NZ life centred on cities

A NEW analytical report from Statistics New Zealand finds half the population works in just three main cities of Auckland, Wellington, Canterbury.

Commuting Patterns in New Zealand: 1996–2006 explores commuting patterns in New Zealand between 1996 and 2006, and shows the increasing dominance of employment within urban areas and that more people are travelling to the largest cities.

Between 1996 and 2006, the number of people working in urban areas grew by 21 percent, much higher than the overall population growth of 14% for the same period.

Commuting zones for the main centres of the Auckland, Wellington, and Canterbury regions extend well beyond the metropolitan boundaries. More than 40 percent of the working population of Rodney district, for example, work in either North Shore or Auckland city.

But despite the increasing commuter class -- dominated by professionals -- the report also shows that most people in New Zealand live reasonably close to their work, with three-quarters of the population in 2006 living less than 10km from their workplace.

Between 1996 and 2006, the average distance people travelled to work increased slightly, with commuters to one of the Auckland cities travelling the furthest with a median distance of 6km.

Services and sales workers were the most likely to live close to their workplace, with 25% working within 2km of home.

Comments

[Juli Ryan]

One of the things I like best about NZ is being AWAY from the cities. My husband, who is a saint, commutes 45 min to work in Wellington.

[Alan]

I feel the two hour, door to door, commute from the Wairarapa is well worth it. When the trains are running of course! Most colleagues think I'm a bit mad. The peace & quiet, views and tranquility of this beautiful part of the country make it well worth it. Plus no driving on traffic, and my time ok the train is productive.
I really see my 'commute' as the 15 minutes it tales me to walk to the office in Wellington.
Of course on a good day my commute is 10 seconds along the hall to the home office. How's about that for short?!