The $5m cost of cleaning graffiti in Auckland

Tagging on public property in Auckland is costing more than five million dollars a year to clean up. The council spends at least four million dollars water-blasting and repainting public property around city, while Waka Kotahi spends more than a million on motorway signs and walls. For Waka Kotahi that often means closing motorway lanes and climbing up to the dangerous spots where vandals have made their mark. They've managed to get on top of the problem since it surged during Covid lockdowns, but Auckland Council's Head of Area Operations Julie Pickering told Nathan Rarere it's an ongoing battle.