Tourist killed by elephant, prominent Kiwis oppose regulatory standards bill
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Scoop
3 hours ago
- Scoop
NZ Will Soon Have No Real Interisland Rail-ferry Link – Why Are We So Bad At Infrastructure Planning?
Another week, another Cook Strait ferry breakdown. As the winter maintenance season approaches and the Aratere prepares for its final months of service, New Zealand faces a self-imposed crisis. The government has spent NZ$507.3 million on cancelled iReX ferry plans, the country's fleet has an average age of 28 years, and the earliest New Zealanders can hope for promised replacements is 2029. The Marlborough Chamber of Commerce warns unreliable ferries already shake tourist confidence. Several more years of duct-tape solutions won't help. The recent pattern of breakdowns and cancellations has become so routine that New Zealand risks normalising what should be viewed as a national crisis: a serious infrastructure failure. It is also a textbook example of how short-term political cycles, coupled with chronic under-investment, create far more expensive problems than the ones they promise to solve. Cost blowouts While ministers claim to have spared taxpayers a $4 billion blowout on new ferries, Treasury papers show almost 80% of the cost escalation lay in seismic upgrades for wharves, not in the vessels themselves. Those land-side works will be required no matter what ferries the country eventually orders. Justifying the original contract cancellation, Finance Minister Nicola Willis quipped that iReX was a Ferrari when a Toyota Corolla would do. But the cost of finding a suitable Corolla is adding up fast. Annual maintenance costs are projected to nearly double to $65 million, just to keep the existing ageing ferries running. Additionally, $300 million had to be earmarked to cover fees for breaking the original ferry replacement contract. By retiring the Aratere this year – New Zealand's only rail-capable ferry – the government is also severing the interisland rail link for almost five years. KiwiRail will 'road-bridge' rail freight, an expensive workaround that involves loading train cars onto trucks, putting those trucks on ferries, then reversing the process at the other end. This will increase truck traffic, produce more emissions and add more wear to already strained infrastructure. Forcing more than $14 billion worth of annual freight from rail to road could also negatively affect New Zealand's climate change commitments. Freight moved by rail generates only about 25% of the CO per tonne-kilometre of the same load produced when hauled by truck. The cancelled hybrid ferries would have also cut emissions by 40%. Instead, New Zealand is locking in higher emissions for another half decade or longer. Unrealistic timelines The ferry saga reflects New Zealand's infrastructure problem in a nutshell. The country tends to underestimate costs, create unfeasible timelines, then shows dismay when projects blow up or limp home at double the price. Auckland exemplifies the pattern. The city has seen decades of cancelled harbour crossing proposals and a scrapped light rail project, with nothing to show but consultancy fees. When New Zealand does build –Transmission Gully, for example – the final bill bears little resemblance to initial quotes. The 27 kilometre motorway north of Wellington was nearly 50% over budget and took eight years to build – two years longer than promised. The systematic underestimation of costs reflects a flawed approach to infrastructure planning. Politicians need quick wins within three-year electoral cycles, while infrastructure projects take decades to deliver. Projects are approved based on lowball estimates, with the outcome inherited by another administration. This has crossed party lines and created a system that rewards short-term thinking and punishes long-term planning. Just consider the second crossing for Auckland Harbour. For 35 years, the government has commissioned study after study – from the 1988 tunnel plans to the 2010 business cases – each time backing away when the price tag appeared, or the government changed. The iReX cancellation marks the first time the government has actually signed contracts and then walked away. As with the second Auckland Harbour crossing, each delay has only made the inevitable solution more expensive. Other countries have, to a degree, addressed this problem. Infrastructure Australia, for example, provides independent cost assessments and long-term planning that transcends political cycles. New Zealand's Infrastructure Commission, established in 2019, lacks similar teeth and independence. Ultimately this isn't really about ferries. It's about how New Zealand consistently fails to deliver, on time and at cost, the infrastructure that keeps its economy moving.
NZ Herald
7 hours ago
- NZ Herald
Auckland police officer Abby Sturgin named Miss Universe New Zealand 2025
Auckland police constable Abby Sturgin has been named Miss Universe New Zealand 2025. Sturgin, 28, was crowned New Zealand's representative for the international Miss Universe competition on June 24 at SkyCity Theatre. West Auckland-born and raised Sturgin, who is of Kiwi and Laotian heritage, competed against 11 other finalists for
Scoop
7 hours ago
- Scoop
LGNZ Urges More People To Run For Council
Local Government New Zealand (LGNZ) is calling for more people to put their hands up to stand in this year's local elections in October. Nominations opened yesterday, with prospective candidates required to submit their nomination before the cutoff date of 12 noon on 1 August. To help potential candidates make this decision, LGNZ has produced a handy 2025 candidate's guide. LGNZ also offers a comprehensive range of pre-elected learning materials via its online learning platform, Ākona. LGNZ Chief Executive Susan Freeman-Greene says a hallmark of healthy democracy is when people are willing to represent their community around the council table. 'This year we'll have 1465 seats available across 66 councils, including 66 Mayoral seats and 683 community board seats. There will also be 127 seats up for election across the 11 regional councils,' says Susan Freeman-Greene. 'At the last local election, we had 3119 people standing across 1607 seats across the country; a ratio of almost two people for every seat. Seven mayors were elected unopposed into their roles in the last election, while 40% of members elected for the first time. 'Obviously we'd like to have more candidates standing, as evidence tells us that the more candidates who are contesting a seat, the higher the voter turnout will be. And ultimately, we want more New Zealanders heading to the polls to have their say; the 42% voter turnout at the 2022 local elections was not good enough.' Susan Freeman-Greene says that elected members can come from all walks of life. 'Being an elected member is an important and public role. There's no question it's a demanding job but it's also very rewarding. Every day councils make important decisions that impact future generations – from infrastructure investment like roads, bridges and pipes, to climate resilience.'
