Pull the Plug. Government’s Ghost Train All but Dead

Blind panic has set in as it becomes apparent that commuters aren’t as stupid as Jacinda Ardern thinks they are and refuse doggedly to be stuck on a slow train to Papakura when it takes less than an hour to drive the same distance.

The Hamilton to Auckland passenger train will be in “jeopardy” if passenger numbers don’t improve, a Waikato council boss says.

It comes as city leaders call on the Government to support inter-regional passenger rail, and put the heat on Auckland city to let the train run downtown.

Te Huia runs on weekdays to Papakura, where commuters change onto the AT metro network to travel to Britomart, in a travel time of about two and a half hours.

That one train from Hamilton can’t reach central Auckland quickly and directly has been a criticism of the service – and cited as a crucial way to boost traveller numbers.

There was an average of 29 passengers per trip in the weekdays between July 26 and 30, and an average of 127 passengers across the two Saturday trips.

The week before, in the school holidays between July 19 and 23, there was an average of 40 passengers per trip.

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The train does already go to downtown Auckland, you just have to switch at Papakura.  That is a minor issue, it’s not going to solve anything much, just make a 3-hour trip 15 minutes slightly quicker. It’s still a dog.

And this is from the guy who said that he didn’t care how much of other people’s money it lost, “we wants it, we will keeps it”:

Waikato Regional Council chairman Russ Rimmington admitted traveller numbers are “a shocker”.

“We’ve got to get our heads around it.

“If there’s a change of Government, and we don’t improve patronage, this service will be in jeopardy,” Rimmington said in a recent council meeting.

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And again, he confirms that he doesn’t give a fat rat’s arse how much money it loses. He knows that this government will continue to throw away money on it, but he is scared that any sensible government will scrap it.  Socialists.

This government has locked in five years of funding – $98 million that would have done more good being thrown in cash into the furnace at Huntly. At least it might have kept the lights on in the middle of winter.

Jacinda Ardern is probably still scratching her head wondering why no one uses it. It’s a ‘build it and they will come’ mentality.

Maybe if she puts on a hijab and gives the train a big hug?

Either way, it was prophetic to name the train after an extinct bird.

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