Megan Dimozantos: Federated Mountain Clubs president on DoC trialling paid parking at Aoraki/Mount Cook

Visitors will have to pay $5 an hour to park at Aoraki/Mt Cook as part of a parking trial set to be carried out this summer.

Fees will include a day rate of $25 and $60 for an annual pass for regular users, which applies to anyone living outside the Mackenzie District - while residents will pay $10 per year.

Federated Mountain Clubs president Megan Dimozantos has voiced disappointment with the idea that Kiwis have to pay the same rates as international visitors.

"It will, unfortunately, have an impact on low-income families that are struggling with the cost of living crisis, so I don't know that this is really a solution in its own right." 

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Most kiwis will have to pay the same as international
tourists to park at conservation sites this summer under a
trial Mount Cook, Dollarmite Point, Friends, Joseph All trial five
dollars an hour charge with the option of twenty five
dollars a day. This is for a rate a day rate,
rather sixty bucks for an annual pass. Locals can park
for just ten dollars a year, but other kiwis will

(00:22):
pay the same as the international visitors. So why President
of Federated Mountain Club's Megan Demizontos is with us, good evening,
good evening, right, great to have you on the show.
So is it fair that we kiwis, well most of us,
unless you live locally, would pay the same as an
international tourist.

Speaker 2 (00:40):
Yeah. Obviously FMC are advocated for the charge to only
apply to internationals, and so we're disappointed to see that
the charge is going to apply to kiwis as well.

Speaker 1 (00:54):
Didn't they sort of imply I seem to remember when
they announced this that we would get a cheaper rate.

Speaker 2 (01:01):
Yeah, And I'm not sure about what's happened in the
background where they've decided that they're no longer going to
do that, But I guess the problem is that twenty
five dollars is probably not going to have a significant
enough impact on the crowding issue that doc claims to
be trying to address, but it will unfortunately have an
impact on low income families that are struggling with cost

(01:24):
of living crisis. So I don't know that this is
really a solution and its own right for the outer
for the over crowding issue.

Speaker 1 (01:32):
If you're going to friends, Joseph, I mean, you're going once,
aren't you. You know, if you don't live nearby, you're
only going once. It's twenty five bucks to pay once.
It's a beautiful place to see, and it seems kind
of reasonable.

Speaker 2 (01:45):
Yeah, I guess for our members in particular, who are
back country users, you know, they all go into an
area for days at a time, So you know, a
back country usable will probably end up paying the sixty
dollars rate just to park once so that they can
go into the back country. So they're not actually using
the facilities in the area. They're quite a small number

(02:07):
of people, they're not necessarily the cause of the overcrowding problem,
but they're also going to shoulder a fairly unfair portion
of the burden.

Speaker 1 (02:16):
All right, I appreciate your time. Thanks so much for
being with me again. That's Meghan Demizentos, who's the president
Federated Mountain Clubs.

Speaker 2 (02:23):
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Speaker 1 (02:27):
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