Subscribe to RSSNapier-Gisborne Line Talks
For those following the fate of provincial rail lines, an interesting story in today’s Dominion Post on a meeting about the threatened Napier-Gisborne rail line.
It says that KiwiRail is considering inland ports at Gisborne and Wairoa as it aims to handle the big increase in timber freight expected from those regions.
The fate of the loss-making Napier-Gisborne rail line could depend on the firm’s success in grabbing most of the freight from the timber boom expected from 2012.
Predictably, National Tukituki MP Craig Foss warned the meeting that “massive” job losses would occur in the trucking industry, if all the freight moved to rail.
7 Comments
It was a shock to read that a National MP is protecting the trucking industry.
I am glad donations from the trucking lobby have not effected his objective out look. YEAH RIGHT!
No shame. No friggin shame. How about simply calling rail “communist” and getting the scaremongering over with?
That article has some disturbing “logic”, like that of the mayor implying that sacrificing a few lives would be worth it to get SH2 upgraded. Why not just put the money into rail right now, for a much bigger long-term saving, not sacrificing the lives in the process, and gain a versatile, economic bulk-freight carriage system? Oh, that’s right, roads uber alles.
Of course if there is increased freight on the line there there will still be truck movements in and around the rail hubs to get the frieght to and from the trains so its not like trucks are suddenly going to be banned from the streets and all drivers out of work.
Matt - I agree, its pretty bad for the mayor to be saying “lets just wait for some people to be killed by these extra trucks so NZTA can justify upgrading the road.
More old fashioned views from the people that can pull the strings. Dam it.
Go the National, massive job losses, whatever, massive donation losses more likely if rail gets the nod.
And isn’t Tony Friedlander, the chief executive of the Road Transport Forum an ex National Minister or is that just a coincidence?
@Kurt - Tony Friedlander was reported as retiring last year. In recent years he suffered a certain credibility gap following his zeal into turning the Johnsonville Line into a busway. His axe was blunted as this was dragged up by people (like me) constantly in newspaper “Letters to Ed”, everytime he came out with something to further the trucking industry’s cause.
He was very effective as a voice for the trucking industry though and we can be thankful that he’s gone!