The Campaign For Better Transport

We need your help!

The CBT petition calling on the Govt. and its agencies to immediately fund Waikato commuter trains to Auckland will be presented to MP’s at the end of this month. We have over 6,000 signatures now ( 3,000 collected in just the past 2 weekends). There is huge support for these trains in the Waikato community, we just need to collect more signatures. It would be great if we can get 10,000!

Dowload the petition here.

If you can give just half a day for signature collection, we’ve got the locations for you! Details of how you can help below the fold.

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Both TVNZ and the NZ Herald report that KiwiRail is under pressure to mothball the Napier – Gisborne line, and the northern portion of the Wairarapa line (Masterton – Woodville).

The first train in the New Lynn rail trench is scheduled to pass through on Monday March 1, 2010 at the 5:56am. Yes I’ll be on board!

Update: Article on the new station in today’s Western Leader – LJH

Danielle Williamson’s well informed article on the proposed Puhoi to Wellsford motorway concluded that, mainly for reasons of road safety, the 35km stretch of road should be divided into a “proper motorway”.

However, doing so would be extraordinarily costly and technically challenging. Just the first section alone, between Puhoi and Warkworth, will not be completed for at least nine years, even if it were tolled.

We need to objectively consider the best use of an apparent budget of $2.3bn, rather than adopt an all-or-nothing approach.

For instance, the worst of the accident black spots could be upgraded to a higher standard far sooner than nine years from now. A Warkworth bypass could be built, perhaps to an expressway standard. The rail line to Northland could be repaired so that it is once again capable of carrying freight in a timely manner, reducing the number of large trucks on SH1.

It would be prudent to at least consider these alternatives, especially considering the likelihood of higher petrol prices in the next few years.

The New Zealand Herald reports:

Householders face being transported to and from their homes in a shuttle vehicle as contractors widen North Shore’s busy Onewa Rd during a nine-month project starting today.

Why not catch a bus?

Some good news from The Manawatu Standard:

Palmerston Nroth MP Iain Lees-Galloway says the Capital Connection railway link has received a stay of execution.

However, KiwiRail is denying any firm commitments have been made about the service’s future.

The fate of the Stratford to Okahukura line is up in the air.  Our submission to KiwiRail explaining why it should stay open is here:

 Submission on the Stratford to Okahukura Line.

First Wiri, now Hamilton – The Waikato Times reports local iwi Tainui are planning an inland port, served by both rail and road connections:

A port operator has yet to be tapped on the shoulder, but TGH has had discussions with Transit New Zealand and KiwiRail, says chief executive Mike Pohio.

This is good news for Hamilton, and motorists in the Auckland / Waikato / Bay of Plenty regions. Inland ports, served by container trains, take numerous truck movements off the roads, decreasing the environmental impact of transport and extending the life of the road.