For eight years, Shobanna Rachodji has faced the disruption caused by the rail link project outside her flower shop, Roma Blooms, on Albert St.

The news that the rail system will be closed for 96 days at various points between now and 2026 was another blow.

The first closure, which this year comes just after Christmas and will last an entire month, was especially tough, as this year they had pinned their hopes on the busy summer trade.

“We build the city, we help tourism, we help people; “We expected a lot more people to come during this time.”

Rachodji said companies should have been notified in advance and consulted about the rail closures.

“We needed to talk to them before buying shares for those months.

“What do we do with our actions? We have pre-ordered.”

In 2021, a $12 million hardship fund was launched to provide some rent relief to businesses, but Rachodji said that was not enough.

“It’s about looking after the owners, that’s all, it has nothing to do with how our time has been wasted throughout the project, so there is no compensation for lost time.”

Auckland city center business association Heart of the City chief executive Viv Beck echoed this concern.

He acknowledged the work was essential but said the rail link project has been significantly delayed and taken a significant toll on businesses for nearly a decade.

“Watching that press conference, I really came away thinking that the Government and Auckland Council, as sponsors of this project, are doing a disservice to the businesses affected for almost a decade.

“It’s been a struggle every step of the way to get support for them.”

Beck said the last update he had on the specific hardship fund was that only $7 million of the $12 million promised over two years had been spent.

“So there is money to address some of the long-standing grievances. “There has been no will to do so and I really believe the Auckland Government and Council need to step up to the plate on this issue.”

Beck said that while the fund helped survival, it was not adequate compensation and the businesses should have been consulted about the closures.

Brown acknowledged that businesses will be hardest hit by the closures, but said the work was urgent.

“We are demanding that it be worked 24 hours a day to be as efficient as possible, but look, I don’t rule out the fact that we have an impact.

“But the reality is that if we don’t do this work now, when the City Rail Link opens we’re going to have continued disruption and I don’t think that’s going to be very good for businesses and commuters in Auckland going forward.”

With New Year’s Eve and big gigs like DJ Fisher and Plain Sailing in Auckland’s Victoria Park, SailGP and the ASB Classic scheduled for January, questions are being raised about how attendees will get around the city.

Auckland Public Transport Director Stacey van Der Putten said there will be extra buses to accommodate passengers during the rail closures.

“We will have a comprehensive bus replacement strategy that will include prioritized services.

“Special events will obviously be a challenge for us, so we are working with our stakeholders to try to mitigate that as much as possible.”

Van Der Putten said AT has prioritized some of the closures during school holidays to make use of school buses.

Brown assured Aucklanders that the closure was “the last push to make sure we get it done and get it done”.

But for small businesses like Rachodji’s, after almost a decade of disruption, the minister’s words offer little comfort.

As the closures would occur during the school holidays, acting Auckland Mayor Desley Simpson told RNZ Control School buses would be available to be used as an alternative transportation option.

“Although the railway line will be closed, access to the city will not be, there will be additional buses.”

Companies only found out when the announcement was made Friday, Simpson said, but this was the most notice that could be given.

“Last night they were still watching this at 11 at night. There will still be people using buses on the same routes, we have learned from international examples and if we did not do it during the times when trains are least used, it would take much longer.”

Compensation was available to companies upon request, he said.

There will also be fewer freight railroads during that time, Simpson said, which he admitted would mean more trucks on the roads.

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