Protesters advocating for inter-regional passenger rail by blocking a main Wellington route are "undermining their cause and frustrating the public", the Transport Minister says.
Michael Wood took aim at the demonstrators who caused significant traffic congestion on Wednesday morning by sitting on State Highway 1 ahead of Wellington's Terrace Tunnel. It follows protesters causing disruption by climbing a gantry over the highway on Monday morning.
"It is totally unacceptable to disrupt commuters and the Wellington transport network," the Transport Minister told Newshub.
Protesters from the group Restore Passenger Rail are demanding the Government "immediately restore" inter-regional passenger rail across the country "to what it was in the year 2000". They say "affordable and accessible passenger rail will help bring people together", is good for the climate and will also help Kiwis get around during a cost of living crisis when "they cannot afford a car or petrol".
Restore Passenger Rail's website says its campaign includes "mass mobilisation and civil resistance... disrupting business as usual at the same time".
"We are here sounding the alarm for immediate action. There's no time to wait. The window to prevent the spiral to an uninhabitable future is closing fast," said spokesperson Michael Apathy.
Wood said there is "significant work underway to improve rail in New Zealand".
"Since 2017, we have invested $8.6 billion to build a resilient and reliable network after decades of neglect and decline," he said.
"Much of this is the bread and butter of our network replacing track, new culverts and bridges, upgraded turnouts, all of which are needed for a safe and effective network. This is also crucial work ahead of considering whether we introduce additional freight and passenger services across the network."
The minister pointed out that the Labour Government introduced the Te Huia rail service between Hamilton and Auckland, which he said is to "help build the case for additional regional and inter-regional rail services".
"We continue to have positive engagements with many rail advocates. However, these protestors are undermining their cause and frustrating the public, when they should be working to build public support for future Rail investment."
Police attended the protest on Wednesday morning. A spokesperson said while police "recognise the lawful right to protest, the safety of the public is our top priority".
"Tunnel lanes have been closed while police work to remove those who are unlawfully on the motorway. Charges will be considered"
National transport spokesperson Simeon Brown called the protesters "reckless idiots".
"They're disrupting thousands of commuters trying to get to work, trying to go about their daily lives, trying to make a living and pay the bills and they're getting stuck in traffic," Brown told AM on Tuesday.
"The reality is emissions would have gone up in Wellington yesterday because all those cars would have been stuck in traffic emitting more and more gas so this is just absolutely reckless idiots and it puts their cause back a long way."
The Government announced last week that KiwiRail, which operates two regional passenger rail services - Te Huia and Capital Connection, the Palmerston North to Wellington route - would remain a State-Owned Enterprise.
Wood said at the time he expects KiwiRail to enable the Government's vision for rail, which was detailed in the New Zealand Rail Plan released last year.
"Getting more people to use the rail network and more freight off the roads is a key part of the Government’s emissions reduction plan," he said, Ministers are also considering the role of rail as part of the New Zealand freight and supply chain strategy, and how we can improve inter-regional passenger rail."
Parliament's Transport and Infrastructure Committee in August started an inquiry into the future of inter-regional passenger rail. Among other things, it is looking at the "possibilities and viability of passenger rail in underserved communities", the "viability of passenger rail sitting alongside KiwiRail’s freight network" and the possible emissions reductions from passenger rail.
"We hope interested New Zealanders will take the time to have their say and help us better understand inter-regional passenger rail and its future in New Zealand," said chair and Labour MP Greg O'Connor.
Demand for passenger rail services has fallen away, KiwiRail says, due to improvements to roading, increased car ownership and fast domestic air-travel. However, with regional rail being a low-emission form of transport, there is work underway to "consider the viability of and establish" more services.
If a region wants a new passenger rail route, KiwiRail says local councils will first need to put forward a business case - highlighting potential demand and costs - and then have the project prioritised included in the region's Regional Land Transport Plan. The Government will then consider if it should be prioritised through the New Zealand Rail Plan.
"Once the work has occurred on the cost structures and the operational considerations, the councils and Government can then determine the funding required and work can proceed to developing the assets and readying the service. This process can take years as refurbishment of existing assets (e.g. carriages) or procuring new assets may be necessary."
KiwiRail also runs the Northern Explorer (Auckland – Wellington), Coastal Pacific (Picton – Christchurch) and TranzAlpine (Christchurch – Greymouth) rail services. However, these are not considered passenger rail routes but are "tourism experiences", KiwiRail says.
