John MacDonald: $600M for rail is a good start, but it's just a start

In an ideal world, I would love us to have more trains.  

 In an ideal world, I think it would be great if all our big cities had rail passenger services.  

Not just Auckland and Wellington that Transport Minister Chris Bishop was talking about when he announced this morning that there’s $600 million in this week’s Budget going into rail.  

I won’t go all scratched record on it and start asking where the money is for the Greater Christchurch area, but I would love to see money going into commuter rail here.    

Because if we do think rail has a future in New Zealand —and I’m talking about passenger rail as well as sending freight by rail— I think it’s more realistic to expect commuters to take the train than people going out of town on holiday.  

So that’s one area where I’d put the money – into passenger trains. And that’s probably my ideal world scenario, which I’ll come back to. 

What I think is certainly more achievable though, is getting more freight shipped around the place on trains. Because we’ve shown how bad we are as a country at maintaining our roading network. And, if you believe the rail advocates, they’ll tell you that the main problem is trucks. That they’re responsible for chewing up the roads.  

And, when you travel down the east coast of the South Island, it does strike you how much of a donkey track State Highway 1 is in parts.  

Yet we seem to be quite happy for these trucks —designed in countries where they do have massive motorways— to go up and down that donkey track night and day, 365 days a year.  

So get more freight on trains first. And then, if we’re going to do anything more with passenger trains, focus on getting people to work and school on a train instead of expecting them to go to Nelson for their holidays on a train. 

Because I’ve long thought how brilliant it would be if we had a rail service from Rangiora to the city and from Rolleston to the city.  

Imagine what the motorways would look like. Imagine getting into town on a train —not a bus, where you can get all the same disruptions as other vehicles— but you scream into town on the train, you don’t have to worry about finding a park, and then get the train back home again in the evening.  

The Canterbury Regional Transport Committee obviously likes the sound of that too. 

This is the entity that involves all councils in the canterbury region —including ECAN— and NZTA. And the number one job of the regional transport committee is to implement the Canterbury Regional Transport Plan. 

In recent years, there’s been talk of passenger rail services running from the city to Rolleston and as far north as Amberley. 

Reading the most recent regional transport plan, the enthusiasm that we were hearing a couple of years seems from the transport committee seems to have been tempered a bit.  

There is still political interest in a passenger rail service south of Christchurch but there are no timeframes and, of course, where the money comes from is the stumbling block.  

But there are positive signs if you're into the idea of rail, like I am.  

The regional transport plan sets a goal of increasing the amount of freight moved by train in Canterbury by 100% over the next eight or nine years. So that’s good.  

But it also talks about the population of Selwyn growing by around 58,000 people over the next 20-and-a-bit years. And, in Waimakariri, the population is expected to go up by 25,000 people in the same period.  

Christchurch is expected to have another 66,000 people. 

So there’s an extra 149,000 people living in the Greater Christchurch area, and we think the Northern Motorway and the Southern Motorway are going to be just fine? Dream on. 

And that’s the argument right there for

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:06):
You're listening to the Canterbury Mornings podcast with John McDonald
from News TALKSB.

Speaker 2 (00:13):
You know, in an ideal world, I would love us
to have more trains. In an ideal world, I think
it would be brilliant if all our big cities had
rail passenger services, not just Auckland and Wellington. The Transport
Minister Chris Bishop was talking about when he announced to

(00:33):
Mike earlier this morning that there's going to be six
hundred million dollars in this week's budget going into rail.
I won't get all scratched record on it and start
asking where the money is for the Grade christ Ditch area,
but I would love to see money going into commuter
rail here because if we do think rail has a

(00:54):
future in New Zealand, and I'm talking here about passenger
rail as well as sending frank by rail, then I
think it's way more realistic to expect commuters to take
the train than people going out of town on holiday.
So that's one area where I would put the money

(01:15):
into passenger trains, and that's probably that's probably my ideal
world scenario, which I'll come back to. What I think
is certainly more achievable though, is getting more freight shipped
around the place on trains, because we've shined, haven't we
how bad we are as a country at maintaining a
roading network. And if you believe, if you believe the

(01:35):
rail advocates, I'll tell you that the main problems trucks.
That the trucks, they're the ones or they're the vehicles
chewing up the roads. And when you travel down the
east coast of the South Islands, you know it's to
a trip from so Pickton to christ Church. It strikes she,
doesn't it how much of a donkey track state highway

(01:58):
one is in parts. Yet we seem to be quite
happy for these trucks, by the way, designed in countries
where they do have massive motorways to accommodate them. But
we're more than happy for these trucks to go up
and down that donkey track night and day, three hundred
and sixty five days a year. So where I'm at is, yes, brilliant.

(02:18):
Let's see more investment in rail. Get more freight on
trains first, that's the priority though, and then if we're
going to do anything more with passenger trains, focus on
getting people to work in school on a train. Instead
of expecting them to go to Nelson for their holidays
on a train. Because I've long thought you may be

(02:39):
the same. You may not, But I've long thought how
brilliant it would be if we had a rail service
from Rungi Order to the city and from Rolliston to
the city. Imagine what those motorways would look like then,
and imagine getting into town on a train not a bus,
where you can get all the same disruptions as other vehicles.
You scream into town on the train, don't have to

(03:01):
worry about finding a park, and then get the train
back home again in the evening if you're a nine
to five office worker. The Canterbury Regional Transport Committee obviously
likes the sound of that as well. This is the
entity that involves all councils in the Canterbury region, including
e CAN as well as NZTA, and the number one
job of the Regional Transport Committee is to implement the

(03:24):
Canterbury Regional Transport Plan. It's the last bit of Lingo
promise and in recent years there's been talk of passenger
rail services running from the city to Roliston and as
far north as Ambly. Now I was going through the
most recent Regional Transport Plan. I did it on your behalf.
You don't need to. And the enthusiasm that we were

(03:45):
hearing from e can a couple of years ago seems
to have been tempered a bit. Still seems to be
some political interest though in a passenger rail service south
of christ Church, but no timeframes, and of course where
the money comes from is the stumbling block. But there
are positive signs if you're into the idea of rail
like I am. The plan sets a goal of increasing

(04:07):
the amount of freight moved by train in Canterbury by
one hundred percent over the next eight or nine years.
That's good. It also talks about the population of Selwyn
give This growing by around fifty eight thousand people over
the next twenty in a bit years, and in Weimak
the population expected to go up by about twenty five
thousand in the same period. Christ Church another sixty six

(04:30):
thousand people. So there's an extra what have we got
one hundred and forty nine thousand people, let's say one
hundred and fifty there's an extra one hundred and fifty
thousand people living in the Great christ Ateria. And we
think the Northern Motorway and the Southern Motorway and us
driving in cars. We're going to be just fine. Dream on,
dream on, And that's the argument right there for passenger

(04:52):
rail services and the greater christ Churcheria, which is my
answers to the question I'm going to put to you
this morning is yes, when I ask you, should we
be investing more in rail, especially here in Canterbury. Yes.

Speaker 1 (05:08):
For more from Caterbory Mornings with John McDonald, listen live
to news talks at be Christchurch from nine am weekdays,
or follow the podcast on iHeartRadio.