CentreRail ramps up Castlecliff rail operation

As part of Wellington-based CentrePort's lower North Island growth strategy, a second weekday train service from Castlecliff (Wanganui) to Wellington was introduced on Monday 28th September 2015.

The first run of new train 565 on Monday 28th September. Photo by Brad Harvey

Until Friday 25th September, Castlecliff was served by train 560 from Palmerston North each weekday morning, and train 561 back to Palmerston North each weekday afternoon.

The new timetable has new service 566 arriving from Wellington in the morning, returning to Wellington in the afternoon as train 565, and a rescheduled 560 arriving from Palmerston North in the afternoon, returning as new service 567 to Wellington in the evening.  Trains 560 and 565 are scheduled to cross at East Town.

The weekend 562-569 service continues as before, operating as required.

CentrePort has made rail the backbone of its central New Zealand growth strategy, operating and trading as CentreRail, linking hubs in New Plymouth, Castlecliff, Palmerston North and Blenheim, with CentrePort in Wellington, targeting forestry and dairy products in particular.

CentreRail uses dedicated trains between Castlecliff and Wellington, but also makes use of scheduled KiwiRail services for tonnage from New Plymouth and Blenheim.

NZ First rail policy announced: Railways of National Importance

Below is the New Zealand First rail policy, released on Sunday by Winston Peters at a press conference in Gisborne:

RAILWAYS OF NATIONAL IMPORTANCE

• New Zealand First will ensure that none of New Zealand’s railway lines and other strategic railways infrastructure will be privatised, and will remain under state control and ownership to ensure that public service rather than commercial objectives is the paramount consideration.
• New Zealand First’s vision includes passenger train services along all rail routes between the main centres, with connecting coach services linking outlying areas or running services between centres which don't have a railway line. These services would provide a mixture of accommodation standards and fares to make rail services more affordable for New Zealanders to use e.g. half the carriages to be high standard premium fare similar to that provided on current KiwiRail tourist focussed trains such as the Northern Explorer and Tranz Alpine services, and the other half of the carriages being basic, affordable economy fare intercity market, e.g. railcars would have one premium carriage and one economy carriage. The Silver Fern railcars, former Overlander carriages and Silver Star carriages could be appropriately refurbished and upgraded locally in railway workshops to operate daytime regional Intercity services. Fast modern railcars and new carriages, New Zealand built where possible, could later be purchased for certain routes.
• As a state-owned enterprise, KiwiRail is currently heavily constrained because it is required to pay for the maintenance, renewal and upgrade of rail infrastructure through the revenue generated from its freight and other businesses.
• New Zealand’s rail network is a national asset that must be developed to optimise its long term role in support of New Zealand’s economy and of an efficient and cost effective multi-modal and well integrated transport system.
• New Zealand First will develop a programme of railways of national importance (RONI) to ensure that better use of our railway network and services are achieved, with improvements and extensions where there is opportunity to significantly reduce dependence on the roading network, especially for heavy freight and bulk freight services, but also where passenger services can be redeveloped to attract sufficient demand over time.
• To this end New Zealand First will not require the whole cost of development of new railway tracks and services, and of electric reticulation, to be met by revenue generated by railway service charges; and these will instead be met in whole or in part by a combination of Land Transport Fund funding and crown grants.
• The Land Transport Fund funding will be achieved by reallocating funding from the current RONS $12 billion plus programme. An initial budget of $400 million would be created by reprioritising Roads of National Significance (RONS) projects that have low or marginal benefits.
• The rail routes listed below would form the basis of the core transport network between the main centres with daily passenger and freight services, and with the tracks being upgraded or new lines built as required, together with new transport interchanges between trains and buses, and freight hubs in all the main centres:

- Auckland-Whangarei-Opua
- Auckland-Pokeno-Paeroa-Te Aroha-Tauranga-Whakatane
- Auckland-Hamilton-Tokoroa-Rotorua-Taupo
- Auckland-Wellington
- Wellington-New Plymouth
- Wellington-Gisborne (via the Wairarapa line)
 -Nelson-Blenheim
 -Christchurch-Greymouth
- Picton-Christchurch-Dunedin-Invercargill.

Napier-Gisborne Railway (James White photo)

• The following are the proposed RONI projects to be considered in the long – medium term, subject to detailed cost and benefit analysis to confirm their value:

1. North Auckland  and Marsden Point Line

Northland needs good rail connections to the rest of New Zealand if it is to grow. That means upgrading the Auckland to Whangarei line. Good rail links to Northland means developing a rail link from the main line to Marsden Point port, which has great advantages as a deepwater harbour that does not require dredging. There is also plenty of land for expansion.  There is great scope for it to serve as a container port and take pressure off Auckland and Tauranga. The potential of the Port of Northland for the region, as well as for the country as a whole, is being strangled by lack of an effective rail link.

2. Rolling Electrification Programme

New Zealand First proposes an on-going rail electrification programme to use the skills and expertise built up in the current Auckland suburban rail electrification project. The first project will be to extend electrification from Papakura to Pukekohe. Other potential projects to be investigated include electrification between Auckland and Hamilton, Hamilton and Tauranga, and extending electrification north from Waikanae and from Upper Hutt to Masterton. Many other projects for electrification would follow in later years:

- Lyttelton-Christchurch-Greymouth.
- Christchurch suburban area.
- Picton-Christchurch-Dunedin-Invercargill.

3. Regional Opportunities

Funds will be made available for smaller capital investment opportunities that KiwiRail is unable to fund given its current funding constraints.

In particular, $4m will be used reinstate the Napier –Gisborne line as soon as possible.

4. Cook Strait Ferries

The Cook Strait Ferry service and vessels will be funded for upgrades to ensure a high quality fast reliable and safe service for freight and passengers.

5. Auckland-Pokeno-Paeroa-Te Aroha-Tauranga-Whakatane

A new line to be built along the rail formation between Pokeno-Paeroa-Te Aroha, a new line to be built between Te Aroha and the western portal of the Kaimai tunnel and a new line to be built between Awakeri and Whakatane, all combined creating a shorter and more direct rail route into the Bay of Plenty.

6. Auckland-Hamilton-Tokoroa-Rotorua-Taupo

A new line to be built between Kinleith-Rotorua-Taupo primarily for forestry traffic, as well as for general freight and passengers.

7. Nelson-Blenheim

A new line to be built between Blenheim and Nelson, completing this long proposed project for freight and passengers.         

8. Auckland International Airport

A new line to be built to link the Auckland International Airport with the rail system. The proposed new integrated terminal at Auckland (like that built at Christchurch International Airport) is already being designed to accommodate a rail terminal within the building.

9. Auckland City Rail Link

Build the Auckland City Rail Link tunnel project under central Auckland as soon as possible, jointly funded with the Auckland Council.

10. Northland

New lines to be built to link the rail system with ports in Northland between Oakleigh and Northport at Marsden Point, and Otiria and Opua in the Bay of Islands.

11. New suburban services

New suburban passenger train services will be investigated for Christchurch, Dunedin, Tauranga and between Hamilton and Auckland.

This includes an initial investigation into establishing suburban passenger train services in Christchurch, Dunedin, Tauranga and between Hamilton and Auckland using Auckland’s surplus diesel rolling stock immediately following the introduction of electric services in Auckland.

12. Rail siding grant scheme

New Zealand First will introduce a grant scheme to encourage greater use of rail transport by industry and by distribution centres, where the cost of installing or re-commissioning rail sidings will be met 50/50 by the businesses using the rail siding and the New Zealand Railways Corporation.

New Railways structure proposed by NZ First

KiwiRail would be restructured by splitting it into three new  organisations:

1. New Zealand Railways Corporation - owning and managing rail land, tracks and infrastructure, stations and rail-freight centres, shunting yards, workshops, train control systems, managing and maintaining the rail network, allocating access to the rail network for rail operating companies, setting rail training standards and qualifications, and acting as the rail regulator and licence agency.

2. Kiwi Rail - operating rail passenger services between all main centres, and operating the Interisland ferries.

3. Rail Freight – a new State Owned Enterprise operating a commercial rail freight business.

Gisborne railway reopening proposal: Public submissions close 12th May

Long time rail supporter Cran Julian has made the following request, for all with an interest, to show their support to the Hawke's Bay Regional Council for reinstatement of the Napier to Gisborne railway.  Please make sure your voice is heard, as we must fight to save this railway line.  It is very important that the council has public support in order to be able to proceed with its proposal.

______________________________________________________

It would be appreciated if all those interested in saving the Napier Gisborne Railway through the establishment of a regional shortline venture with the Hawke’s Bay Regional Council as well as other investors please make sure you write submission letters of support to the Hawke’s Bay Regional Council before the deadline closure of 12 May for submissions to the Council’s Draft Annual Plan for 2014-15.

Given the Minister of Transport Gerry Brownlee’s recently stated position in Parliament and media of (to date) not planning to put any Government funding into repairing the line to a “good fit for purpose” operation condition, the Council needs to hear from people who think that the region now needs to fund the repairs as well as have the Council lease the line from KiwiRail, and have a regionally based company with private sector investors and partners operate and maintain it.

As your help is needed to support the initiative of the Napier-Gisborne Railway Establishment Group and the Hawke’s Bay Regional Council in their endeavours to re-open the line as a shortline freight operation for the benefit of Northern Hawke’s Bay/Gisborne/East Coast region and the country as a whole.

This railway line is particularly important to handle the increasing amount of container freight and other produce to/from Gisborne and the increasing wall of wood already starting to be harvested in the Wairoa-Gisborne areas. As well as this, it will also enable the return of excursion trains beyond Napier to a line which is very picturesque and offers unparalleled views ‘up their’ with best scenery in NZ.  And as we all know – the greatest tourist attraction on East Coast is in fact the Napier-Gisborne rail link itself.

There are those that do not want to see this line re-opened, notably amongst them the bike trail lobby, who are exerting pressure on KiwiRail and the Government almost daily to take over the line for a bike trail.

It is time for all rail supporters to stand up and be counted or the permanent closure of this line is a VERY REAL possibility.

A 900 metre long freight train in the Esk valley on its way from Napier to Gisborne. This one train removed at least 50 trucks from state highway 2 and local roads, making the roads safer for the public and cheaper to maintain

 

Napier Gisborne Railway – Proposal Details:

HBRC’s ongoing investment strategy is to improve financial, economic and environmental benefits for the whole region by investing in sound regional infrastructure assets. 

One potential infrastructure investment is the re-establishment of the Napier-Gisborne rail line as a viable alternative to the transport of freight by road. HBRC, in conjunction with private sector partners, is considering investing in the operation of a rail business carrying freight on the line. A critical component of any such investment will be the agreement of KiwiRail and the Government to reopen the rail line and for them to fully fund its return and that of associated infrastructure in a good ‘fit for purpose’ condition.

A proposal from the Napier Gisborne Rail Establishment Group (NGR) is summarised as follows. 

1. Establish and operate a rail freight service between Napier and Gisborne on the existing rail line once it has been returned to full operational status by the Government and KiwiRail.
2. Lease locomotives and the line from KiwiRail, purchase appropriate rolling stock from KiwiRail, or elsewhere, to operate the service.
3. Carry freight, which will largely be logs, fruit and vegetable produce.
4. Anticipate financial losses in the first three years of operation, returning to profit in year 4 and generating significant returns to shareholders as log volumes increase – anticipated in year 6, and HBRC becomes a 51% shareholder in the venture, with businesses and investors in Hawke’s Bay and Gisborne District holding the remaining 49% of shares in the operating company set up for this purpose.

The proposal claims benefits to Hawke’s Bay with social, economic, and employment gains; improved transport infrastructure with price competitiveness and efficiency over road and rail land transport modes; safety and cost benefits through reduced heavy traffic on SH2 between Gisborne and Napier; increased volumes of exports through Napier Port; and the security of an alternative transport route to road in the event of a disaster. 

The NGR Group estimates that investor funding to finance capital and operating budgets will total $10.7million, consisting of: 

• Purchase of rolling stock, plant, equipment etc $ 5.3m 
• Working capital $ 2.4m
• Disaster Contingency Reserve $ 3.0m

      --------------------------------------------

       Total Investor Funds Required $10.7m

A 51% shareholding investment from HBRC would be approximately $5.46m of the Total Investor Funds required over the 2014-15 to 2018-19 financial years. An initial investment of $3.9million would be required from HBRC for the 2014-15 year.

Any investment by HBRC in the NGR would be conditional on:

• The Government and/or KiwiRail fully funding the return of the rail line and associated infrastructure to a "good fit for purpose" operating condition.
• Leases of the line and locomotives from KiwiRail on terms satisfactory to NGR.
• Suitable offtake agreements being concluded between NGR and customers for the freighting of logs and fruit and vegetable produce over the period up to and beyond 2020 to ensure the long term viability of the service.
• NGR’s business case being tested and accepted as satisfactory, and the return to HBRC over the long-term is to cover Council’s cost of funding.

HBRC investor funds would initially be sourced from investment reserves, but ultimately would require refinancing from HBRC’s borrowing programme.

We welcome your views on whether or not you consider this to be a good investment for HBRC, and also if the investment does not proceed during 2014-15 whether HBRC should advocate for the line to be kept in a well maintained condition in its mothballed state so that it could be readily re-opened in the future.

Another 900 metre freight train on the Napier to Gisborne railway

Public Submissions:

Submissions to the council by email:

draftplan@hbrc.govt.nz

Submissions to the council by post:

Draft Annual Plan Submission, Freepost 515
Hawke’s Bay Regional Council
Private Bay 6006
Napier 4142.

People from anywhere are welcome to make a submission

Auckland Transport's freight train concerns

In September 2011, KiwiRail made a somewhat surprising announcement in its staff newsletter "Express", that it intended to proceed with construction of a third mainline between Otahuhu and Wiri, and eventually to Papakura.  To quote part of the the report:

Preliminary design work on a third main line to the North Island Main Trunk into Auckland between Otahuhu and Papakura has begun with the expectation that a section between Otahuhu and Wiri will be completed by mid 2013.

 “A third line would have significant benefits for both freight and metro services,” says KiwiRail Network General Manager Rick van Barneveld.

The report continued:

KiwiRail is working on a four-stage project expected to cost between $60 and $70 million dollars. Funding by other parties for some elements are expected to bring the whole project cost to around $100 million.

The announcement was a surprise to many observers at the time, as it was also known publicly that Auckland Transport was not keen to provide any funding for the project, despite the fact that their passenger services would benefit from greater separation of freight trains and suburban passenger trains.  It was this anticipated funding from Auckland Transport that was included in what the KiwiRail report refers to as "other parties".

Perhaps KiwiRail got a bit ahead of themselves by anticipating this funding contribution from Auckland Transport, but during 2012 they commenced work on the third main, constructing the formation between Otahuhu and Mangere, and between Puhinui and Homai.  January 2013 saw track reconfigurations take place at Otahuhu, and track laying commence around Wiri in association with EMU depot track construction.  However, at Wiri only the portions of third main required to provide access to the new depot were constructed.  The bulk of the third main through Wiri itself was not laid.

Third main formation construction through Wiri, January 2013.
As of April 2014, the track has still not been laid.

Third main construction at Puhinui, January 2013.

It became evident in early 2013 that the third main project had stalled because of no agreement being reached between KiwiRail and Auckland Transport around joint funding of the project.  The track was not laid through Wiri station, while the track laid at Puhinui became nothing more than a temporary backshunt for the new EMU depot.  Between Otahuhu and Mangere, the third track was not connected at the south end and has remained out of use ever since, bar a short section at the Otahuhu end, used as another temporary backshunt.

Track to nowhere: The third main at Mangere, with no
funding to complete it.

Jump forward to March 2014, and the division between Auckland Transport and KiwiRail over the third main project has become more evident, through their respective submissions to the Environmental Protection Authority over a plan change request being made by Tainui Group Holdings Ltd and Chedworth Properties Ltd in relation to their proposed industrial park for Ruakura, in Hamilton.

This industrial park is a $3 billion project to be constructed where the East Coast Main Trunk and proposed Hamilton section of the Waikato Expressway intersect, and will include a large rail-served container terminal.  It is expected that initially four freight trains per day will operate between the container terminal and Ports of Auckland, increasing to six each way as capacity at the terminal is reached.

The proposed container terminal at Ruakura.

The developers (Tainui/Chedworth) believe that the existing Auckland network (i.e., without a third main) can accomodate the new services in the short term, particularly if they operate through the Auckland area during the off-peak suburban train hours, but anticipate that the planned third main will enable the proposed future increase in services to be accomodated when they eventuate.

Auckland Transport Submission, 26th March 2014

Auckland Transport has submitted its concerns over the proposal, making several points:

• The additional freight trains, both short term and long term, may not be able to be accomodated north of Papakura, and that the developers assessment that they can, may be premature.
• There is no certainty that the additional freight trains will operate outside peak passenger hours.
• There is no certainty over whether or not the third main will be built, or whether it will provide enough capacity for the Ruakura trains if it is built.
• Concern that the developer has assumed it will be granted access to the Auckland rail network for its services when there is no such guarantee.

Auckland Transport's submission continues, by pointing out that access to the Auckland rail network is governed by the Auckland Network Access Agreement (ANAA), an 85-year agreement granting access rights to Transdev for services between Huapai and Pukekohe.  Timetables and capacity provision are decided by the Auckland Timetable Committee (ATC) which comprises representatives from Transdev, KiwiRail Freight, KiwiRail Passenger, and Auckland Transport.  The submission points out that decisions by the ATC must be unanimous to take effect.

The insinuation here is that Auckland Transport may not be willing to allow the passage of these additional freight trains.  However, the concerns appear to be based on an assumption by Auckland Transport that the additional freight trains will be operated by a party other than KiwiRail Freight, which is unlikely to be the case.  The proposed services will more than likely be operated by KiwiRail as "hook and pull" services.  Neverthess, it is clear that regardless of who operates the additional freight trains, Auckland Transport may not allow them.

KiwiRail submission, 26th March 2014

The first point made by KiwiRail in its submission is that even without the Ruakura development, there will soon be conflict between freight trains and suburban passenger trains in Auckland.

Of particular note, the submission states:

There is no doubt that the NIMT in the Auckland Network does not have capacity to accommodate the timetabling objectives of the Metro Service provider with its new trains and the freight operator at critical times of the day from 2015.

The submission then outlines a timetable of when third main work must be completed, in order to prevent capacity constraints on the Auckland network, giving a 2015 date for Westfield to Wiri, and approximately ten years later for Wiri to Papakura.  Interestingly, KiwiRail also states that should electrification be extended to Pukekohe, the third main will also need to go to Pukekohe:

In the longer term a third main will need to be built between Wiri and Pukekohe, and that may also require some passing areas, effectively a fourth main in places.

The submission continues:

The immediate solution is the completion of the third main between Westfield and Wiri, plus some reconfiguration in the Westfield and Southdown freight yards. Both ends of the third main are already in place, and the freight yard works will be complete at the end by June 2015. What remains is the 7km in the middle.

Conclusion

Auckland Transport and KiwiRail clearly have shared concerns over capacity constraints within the Auckland suburban network, on the North Island Main Trunk, but it's apparent that two quite different views exist as to what should be done about it.

Auckland Transport appear to favour restricting the passage of freight trains, whilst KiwiRail favour proceeding with construction of the third main, at least between Westfield and Wiri, where conflict will exist from next year even without any additional freight trains.

It is important that the rail network be developed to accomodate growth by all of its users, both freight and passenger.  Auckland Transport will benefit from greater separation of freight and passenger trains once their higher service frequency between Otahuhu and Wiri is implemented during 2015.  Auckland Transport also benefits from increased use of rail for the cartage of freight, as it keeps trucks off Auckland area roads, making them safer for other users and cheaper to maintain, and reducing air pollution for the people of Auckland.

Hopefully the funding issue can be resolved soon.  KiwiRail is already prepared to pay the lion's share.  But Auckland Transport needs to come to the party and provide some of the funding shortfall.  The matter is becoming critical, as there is only about 18 months remaining before capacity constraints cause delays to both passenger and freight trains south of Otahuhu.

More cash for KiwiRail?

One of the main concerns held by interested observers of KiwiRail's Turnaround Plan has been its ability to fund the necessary capital works required of the plan. 

The Turnaround Plan - known as TAP for short - is KiwiRail's long term plan to create a business capable
of standing on its own two feet financially.  It's a ten year plan for the period 2010 to 2020, and is estimated to ultimately cost $3.1b, in the form of government cash injections and reinvestment of income from the business.

Back in 2010, the government initially stated that it would provide three grants of $250 million each over the first three years of the plan (i.e., $750 million total for 2010-2012 inclusive), after which KiwiRail would need to continue funding the task from its own income.

2013/2014 was to be the first "self funding" year, but numerous observers were skepical of whether or not KiwiRail would be in a position to go it totally alone that soon - and with just cause.  The first three cash injections were spent very quickly, on track work, new locomotives, rolling stock and track maintenance machines, new IT systems and an upgrade of the Aratere rail ferry.  Meanwhile, economic conditions and unforseen natural events resulted in income not rising as much as anticipated.

Earlier this year the government surprised many by announcing a fourth cash injection, this time of $94 million, bringing the total to $844 million.  This wasn't a surprise to KiwiRail though, as the additional funding had been sought, and was granted in response to a request for additional funding.

This begged the question, will the government provide any further funding beyond the current financial year?

Information has now come to light that negotiations for further funding have been taking place over the past few months between KiwiRail management and central government officials.  KiwiRail is seeking $203 million, broken down into two payments, of $81 million for the 2014/2015 financial year, and $122 million for the 2015/2016 financial year.  If these sums are agreed to, it will bring the total cash injection amount to $1.046 billion since 2010.

Photo by Steve McElney, courtesy KiwiRail

As to what it will be spent on, it would seem "more of the same" applies.  Beyond the current eight DL locomotives on order from CNR in China, a further ten are planned to be purchased in 2015.  Then there's yet more flat top container wagons planned, including 175 in 2015, and 200 in 2016.  No doubt the continuing network upgrade will feature in this funding as well.

Sunday trains come to Swanson

It's been a very long time coming, but Sunday 3rd November 2013 finally saw the commencement of permanently scheduled suburban passenger trains to Swanson, on Auckland's "Western Line".

To the best of my knowledge, this is the first time suburban passenger trains have operated on a regular basis to Swanson on Sundays.  There has of course been many occasions in recent years when trains have operated to Swanson and Waitakere on Sundays for special events, and during the Rugby World Cup they operated every Sunday for several consecutive weeks, but they have never been permanently scheduled.

Swanson Railway Station

The new services are being provided by a mix of ADL class DMU's, and 4-car SA sets.

In the more distant past, it has been possible to travel by train this far west on Sundays, but I'm not sure one could describe it as a proper suburban service.

In 1947, there were four trains that you could travel on from Waitakere to Auckland.

0630hrs - Passenger train ex Waitakere.
0739hrs - Passenger train ex Helensville.
1542hrs - Express train ex Whangarei.
2136hrs - Mixed train ex Whangarei.

In the opposite direction, you had three choices from Auckland:

0651hrs - Mixed train to Maungaturoto.
0915hrs - Express train to Whangarei.
1000hrs - Goods train with Carriage attached, to Whangarei.

Travel options by train may have improved in the 1950's, but certainly by the mid 1970's, there were no longer any rail travel options on Sundays west of Newmarket.

Over the past decade, since Britomart opened, there have been many improvements made to the Western Line timetable, but these have focussed on weekdays, with weekends being largely ignored. The same Saturday hourly service that existed at the time Britomart opened (in 2003) was continued right through to November 2013.  Sunday services on the Western Line commenced between Britomart and New Lynn several years ago, and these were extended to Henderson in 2010, but despite completion of the double track project, service remained non-existant to Swanson and Waitakere.

The renewed effort to extend Sunday services developed this year as Auckland Transport came under growing political pressure to reverse declining use of the trains that was being experienced region-wide.  The Western Line is very popular on Saturdays in particular, despite the hourly service, and getting more trains on the line throughout the weekend, was the most obvious opportunity for growing patronage on the network.

Video of the very first permanent Sunday service, 0622hrs Sunday 3rd November 2013

The new Sunday timetable has trains departing Swanson, for Britomart, hourly from 0620hrs to 0920hrs, then half-hourly from 0920hrs to 1920hrs (departing at 20 and 50 minutes past the hour), then back to hourly until 2120hrs.

The new timetable has also doubled the Saturday service frequency from hourly, to half-hourly, operating to the same times as the Sunday timetable, but with later evening services, and of course the trains on Saturdays operate to Waitakere.

Swanson, looking west

Interestingly, there is enough time in the Sunday schedule for the trains to operate to Waitakere and back within the period that they will remain parked at Swanson.  However, with Auckland Transport not wishing to grow rail patronage at Waitakere station, in preparation for post-electrification closure, it was decided to terminate the new Sunday services at Swanson.

Meanwhile, Auckland Transport have announced that trains will no longer operate from Helensville for the annual Santa Parade event in the city.  These trains have operated for many years now, but unfortunately, Auckland Transport chose not to promote these services in 2011 and 2012, which saw patronage almost disappear in 2012.  They are now citing this decline as their reason for cancelling these services, along with a rather dubious claim that the railway between Waitakere and Helensville is no longer available for passenger trains, despite the recent operation of several excursions on the line.

Despite the latter, Auckland Transport has done well to improve Western Line frequencies.  Already, there has been a notable increase in patronage on Saturdays, and while Sundays has not been as significant, it is growing as well.  With the advent of electric trains to Swanson from 2015, patronage is sure to skyrocket.

Aratere interview transcript

Transcript of this morning's Radio New Zealand interview with Jim Quinn, CEO KiwiRail, on the Aratere incident in Cook Strait this week:

RadioNZ: Good morning Mr Quinn.

JQ: Good morning.

RadioNZ: Why did this happen?

JQ: Well we're still ascertaining the exact details of why, but obviously, in basic terms, the propeller fell off.

RadioNZ: And clearly that wasn't supposed to happen.

JQ: That's right, the propeller is supposed to be attached to the ship.

RadioNZ: One ferry down, where does this leave KiwiRail and its customers?

JQ: Well we are undertaking an urgent assessment of options, but for now we are up the creek without a paddle.

RadioNZ: Or in the strait, without a propeller.

(laughter)

JQ: Yes, you could say that.

RadioNZ: What happened when it fell off?

JQ: It was spotted whirling away. It's a bit humourous really, I keep picturing this thing whirling away on it's own, as though it's escaping.

RadioNZ: But it's not humourous is it Mr Quinn, this is the latest serious incident in a long line of serious incidents related to this ship isn't it?

JQ: No it's not humuorous, I assure you we are taking the matter seriously.

RadioNZ: Where is the propeller now?

JQ: Well we assumed it was on the bottom of Cook Strait.

RadioNZ: Assumed?  It must have sank surely?  Do you know where exactly?  Have you marked the spot?

JQ: We know the approximate location, it's not hard to find. Just look for the flotilla of scrap metal merchants.

RadioNZ: Scrap metal merchants are out there?

JQ: Like a flock of seagulls.  They were there as fast as a tow truck driver to a car crash.

RadioNZ: But you say assumed?

JQ: That's right, we assumed it had sunk after it fell off.  But it turns out....

RadioNZ: Surely it's a given, not an assumption?

JQ: Well it turns out it didn't sink. We....

RadioNZ: Didn't sink?

JQ: That's right, it was spotted floating a few kilometres away by the crew of the Arahura later in the day.

RadioNZ: Floating?  It was floating?

JQ: I understand your surprise, we were just as surprised.

RadioNZ: How is this possible?

JQ: After consulting with the ship's builder, it turns out it's made of plastic.

RadioNZ: Plastic?!

JQ: That's right, hollow plastic.  And of course the forces exerted on it propelling a ship of this size, were just too much. It sheared right off.  But we just made it back alright.

RadioNZ: Just?

JQ: Well water was pouring in the hole.  So we had to get back to dock quick smart.

RadioNZ: Hole?  There was a hole in the ship?

JQ: Where the propeller had been.  The propeller shaft pokes through a hole, so when it fell off, the hole was open.  Ideally, ships operate best without a hole below the water line.

RadioNZ: Why was the propeller made of plastic?

JQ: According to the manufacturer it was intended to enable easy recovery in the event of it becoming detached.  But since they hadn't told us about this, we suspect it might have been done to cut costs.  Another theory we are investigating, is the possibility that the propeller was manufactured in a 3D printer. 

RadioNZ: So what next?  When will the ship be repaired?

JQ: We're not yet sure if can be repaired.

RadioNZ: Why not?

JQ: Unfortunately it appears other parts of the ship that we thought were steel are also manufactured from plastic.

RadioNZ: How much of it?

JQ: (inaudible)

RadioNZ: How much of the ship is manufactured from plastic Mr Quinn?

JQ: Quite a bit.

RadioNZ: How much Mr Quinn?

JQ: Quite a bit unfortunately.

RadioNZ: How much Mr Quinn?

JQ: All of it.

RadioNZ: That's staggering Mr Quinn.  The whole ship is manufactured from plastic?

JQ: Well not quite all of it, just the structural parts.  It has other materials too, like upholstery fabric and horsehair stuffing in the seat cushions, which is perfect for a ship, as horsehair is very water resistent.

RadioNZ: But no steel?

JQ: Not that we have been able to find, but that's not to say that there isn't some somewhere.

RadioNZ: It's just.....just.....difficult to fathom isn't it Mr Quinn?

JQ: Indeed it is, although it's also quite amazing if you think about it.  We own the world's largest model ship.  I expect I'll take a call from James May at some point, sending us his sincere congratulations.

RadioNZ: Will you be replacing the ship?

JQ: That's a big project, and one that will require government approval, so I can't comment at this stage.

RadioNZ: And if you do buy a new one, it will be made from steel, with steel propellers?

JQ: Oh yes, most likely.  That would definitely be our desired outcome from any procurement.

RadioNZ: Thank you for your time Mr Quinn.

JQ: Thank you.

RadioNZ: That was Mr Jim Quinn, CEO of KiwiRail.  It's half past nine.