Unlike my previous volumes, Waka Paddle to Gas Pedal and Gas Pedal to Back-Pedal, this third volume of transport history necessarily encompasses the history of more than just the city of Auckland but of the whole of New Zealand.
This volume does not pretend to include a complete list of individuals and entities that have comprised New Zealand’s Road Gang over the years. It is simply a selection of the more prominent and interesting of the many, who, from the late 1890s, sought to make a (mostly legitimate) living from New Zealand’s motor vehicle and road transport industry.
As with most occupations, the prime motivation of Road Gang members was simply to profit from their activities in order to feed their families and satisfy personal ambition. At the same time, their endeavours satisfied the needs of a motoring public conditioned by market forces and transport necessity to acquire their goods and services.
However, as this study illustrates, the supreme leaders of the Road Gang have always been, and will always be, the government of the day and local authorities. From the time that the first motor vehicle landed in New Zealand, the motorist has paid for every turn of the wheel by way of import duties, taxation, registration and licensing.
That’s why the building of more roads and not the provision of public transport continues to be a lucrative investment.
