Office for Urban Research

Auckland is at a tipping point.

The new governance structure gives us the chance to re-think the ‘business as usual’ regime that has shaped the city over the last 50 years.

The priorities for Auckland are to become:

A more vibrant city, so the talented people we need to develop our economy are happy to live here.
A more resilient city, able to withstand, without major economic damage, the steep increases in the price of oil that will surely happen over the next 20 years.
A more productive city, so Auckland can lead the economic transformation of New Zealand away from its heavy reliance on commodity exports.

None of these priorities can be seriously pursued without transforming Auckland’s transport system.

Welcome to the OFFICE for URBAN RESEARCH.

We explore the relationship between urbanism and transport in Auckland.

While we have a natural inclination toward a more vibrant and resilient city, the key to progress in Auckland is to link the discussion to increases in national productivity, a stated central concern of the Government.

As unlikely as it may seem, there is a strong case to link Auckland’s low productivity to our poor public transport system. Read the outline here. The OFFICE for URBAN RESEARCH is dedicated to furthering this idea, and other topics which will forge a better urban environment for Auckland.

Comments and contributions are welcome.