‘Rug pulled out’: Mai angry at loss of road plan
Mayor to fight on for four-lane SHI
isbelief and shock were Whangārei Mayor Sheryl Mai’s first reactions to news that four-laning SH1 to Marsden Pt has been shelved.
A regional transport priority for more than 10 years, it has been struck from the Government’s infrastructure upgrade programme,
“My initial reaction was disbelief that the number one priority project for Taitokerau has been shelved yet again,” she said.
“When elected members from across the region were invited to meet Minister [Michael] Wood on May 25 we asked him directly whether this project was going ahead. He confirmed then that funding was there. It came as a shock today to see the project cut in favour of a rail spur.”
The news may have come as a relief to some people concerned about the effect of the project on their properties, but road and rail remained a council priority, Mai said.
“We are assured safety projects will be prioritised, but our top priority projects are road, rail, Northport expansion, a new dry dock and the Navy relocation. Now I wonder if we will see any of the remaining priorities given any consideration.
Mai was particularly concerned that the transport minister had led the council to believe it would get its projects funded.
“To ask for our input, give us every reason to believe we have been heard, and then pull the rug out from under us with no warning is another thing altogether.
“There will be benefits to our region with investment in rail infrastructure for freight, and that is good news. However, the road provides the connectivity that all people use – locals, visitors, and freight transporters.”
The council would continue to push for the four-laning project, which Mai said businesses, the community and the local government sector all wanted.
But the spur line was great news for KiwiRail Group chief executive Greg Miller, however.
The announced funding will build a 19km rail line between Whangārei and Northport, and upgrade the rail line north of Whangārei to handle heavy freight trains as part of its updated commitment to national transport infrastructure projects, and was significant for KiwiRail and for Northland.
“Earlier this year KiwiRail reopened the Northland line between Auckland and Whangārei after lowering the tracks in tunnels, replacing bridges and generally upgrading it. The NZ Upgrade Programme (NZUP) announcement fills in the missing pieces by adding the spur to Northport, and further upgrading the mothballed line north from Whangārei to Otiria,” he said.
“This is about creating a resilient rail network for the region, reducing carbon emissions, creating jobs and helping local businesses grow. It will [create] the first significant new rail line in New Zealand since the 1950s.”
The combination of the Marsden spur, NZUP funding to upgrade the line between Whangā rei and Otiria to 18-tonne axle loads, and the new ability to carry hi-cube shipping containers between Whangārei and Auckland, was a game-changer.
“The Ministry of Transport’s 2019 Northland rail business case found that with these improvements, rail tonnage into, out of and around Northland could reach 2.2 million tonnes a year. I think it can go even higher,” Miller said.
“The Mid and Far North are becoming the ‘North of Plenty’, potentially seeing the kind of horticulture growth that the Bay of Plenty experienced in the 1950s.
“The Government investment is ensuring this area is properly railconnected, and that means producers can get their exports to Northport and their produce around New Zealand easily, efficiently, and in a more environmentally friendly way.
“Rail services and the Kaimai Tunnel enabled Port of Tauranga to grow into what it is today. In the same way, rail will be able to support Northport and bring wider economic benefits across Northland.”
Work to reopen the line from Kauri to Otiria, and to increase its axle loading is scheduled to begin next year.