A to Z

How to use this guide

This guide is arranged alphabetically.

To search:

Press Ctrl and F on your keyboard if you’re using a PC or ⌘ and F if you’re using a Mac.
Type the word or search term that you’re looking for.

A

Abbreviations and acronyms

The first time you use an abbreviation or acronym on a page, explain it in full. For example, use 'Auckland Transport (AT)' for the first mention and then use 'AT' for the rest of the page.

Do not use full stops in abbreviations, unless this is part of an official name.

Do not shorten words such as 'Road' to 'Rd' or 'Mount' to 'Mt', unless they are part of an official name such as 'St Lukes'.

Accessible language

All content must make sense to someone using assistive technology, such as a screen reader.

Do not use 'below' or 'above' because users may not navigate a page visually.

Do not shorten words, as they may not read out correctly.

Do not use footnotes because they will lose their context.

Do not use 'click here' or 'learn more' for links.

Acknowledgement

Use 'acknowledgement', not 'acknowledgment'.

Accordions

Accordions are collapsible panels that let users show and hide sections of content.

Accordions work best for simple content and links.

Accordions may be used when users need to:

see an overview of multiple, related sections of content
choose to show and hide sections that are relevant to them
look across information that might otherwise be on different pages.

Do not use an accordion:

for content that most users need to see
when the panels hide only a small amount of information
for important content that needs to be clearly visible
for information users may want to print.

Active voice

Use active rather than passive voice. Active voice makes it clear who is supposed to do what.

Active voice: 'We will notify you before construction starts.'

Passive voice: 'Residents will be notified before construction starts.'

Only use the passive voice when the action you’re describing is more important than the person doing it. For example, 'your payment has been successful'.

Addresses

Use this format: house number street, suburb, city postcode.

For example: 20 Viaduct Harbour Avenue, Westhaven, Auckland 1010

Street names and place names must always be written in full.

Use 'to' instead of a hyphen for address ranges. For example, '20 to 22 Viaduct Harbour Avenue'.

Do not abbreviate road and street names. For example, use 'avenue' not 'ave'. Screen readers can pronounce abbreviations incorrectly.

Addressing the user

Address the user as 'you' where possible. For example, 'you can apply' not 'residents can apply'.

Ageing

Use 'ageing', not 'aging'.

Ampersand (&)

Do not use ampersands. Use 'and' instead.

Ampersands can be hard to read and cause problems for some screen readers.

Only use an ampersand if it is part of an organisation's official name.

And/or

Do not use 'and/or'. Use either 'and' or 'or', whichever is more appropriate.

AT

When abbreviating 'Auckland Transport', use 'AT'. The first time you use it on a page, write it in full.

AT Mobile

The correct name for the Auckland Transport mobile app is 'AT Mobile'.

B

Bold

Use bold sparingly.

Only use it to highlight critical information, such as important dates.

Do not bold entire sentences.

Using too much bold makes it difficult for users to know which parts of your content needs their attention the most.

Brackets

Use round brackets (parentheses).

Do not put full sentences into brackets. Make it a separate sentence instead.

Do not use round brackets to refer to something that could either be singular or plural, like 'Check which document(s) you need'. Always use the plural instead, as this will cover each possibility: 'Check which documents you need to send'.

Bullet points

Bullet points should be used for lists.

Do not put entire paragraphs into bullet points.

Make sure that you:

start with a lead-in sentence that all the points have in common
check that each point makes a full sentence when read with the lead-in sentence
start each point in lower case
only use a full stop at the end of the last point
use more than one bullet
do not use more than one sentence per bullet - use commas or dashes to expand on an item
do not put 'or' or 'and' after the bullets
do not make the whole bullet a link
front-load the most important information
start each point with the same language element, like verb, noun or adjective
use only one level of bullet points.

If the list is a series of steps, use a numbered list instead.

C

Capitalisation

Use sentence case, even in page titles.

Capitalise proper nouns, including:

names of people, organisations and specific places
initials of given names
names of buildings, structures and public places
cardinal directions (west, east, north, south) in place names
departments and teams
job titles, ranks and elected positions when you use them for a specific person
full names of documents, plans, policies, strategies, projects and programmes
acts of parliament
specific government bodies.

Do not capitalise common nouns. Use lowercase when talking about places and things generally, for example:

the station
the policy
the city centre
the local board.

Do not use ALL CAPS.

Use the same capitalisation a person or organisation uses for writing their name.

Cardinal (compass) directions

Capitalise cardinal directions (west, east, north, south) in place names, such as 'North Shore'. But use lower case if they are used to refer to a geographical area, such as 'south Auckland'.

CBD

Use 'city centre (CBD)'.

Do not use 'CBD' on its own.

Colon

Use a colon to introduce a list. Do not use them to combine 2 sentences, split the sentences up instead.

Colour

Do not use colour to convey information. If you do, people who are colour blind or have low vision may miss out on information.

Contractions

Use positive contractions, such as 'we’ll', 'you’re' and 'it’s'.

Do not use negative contractions, such as 'can’t', 'won't' and 'don’t'. Users can misread them.

Do not use conditional contractions, such as 'should’ve', 'could’ve', 'would’ve' or 'they’ve'.

Commas

Only use an Oxford comma if it is needed for clarity. Otherwise, do not use it.

D

Data

Treat as a singular noun. For example, 'the data is available in the report'.

Dates

Write dates without commas and in this order: day date month year.

For example, 'Monday 23 August 2024'.

Spell out the names of days and months in full.

Do not use ordinal numbers (such as 1st, 2nd, 3rd or 4th) when writing dates.

Use the full number for years. For example, '2024'.

For spans of days, months or years, write 'to' instead of using a dash or hyphen.

Double negatives

Do not use double negatives.

Double negative: 'We will never not ask for your permission before using your information.'

Better example: 'We will always ask for your permission before using your information.'

E

E.g.

Do not use 'e.g.'. Use 'for example', 'such as', 'like' or 'including' instead.

Ellipses (...)

Do not use ellipses.

Email addresses

Use lower-case for email addresses. Write them out in full.

Etc

Do not use 'etc'. Rewrite the sentence or use 'and so on' instead.

Exclamation marks

Do not use exclamation marks.

F

FAQs

Do not use FAQs. They are not helpful for users. If users are asking questions it means the existing copy should be reviewed instead.

File names

File names should be all lower case, with hyphens instead of spaces.

Name your file using this formula: auckland-transport-project-title-what.format

Do not include macrons in file names.

File sizes

Files should be no more than 2MB.

Write file sizes as MB or KB, with no space after the number.

Use MB for anything over 1MB: '2MB', not '2046KB'.

Round MB to 2 decimal places.

Use KB for anything under 1MB: '469KB', not '0.45MB'.

Do not use decimal places for KB. Round it to the nearest KB.

Footnotes

Do not use footnotes.

Fractions

Spell out fractions. Use 'two-thirds', not '2/3'.

Full stops

Use a full stop at the end of sentences, including sentences that end in a link.

Use a full stop at the end of a bullet pointed list.

G

Gender

Use gender-neutral language such as 'them', 'they' or 'their'.

Do not use gendered language such as 'policeman', 'chairman' or 'air hostess'. Instead use 'police officer', 'chair' or 'flight attendant'.

H

Headings

Use headings to break up your content. They can help users to navigate a page.

Headings must follow a hierarchical order. Headings with an equal or higher rank start a new section, headings with a lower rank start new subsections within the higher ranked section.

A page title is an H1 (heading level 1), so the first heading on a page would be an H2. Any headings that are subsections of the H2 section would be H3, and so on. Sections that are not subsections would start with another H2.

We only use 5 heading levels on the website. If you need more than 5 levels on a page, consider whether the content should be on multiple pages.

Do not skip heading levels. For example, do not use an H4 directly after an H2.

Do not select heading levels based on their appearance.

Do not use bold text instead of headings.

Do not use questions as headings.

HOP

Use 'AT HOP' for the first mention on the page, then use 'HOP'. Write 'HOP' in capitals, without spaces or full stops.

Hyphens

Use one word wherever possible.

Use hyphens for compound adjectives if it makes it clearer, such as 'off-peak times'.

Do not use hyphens after adverbs ending in -ly.

Hyphenate re- words starting with e, like 're-evaluate'.

I

I.e.

Do not use 'i.e.'. Rewrite the sentence or use 'meaning' or 'that is' instead.

Images

Images must be in a JPEG or PNG format. They must be under 1MB.

They must have alternative text (text that describes the image to someone using a screen reader).

Do not use images for decorative purposes. They must add value for the user.

Do not use images with text on them.

Do not replace written content with images.

Italics

Do not use italics. They make content harder to read for people with low vision or dyslexia.

J

Jargon

Do not use jargon, including government-specific terms.

If you must use technical, legal, medical or financial terms, explain them the first time you use them on a page.

Journey Planner

Use capital letters for the J and P in Journey Planner. Say "our Journey Planner" rather than "the Journey Planner" or just "Journey Planner".

L

Links

Make links descriptive, active and specific. They must describe the link's destination or purpose.

Do not use 'click here' or 'read more'.

Do not use a single word as a link. This can be too easy to miss.

Use sentence case for links.

Start CTA links and button text with a verb.

Front-load your link text with the relevant words (put the most important words to users at the beginning).

If linking to an external website, it must say '(opens in a new tab)' at the end of the link.

Do not use full URLs on the website. Always embed the links within a sentence or phrase.

M

Macrons

Macrons are lines above vowels, including:

Āā
Ēē
Īī
Ōō
Ūū.

Use macrons to indicate a long vowel in te reo Māori. Make sure you’re using them correctly. Macrons can change the pronunciation and meaning of a reo Māori word.

Read our te reo Māori guidelines.

Measurements

Use numerals and abbreviate common measurement units.

Do not use a space between the numeral and abbreviated measurement: '1,500kg', not '1,500 kg'.

Do not put an 's' after the unit.

Use 'km per hour' (not km/h, kph, k/h or km/hr).

Spell out the measurement in full when referring to something generally. For example, 'several metres of road'.

Use 'metre', not 'meter'.

Money

Use the dollar symbol before the amount: '$75'.

Do not use decimals unless cents are included: '$75.50' but not '$75.00'.

Write out 'cents' in full.

N

New Zealand

We write 'New Zealand' not 'NZ', unless 'NZ' is used as part of an organisation's name.

Numbers

Write all numbers in numerals, apart from 'zero' and 'one'. In tables, use numerals throughout.

For numbers over 999, use a comma. For example, '1,000'.

Write 'million' or 'millions' instead of using zeros.

For ordinal numbers, spell out 'first' to 'ninth'. After that use '10th', '11th' and so on. Do not use ordinal numbers for dates.

If a number starts a sentence, write it out in full except where it starts a title or subheading.

Spell out common fractions like 'one-half'.

Use a 0 where there’s no digit before a decimal point, for example '0.5' not '.5'.

Numbered lists

Use numbered steps to guide a user through a process.

Only use a numbered list if the list items have to be followed in a particular order.

Each step must be a full sentence and end in a full stop.

O

Or

Do not use slashes instead of 'or'. For example, do not use 'Roadworks will take 3/4 weeks'.

Organisations

Write an organisation's name how they write it.

Use any punctuation an organisation uses as part of its name.

Only use the short form of an organisation’s name if the organisation regularly uses it in its own content.

Always use a singular verb with organisation names. For example, 'Auckland Council has an office nearby'.

P

Page titles

Page titles quickly tell visitors what the page is about.

Titles should be clear, concise and less than 60 characters.

Use sentence case.

Front-load keywords (put the most important words to users at the beginning).

Do not use 'AT' or 'Auckland Transport' in page titles.

Paragraphs

Keep paragraphs 2 to 3 sentences long.

Express one main idea per paragraph.

Percentages

Use %, not 'percent', with no space after the number. For example, '30%'.

Percentage is one word.

Phone numbers

Format phone numbers with spaces and without brackets.

Plain English

All content must be written in plain English. Use short, everyday words.

Do not use jargon or technical terms. Use simple, clear terms that your audience will easily recognise and understand.

Do not use metaphors or idioms.

Q

Quotations

Use double quotes when quoting direct speech. Use single quotation marks for quotes within a quote.

Do not use quotation marks for emphasis.

Do not use quotation marks to reference the title of a book, report, or work of art. Use title case instead.

R

Readability

Aim for a maximum reading age of 12, even if you are writing for a specialist audience. The lower the reading age, the better.

Use these tools to check if your writing is easy to read:

S

Seasons

Use lower-case for spring, summer, autumn and winter.

Sentence length

Sentences must be no more than 25 words.

Use simple sentence structures.

Shorten sentences by breaking them up into multiple sentences.

Semi-colons

Do not use semi-colons. Break the sentence into 2 instead.

Spaces

Use one space after a full stop, not 2.

Spelling

Use New Zealand English spelling.

Subscript

Do not use subscript on the website.

A subscript is a smaller character that is set slightly below the normal line of type. It can be hard for some people to read.

Superscript

Do not use superscript on the website.

A superscript is a smaller character that is set slightly above the normal line of type. It can be hard for some people to read.

T

Tables

Only use tables for data or comparison.

Do not put large paragraphs of information in a table. Use headings and paragraphs instead.

Te reo Māori

It’s important that we use te reo Māori correctly on the AT website.

Read our guidance on using te reo Māori.

Check spelling and macrons in Te Aka (opens in a new tab).

Times

Use a 12-hour format for times. The only exception is harbourmaster notices to mariners, which use a 24-hour format.

Use am or pm with no space after the number. Do not use unnecessary zeros for times on the hour. For example, use '10am' not '10:00'.

Use a colon for minutes.

Use 'to' in time ranges, not hyphens or dashes.

Where possible, do not use '24/7'. Expand this to '24 hours, 7 days a week'.

U

Underlining

Do not underline text. This can be confused for a link.

V

Verbs or nouns

Use verbs instead of nouns where possible. Verbs make your content clearer and shorter.

See examples of common nouns that should be verbs instead (opens in a new tab).

W

While or whilst

Use 'while', not 'whilst'.

Last updated 18/02/2025