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Waterview interchange -
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The battle for Mt Albert rages, with the Waterview Motorway Connection the big by-election issue.
In a filled to the brim meeting on Wednesday night, party candidates, supporters and concerned locals debated transport issues in their electorate.
With the new route of the motorway connection only confirmed on Wednesday afternoon, emotions were running high.
"If this motorway was being built for Paritai Drive or Remuera, we wouldn't be have this meeting," says David Shearer, Labour Party Mt Albert candidate.
Opponents of the motorway are still not won over by the new plan, which would see more than half of it run underground.
"It's better than the worst of all options, but we know that the only thing that reduces congestion are buses and trains and mass transit," says Russell Norman, Green Party co-leader.
Locals in Mt Albert are concerned at just how much their neighbourhood is going to be affected.
"It's quite new information. Let's face it, it's not that long ago we thought that it was fully a tunnel," says Paul Tubman, Eden Mt Albert Community Board.
The Waterview connection will go underneath Great North Road, until it meets Blockhouse Bay Road where there will be a short stretch of motorway.
Then it dips back underground, passing under the railway, before rising again after New North Road.
A motorway will then connect to the Hillsborough extension.
"The only option is incredibly short sighted, it's not about caring for the environment, it's not about caring for communities," says Margi Watson, Tunnel or Nothing Group.
It seems that this project is likely to keep emotions running high, well the beyond the by-election in June.
