Hawke's Bay rail study included in public transport plan

MP Anna Lorck, now jubilant after a trains study is added to the Hawke's Bay Public Transport Plan. Photo / Supplied

Tukituki MP Anna Lorck is launching a public survey to support a passenger rail service in Hawke's Bay after the inclusion of feasibility study prospects in the Regional Public Transport Plan.

Rail was added to the draft plan as it was approved by the Regional Transport Committee on Friday. It will now go to a full Hawke's Bay Regional Council meeting for adoption.

A report on submissions to the draft plan recommended the addition, saying there had been "a strong level of support for trains, both inter-regional and commuter services."

"Preliminary advice points to the cost prohibitive nature of passenger rail services in HB, resulting in significant funding constraints and the inability to deliver," the report said.

But "given the large level of interest" the report recommended that preliminary figures be made publicly available, there should be inclusion of a high-level policy aligned with an approach of Horizons (Manawatu-Whanganui) Regional Council, committing to working with Waka Kotahi NZTA, KiwiRail, local government, and central Government, to investigate options for a connected regional passenger rail network.

It said there should be further policy to reinforce the need for advocacy to central Government to ensure sufficient regional investment is made in key infrastructure improvements such as expanding the rail network, and that there should be a commitment to a feasibility study of passenger/commuter rail in Hawke's Bay.

Lorck said later "the real work for a Hawke's Bay passenger rail public transport service starts now" and that the commitment to a feasibility study "is a great win for those of us who submitted on passenger rail for the future, especially given the council did not include rail as part of its public transport consultation."

"Now the region must prove it has both the demand and support for passenger rail," she said. "This is a way for people to get on board because we must keep building on the momentum."

"Rail is an attractive way to commute in other parts of New Zealand, so why should it be any different here in Hawke's Bay?" she said.

She said it was also timely with Parliament's Transport and Infrastructure Committee having opened an inquiry into the future of inter-regional passenger rail in New Zealand.

The plan is billed as proposing a "step-change for public transport that moves away from a coverage approach towards a high-frequency patronage model" with a "service for the region to make the network more frequent, faster, and more reliable."

Chairman and regional councillor Martin Williams says the plan is possibly the most satisfying achievement he's seen in the roles, and adds: "It's really going to make a difference."