THE URBAN TRANSPORT PLANNING PROCESS IN CHRISTCHURCH - THE MASTER TRANSPORTATION PLAN A thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts in Geography in the University of Canterbury by Len Fleete University of Canterbury 1985 11:.sts ii ' TABLE OF CONTENTS Chapter Table of Contents i i List of Figures iv Acknowledgements vi Abstract vii 1 INTRODUCTION 1 Study Aims 1 Thesis Structure 2 The Evolution of Transportation Planning Methodology 5 2 THE DEVELOPMENT OF TRANSPORT PLANNING IN CHRISTCHURCH 12 A Master Transportation Plan for Christchurch 23 The Plan Process Begins 24 Devising a Solution 30 Assumptions, Objectives and Initial Plan Options 31 Summary 37 3 DESIGNING THE PLAN 39 Basic Planning Principles Selected 39 Selling the Plan - an Opponent Emerges 46 Summary 49 4 THE CHANGING ENVIRONMENT OF PLANNING 51 Acceptance of the Plan - The City Council Baulks 51 Traffic in Towns: Buchananism Stated 55 Buchananism in Christchurch 58 Moves to Policy Planning - The Regional Master Plan 62 The Second Transport Study Begins 65 Financial Matters and a City Council Change of Heart 68 Changes in Plan Proposals 75 Summary 82 i ii. Chapter Page 5 THE M.T.P. AND URBAN ORDER 84 A concept of Urban Order 84 Policy Planning and the Expansion of the Urban Order Concept 88 The "Transport Restraint" and Changes in "Urban Order" 92 Transport and Urban Order - the Longer Term 99 Summary 107 6 CONCLUSION 109 REFERENCES 117 iv. LIST OF FIGURES Figure Page 1.1 Urban Transport Planning Process 3 1.2 Development of Master Transportation Planning Methodology (U.S.) 8 1. 3 The master transportation planning methodology 10 2.1 Edward Jollie 1 s Plan for Christchurch 1850 13 2.2 A section of Captain Thomas 1 s first sketch map of Canterbury, February 1849 14 2.3 Growth in motorised transport in Christchurch immediately after World War I 17 2.4 Metropolitan Planning Committee Recommendation for road network extensions - 1949 21 2.5 C.R.P.A. area (1959) 21 2.6 Administrative Structure of master transport planning - Christchurch 1959. 25 2.7 1980 traffic assignment to 1959 street network 28 2.8 1980 Congestion situation on the radials 29 3.1 Major M.T.P. motorway location options 42 3.2 The tangential approach 43 3.3 The 1962 Outline Master Transport Plan 44 3.4 C.P.S.G. alternative transport plan 48 4.1 April 1964 amendment to motorway across Hagley Park 54 4.2 The principle of a road hierarchy and environmental areas 57 4.3 Levels of traffic service 64 4.4 Spread of Congestion on major radials 1959-1969 67 4.5 Programme of Principal road works - Period I to V 70 v. Figure Page 4.6 The extended C,R.P.A. regional boundary 73 4.7(a) M.T.P. road network (1971 Regional Scheme) 77 4.7(b} M.T.P. road network (after Second Study) 78 5.1 C.R.P.A. Population projection 1968 91 5.2 Transport Restraints Plan 94 5.3 (.a&b} Rise of suburban shopping and retailing 97 5.4 Regional Roads and Suburban localities 100 5,5 Transport Restraints - contiguous external areas 102 5.6 Directions for long-term urban growth 104 6.1 The revised Urban Transport Planning Process 116 vi . ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to thank the following people who helped in the production of this thesis: Dr. Doug Johnston, Professor Barry Johnston, Mrs. Gl enys Lamb (for typing) , The staff of the Canterbury United Council, The Christchurch Public Library, All the Troops particularly Marty Single (for breaking bits of himself), Rob Murray (for his Jobberns prize-winning performance, and winning the Whitcoulls Prize for best fictional author), Heather Pearce and Kay Booth (for their moral (?)support), Paul Radley (for being Paul), Lee Teck Seng (for being loud and noisy}, Andy Boyle ('cos he wants to be famous), and Bruce Springsteen (for his majestic songs about cars). Cheers. vi .. i ABSTRACT This thesis describes and analyses the operation of the urban transport planning process as it applied in the Christchurch Master Transport Plan. Three specific research areas are studied: ll} to describe the process of urban transport planning as it operated in Christchurch; (.2)_ to identify the nature of the relationship between transport and urban development in Christchurch; and (3} to assess how this relationship, and the urban transport planning process has adapted to change during the course of the Master Transport Plan. The study showed that the perception of the decision situation in the Christchurch case was largely subjective but played a major role in the decision-making process. A 'rational' master planning methodology was inapplicable, incremental planning decision seemed more important to the plan product. CHAPTER I 1 CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION The provision and maintenance of an efficient network of transport routes has long been one of the major concerns of city planners. McConnell (1981) cites the co-ordination of the use of urban spaces and the channels of movement as 11 ... a functional reason for planning. 111 Indeed with the modern urban form being a 11 ... concentration of people and activities such that movement and communication among them may be achieved at low overall cost, 11 2 the need for efficient linkages is paramount, and the role of the transport planner crucial. Modern prescriptive urban planning has indeed recognised this. The concept of the city as an 'urban system', with transport as the link between this system's component parts, has been a common theme in planning literature.3 The most frequently used analogy in this respect is that of the city as an organic complex. 4 Wheeler (1974) went so far as to describe the city as an 'urban corpus' within which the transport network acts similarly to the human vascular system. 5 Such an analogy serves to highlight the role transport plays within the urban complex. Study Aims This thesis attempts to examine the place of transportation planning within the broader tapestry of planned urban development in the Christchurch 1. McConnell (1981) p.3. 2. Wheeler (1974) p.3. 3. See for example McConnell, op cit, Hutchinson (1974), p.9. 4. Geddes (1968) p.142, Abercrombie et al (1943). 5. Wheeler, op cit p.11. 2 region. The aims are threefold: (1) To describe the attempts of a range of public bodies to co-ordinate the process of transport planning within the Christchurch metropolitan area. (2) · To identify the nature of the relationship between the forces of transport and development in the Christchurch case, over time, and (3) To assess the manne~ in which both this relationship and the urban transport planning process itself has changed and how these changes have been articulated in Christchurch. This thesis is concerned primarily with the evolution of a Master Transportation Plan for Christchurch (M.T.P.). In this respect attention is concentrated upon urban transportation planning in the period from the 1950's to the 1970's. Thesis Structure Urban transportation planning has been described as "The appraisal of conditions within the community (leading to) a choice among alternative actions within government and the alleviation of unsatisfactory conditions through the implementation of a chosen action, 11 6 - it therefore involves decision-making in the selection of a strategic choi.ce. Such a process can be represented diagrammatically as below (Figure 1.1). 6. Hutchison (1974} p.6. 3 Situation ------Change COMMUNITY SUBSYSTEM GOVERNMENTAL SUBSYSTEM Perception of choice of Decision Field Action Formulation and Comparison of Possible Actions Adapted from: Friend and Jessop (196 9 ) p . 104 . Figure 1.1 Urban Transport Planning Process This circuit involves interaction between the governmental subsystem, where such strategic choices are generally made, and the coITTnunity itself, where the 'choice' would be applied. Information and influence are passed between these two subsystems. For example, a persistent state of congestion in a road network calls for a response from concerned governmental bodies. Their decision - whether it be to 4 act in a certain manner or not act at all to alleviate the problem - has its effects felt back in the community subsystem. The process of selecting the type of response involves therefore the making of decisions, based on available information. It is to how this process has operated and the results achieved in terms of Christchurch urban transport planning that this thesis is addressed. The remainder of this Chapter provides an introduction to the general aspects of master transportation planning methodologies, after which the study begins to examine how the various elements of the model introduced above were articulated in Christchurch. The first element - perception of the decision field - involves the development of the initial understanding amongst concerned public bodies of the type of transport problem they were confronted with. Faludi 7 has argued that such perceptions or 'definitions of the decision situation' are subjective, thus influencing the range of choices available. Whether this is the case in Christchurch will be determined by analysing the evolution of the problem and the call for a planning response (Chapter 2). The type of response selected is a product of the subjective perceptions outlined above. The formulation and comparison of alternative courses of action, the changes in the exogenous planning and political environments and the choice selected as the M.T.P. 'solution' are described in the third chapter. Since the planning process itself is not 'immediate' - solutions to transport problems are generally not developed and produced instantaneously, but rather evolve over some time - then conditions in the environment in which such a process operates may themselves change. Chapters 4 and 5 examine this period of 'lag' between M.T.P.