To think Auckland traffic won’t be any worse than London? (Any Kiwi experience welcome!)

[yarpole]

Posting here for traffic (haha - no pun intended) - and hoping some New Zealanders may see this.

I am about to relocate to Auckland, as I have a job at Greenlane hospital in Epsom. We have primary school aged kids and had been considering renting a home in Takapuna, for schools, beach and community feel. However my relocation consultant (based in Auckland) has expressed shock at the commute it would involve and is encouraging us to look at a more central suburb.

Google maps says the drive at 7:30am would be 30-35mins. I would then need to park somewhere and walk to the hospital, so figured whole journey would take 45mins, maybe an hour on a bad day. I currently live in London and this would not be an unusually long commute. Is my frame of reference for a “long commute” just different from a local’s, or am I being ridiculously optimistic, and in reality the commute would be worse? I keep being told horror stories about Auckland traffic, and the bridge in particular.

Would really appreciate views from anyone with recent experience of Auckland, even better if you also know London!

I agree with PP.

North Shore to Greenlane would be awful. The roads around Greenlane are busy all the time.

@Gennz18 you missed Point Chevalier. It's the best suburb IMO. Not inner city but it has a beach and more down to earth than Grey Lynn.

Lol @brushandmop I did think about including Pt Chev but I’m not a massive fan as the beach is a bit murky for my liking 👸🏼😂

It is nice though, nice family homes, nice cafes and community vibr, good state primary school - might be a bit of a hike to Greenlane compared to the other suburbs? But if OP is going for the beachy vibe Pt Chev would be my preference rather than say Kohi or St Heliers which I think are a bit elderly and boring.

I’m very invested in this thread now 😂

If you're not going to listen to what your consultant is telling you, then you're wasting money using them. The reason they're expressing shock is because it's a shit commute and you'll spend hours in traffic. It doesn't take much to slow bridge traffic to a crawl or stop, send with the latest govt idea to possibly dedicate two lanes of the bridge to cyclists, traffic flow will be even worse.

We spent a year in Devonport after moving back from London.

The traffic sucked. We spent the best part of the weekend going nowhere on Lake Rd. Clearly this wouldn’t affect you in Takapuna.

What about Bucklands Beach?

The issue isn't traffic/time on the motorway... it's the time taken at either end on the feeder roads and on-ramps. I would also be surprised at 30 mins for this.
I was a shore girl born and bred and over there just last week. It can depend which part of takapuna you are in too. Up towards Hauraki and there is only the one main rd servicing that area. Out towards Milford and you get a lot of traffic coming from the bays.
It's still a beautiful area to live in though.

You would have to pay me a lot of money to make that trip every day. Greenlane is right off the motorway which is the only saving grace. But I would be absolutely amazed if you could make it in 35 minutes.

Traffic is terrible and it’s getting worse every week.

Bucklands Beach would be just as bad wouldn’t it @FierceBarrie? You’d get snarled up in the cross town traffic and then join the motorway at mt Wellington.

What about Meadowbank? Not on the coast but close enough to the eastern beaches, nice primary school and good community feel. The problem with commuting from the shore is if there’s a problem on the bridge you are likely to be stuck for a very long time. Parking at Greenlane is notoriously difficult as well (although still easier than Starship). Auckland is lovely though so welcome and I hope your family has a great time. PM me if you have any other questions- I might be able to point you to some useful groups.

@Gennz18

Bucklands Beach would be just as bad wouldn’t it *@FierceBarrie*? You’d get snarled up in the cross town traffic and then join the motorway at mt Wellington.

Very possibly, to be honest. I don’t know it well enough, but was throwing a beach-y area not on the North Shore into the mix.

I lived in London for 15 years and have been in Auckland for 10. I never drove in London but Auckland traffic is definitely not as bad-yet. I

I work close to Greenlane ( Penrose) and live in Mt Albert - it takes me 30-40 minutes usually, longer in the evening than in the morning. I would allow 45-60 to get to the shore. Totally understand the appeal of Takapuna, we've got Pt Chev beach near us which isn't as scenic but great for an afterwork swim in the summer, and is kid friendly as fairly gently sloping ( although tidal). Most Aucklanders would think any commute more than 30 mins is is unacceptable, but that's changing as more new housing is built on the city fringes .

You’ve made me smile, OP. I had a running joke with my partner for a long time that while Brits talk about the weather, Kiwis (in Auckland anyway) talk about traffic and parking. Every time we met anyone, there was always an in-depth analysis of traffic flow and very specific descriptions of where exactly everyone had managed to park before conversation could move on to slightly more interesting topics.

I don’t think comparing it to London is helpful as they are so different. But of course, it’s not as bad as London because by comparison it’s tiny. However it’s spread out, lacks a really good public transport system and supporting infrastructure, and that particular commute has the bridge which limits your options of routes. Personally I wouldn’t want to commute from Takapuna to Greenlane every day. Remember it’s not just the morning, it’s getting home too.

@FrankGrillosFloof so true 😂 and traffic chat then segues seamlessly into horrified property price chat

It would take much longer then that to get across the bridge but Takapuna and Devonport are nice areas to live. I'm not a huge Auckland fan but I love Mt Eden and it sounds like you can probably afford to live there. My partner's cousin lives in St Mary's Bay and that is very very nice too but $$$$.

You can get schools, beach and community feel a lot nearer to Epsom than Takapuna. Traffic through central AK (not the inner city but the central suburbs) is pretty awful at peak times so anything you can do to ease your commute will be worth it.

homes.co.nz/address/auckland/kohimarama/29a-hawera-road/g2DqN?searchLoc=fx%7D_Fgjcj%60@&lat=-36.8579&lng=174.8396&zoom=20

Yup just another north shore resident says that would be hell OP!

@Gennz18 very true, don't put your head under the water there. But when there is no crowds it is lovely to walk along.

Mt Albert would be a good choice too OP but it does depend what your rent budget is. I'm not sure what the back way (not motorway) traffic would be like in the morning as your heading out of town.

@Gennz18 Oh property! I don’t even live in NZ anymore but I have an

Woops fat fingers
Anyway, yes, property is indeed bonkers!

Thanks so much everyone! That’s Takapuna officially off the table then

Now looking at Mt Eden / Epsom / Remuera- as a PP said, beaches are all a short drive at weekends anyway, and the schools look great.

Extortionate property prices a conversation staple in London too, so that side of things is not so different!

@yarpole

Thanks so much everyone! That’s Takapuna officially off the table then

Now looking at Mt Eden / Epsom / Remuera- as a PP said, beaches are all a short drive at weekends anyway, and the schools look great.

Extortionate property prices a conversation staple in London too, so that side of things is not so different!

They're really nice areas, I've always liked My Eden Remuera and Epsom are a little staid for me but depends how conservative you are. House prices are hugh though, at least $2M and closer to $4-$5M for a good size house with garden and pool. Good luck!

Can you drive/bus to Devonport and get the ferry?

@Malin52

Can you drive/bus to Devonport and get the ferry?

I looked into that, but it would still be a bit of a nightmare I think. I’m now thinking the shorter the commute, the better

Definitely don’t try get from Devonport to Greenlane every day, it’ll be a horrible public transport relay and a most un relaxing experience ever!

Agree with PP that Remuera/Epsom are staid and conservative. A friend has recently moved there temporarily and her take on it if you are looking for vibrant and diverse, you’ll be disappointed.

If you let us know what your priorities are it’ll be easier to help you find the right fit. Is it commute, cafes/amenities, leafy, schools etc?

If driving to beach isn’t an issue, the Mt Eden side of Sandringham and/or Kingsland could work well too. Kingsland is quite vibrant and fun - the village is a bottleneck though so I wouldn’t want somewhere too far from the town end of things

Agree with the others - Remuera is really quite dull. Some amazing houses but that’s about it really. Epsom is nicer but still proper suburbia and a huge premium on houses if they are in the Grammar zones. Do you have kids and how old? Schools are all based of zoning access, unless you go private.

I’d honestly try to stay on the western side of central. Mt Eden is great (and still grammar zoned), Kingsland and Grey Lynn are both really vibrant and loads going on, but properties are squeezed in a lot more. Mt Albert is excellent, and the Grammar school is great too. Less buzzy than the others. If they are over budget, the suburbs between Mr Albert and Greenlane are more affordable (but not as nice) - Mt Roskill, Royal Oak.

On the other side Ellerslie is nice, and as mentioned before Onehunga would be good too.

If you have school age kids though you really should look at school zones as that should be a consideration too.