Kerre Woodham: What's gone so horribly, horribly wrong with our ferries?

If it wasn't so vitally important, so serious, and so expensive, you would have to laugh, wouldn't you? Interislander’s Aratere ferry will be out of action today after it hit a linkspan coming into a berth in Wellington, damaging its hull.  

This is not their first rodeo when it comes to making mistakes. A string of incidents, if you will. Aratere suffered a reported staring failure on June 21st and ran aground in Picton shortly afterwards. It had only returned to full service late last month. What do you know? 9th of August, out of action for a couple of days. The Harbour Master Grant Nalder told the New Zealand Herald the ferry had made contact with a linkspan, which is the dock ramp that allows vehicles to access the ferry. The hull was damaged, but well above the water line, there were no injuries and no oil leaks. So, let's be grateful for small blessings,  

Transport Minister Simeon Brown spoke to Heather du Plessis-Allan last night and said at this stage they don't know what caused the ferry to bang into the Wharf and yes, there was a strong wind, but hey, you get those in Wellington.  

SB: Ultimately, they'll be looking into that and have more to say about that shortly, but there are high wind conditions here in Wellington right now.  

HDPA: Yeah, but that's normal Simeon, that's not really a surprise, is it?  

SB: We've been making our point very clearly around the operations of that organisation that they need to be lifting the game, and that's why we're refreshing the board and we're setting very clear expectations.  

HDPA: Stoked you’re doing it, but they, they keep on crashing the boat in the meantime, don’t they?   

SB: I want to make it very clear to the public that we have been unimpressed with the way KiwiRail has been managing its assets and operations.  

HDPA: But this is not an asset management problem, is it Simeon? I mean this is just somebody being dumb.  

SB: Well, we don't know all the answers yet.   

HDPA: Yes, well, possibly I should say, possibly being dumb. How long is this thing going to be out of commission for?   

SB: I think a couple of days is what I’ve been advised.  

HDPA: Man alive. Are you just pulling your hair out at these people?  

SB: Ah, well, yes.  

“Ah, well, yes.” Well, you would, wouldn't you?  We've had issue, after issue, after issue. I mean is this normal? Is this just part of the process of sailing a great big ferry? That seas are uncertain, and winds are unpredictable. I mean, you would expect the odd strong zephyr blowing up your jacksie if you were sailing in Wellington, but you know, are they unpredictable? Do they need to hang a tennis ball at the end of the Wharf the way older people do to make sure they don't go into the end of the garage? Would that be helpful? Perhaps a big orange buoy suspended from a crane, so they know how far they've got before they hit the dock perhaps? I don't know. Trying to be helpful, because it is part of State Highway 1, and we've said this before, if freight can't get across, that's a problem. If people can't get across, that's a problem. At this rate, because I know our athletes are forever looking for part-time gigs in between the Olympics, maybe we could harness up the women's gold winning K4 team to tow the bloody freight across the Cook Strait

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:06):
You're listening to the carrywood of morning's podcast from News
talks'd B.

Speaker 2 (00:12):
If it wasn't so vitally important, so serious and so expensive,
you would have to laugh, wouldn't you. Indo Islander's arter
Teddy Fairy will be out of action today after it
hit a link span coming into a berth in Wellington,
damaging its hull. This is not their first rodeo when

(00:34):
it comes to making mistakes, a string of incidents, if
you will. Uta Teddy suffered a reported steering failure on
June twenty one and ran aground and picked in shortly afterwards.
It had only returned to full service late last month.
What do you know? Night of August out of action

(00:55):
for a couple of days. The Harbourmaster, Grant Nalder told
the New Zealand Herald the fairy had made contact with
a lynksp which is the dock ramp that allows vehicles
to access the ferry. The whole was damaged, but well
above the waterline. There were no injuries and no oil leaks,

(01:18):
so let's be grateful for small blessings. Transport Minister Simeon
Brown spoke to HEATHERT plus Allen last night and said
at this stage, they don't know what caused the ferry
to bang into the wharf. And yes, there was a
strong wind, but hey, you get those in Wellington.

Speaker 3 (01:35):
Ultimately they'll be looking into that and have more to
say about that shortly. But there are high wind conditions
here in Wellington right now. Yeah, but that's normal, SAMN,
that's not really a surprise. We've been making out point
very clearly around the operations of that organization that they
need to be lifting the game and that's why we're
refreshing at the board and we're going to be We're

(01:55):
sitting very clear expectations doing it. But they keep on
crashing the boat in the meantime.

Speaker 2 (02:00):
Don't they.

Speaker 3 (02:01):
I want to make it very clear to the public
unimpressed with the way q Rail has been managing its
assets and operations.

Speaker 1 (02:09):
But this is what an asset management problem is it? So,
I mean, I mean, this is just somebody being dumb.

Speaker 3 (02:14):
Well, we don't know why. The answers just you.

Speaker 2 (02:15):
Yes, well possibly, I should say, possibly being done. How
long is this thing going to be out of commission for?

Speaker 3 (02:19):
I think a couple of days what I've been advised.

Speaker 2 (02:21):
Man alive, are you just pulling your hair out at
these people. Well yes, well yes, well you would, wouldn't you.
This is from twenty twenty three. Last year, Katiaki lost
power amid three meter swells and high winds off Wellington's
south coast and drifted nearly a mile off course with

(02:42):
about eight hundred and eighty people on board. The crew
managed to restore power. The fault was later identified as
a leak in the cooling system due to an old
engine part that ruptured. So that was January twenty three. February,
thousands of passengers had planned to cross cook Straight with
two ferry services found their plans grounded after sailings were

(03:02):
canceled for Blue Bridges Connemara and inter Island Kayarahi due
to engineering issues and the Enter Islanders. Kentucky was limited
to only carrying freight after the January incident where it
lost engine power, so it was fairbry March Kentucky was
taken out of service after new engineering problems with its gearbox.

(03:26):
The repair took more than a month. A media release
from Interrelander said it's complicated, requiring parts to be shipped
from Germany and specialist support from the Netherlands. Back in
service In April August, a small number of passengers were

(03:47):
forced to spend the night on the Kentucky anchored and
Wellington Harbor after it had been forced to turn back
from a sailing due to steering issues. Sailings of the
Kentucky were canceled on the twenty second of August after
a bidor was damaged by a large wave during a crossing. November,
Blue Bridge's Connemara hit Glasgow Wharf as it was leaving

(04:10):
Wellington and was turned back before passengers were disembarked on
Sunday the twelfth of November. Not to be outdone, the
inter Island is Kyarra He was damaged during birthing, leaving
a one met a long hole in the hull. Wellington
Harbour Master Grant Nauda, who was spoken to back then

(04:30):
as he was yesterday, said it looks quite dramatic and
it's not good for the ship. Yeah, I mean, I
don't know anything about sailing, but I would say a
one met a long hole in the hole wasn't good
for a shop either, Grant. So that was twenty twenty
three and since then we've had asue after a shoe

(04:56):
after is shoe? I mean, is this normal, you know,
Is this just part of the pro process of sailing
a great, big ferry that seas are uncertain and winds
are unpredictable. I mean, you would expect the odd strong
zephyr blowing up your jacksie if you were sailing in Wellington,

(05:18):
But you know, are they unpredictable? I mean, do they
need to hang a tennis ball at the end of
the wharf the way older people do to make sure
they don't go into the end of the garage. Would
that be helpful? Perhaps a big orange boy suspended from
a crane so they can see, you know, they know

(05:39):
how far they've got before they hit the dock. Perhaps,
I don't know, trying to be helpful because it is
part of State Highway one and we've said this before,
and if freight can't get across, that's a problem. If
people can't get across, that's a problem, you know, at

(06:00):
this rate, because I know our athletes are forever looking
for part time gigs in between the Olympics, maybe we
could harness up the women's gold winning K four team
to toe the bloody freight across the Cook Strait because
they would get it there faster and they would be
more reliable, um picking than Kiwi Rail, and the entire

(06:25):
islander pay them good money. I've got quite a few
other good rowers. Maybe they could do it, because how
hard is it to run a ferry service? Clearly it
is very, very difficult. I mean we've even got dear
old Bluebridge who had a few whoop season twenty three.

(06:50):
I just, you know, thinking back when I was growing up,
the only thing that stopped the fairies back in the
day with the unions who went on strike every school holidays.
So I'll buy anial trips to the South Island. We're
all very touch and go. We weren't quite sure if
the ferries were going to sail, but that was because

(07:12):
the unions went on strike, not because a ferry had
run itself into a wharf or run aground, or had
an automatic pilot put on, or you know, there was
no question that the ship was seaworthy. Perhaps that's why
we had unions. They'd go and strike until they were
certain that the ships were seaworthy. But I mean, how

(07:33):
hard can it be to go from point A to
point B, to go across a channel that we've been
going across for more than one hundred years. Is it
the quality of the ships we have, the quality of

(07:56):
the workmanship from the people who work on these ferries,
what's gone so horribly horribly wrong.

Speaker 1 (08:06):
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