga Branch Line It was identified that further investigations may be required to justify the need for grade separating existing level crossings. It was confirmed that each level crossing needs to be assessed on a case by case basis (due to the different road and surrounding land uses), and that the justification for closures will be undertaken as a group assessment or local traffic model to achieve a holistic solution. 4. Land use and impacts There are a variety of land uses adjacent to the OBL which may cause significant property cost impacts to secure the required corridor. The previous investigation assumed a corridor width of 11m and assessed alignment options to the north and south of the existing OBL. The associated property costs were then incorporated into the cost estimates for the options. Further