[1] In September 2007, Auckland Regional Transport Authority announced that it was willing to pay Transit $2.5 million to "future-proof" the duplication of the bridge in order "to accommodate a passenger rail connection".

[3] Brown had promised a rail link to the Airport during his 2010 election campaign as part of a package of measures to double public transport patronage within 15 years.

From there the alignment continues south, along the western edge of the Southwestern Motorway, with the at-grade Favona station north of Walmsley Road.

[14] The heavy rail option would result in a journey time of 39 minutes from the airport to Britomart Transport Centre in Auckland CBD, at an estimated cost of NZ$2.2 billion.

[16] An alternative hybrid rail plus BRT option saw the present Onehunga station site retained, with a bus terminal constructed over the top.

Buses would operate over the outer lanes of the Māngere Bridge, then the west and north sides of SH20/SH20a until Kirkbride Road, then crossing to the median.

The whole road, including the BRT alignment, was to be rerouted beyond Westney Road to avoid most of the second runway alignment, with an Airport Business District station running east–west at the intersection of Tom Pearce Drive and George Bolt Memorial Drive, and a terminating balloon loop for buses about 600 metres north of the main airport buildings.

[23][24] Following the 2023 general election, the incoming Prime Minister, Christopher Luxon, told media that his government would be cancelling the project "because it's a white elephant”.