Manawatu Gorge closure puts extra cost burden on trucking companies

Emmerson Transport Hastings branch manager Ivan Conroy says extra wear and tear on the Saddle Rd is already causing it to start breaking up. Photo/Duncan Brown

Local trucking companies are having to wear the extra costs incurred due to the Manawatu Gorge closure, with no option but to hope that the repairs are finished as soon as possible.

Emmerson Transport branch manager Ivan Conroy said the company had on average about six truck movements through that part of the country per day, and using the alternative Saddle Rd route added about 15 minutes to the journey each way.

"It's not long but it does add up and means there are extra fuel costs.

"They've made improvements to the Saddle Rd, but it's starting to break up now - it doesn't hold up for long."

Stephenson Transport owner Bruce Stephenson agreed, and said the Saddle Rd was quite hard on the trucks, but the Pahiatua Track was not an option as that was even worse.

With the gorge road out of action, he said a major issue for his company when it was carting stock was the fact the effluent dump was in between the turn-off and the gorge road, so trucks were having to offload as they went.

"Motorists are getting upset, but we can't help it - I'm sure they didn't think about that when they built that dump there."

He agreed that the Saddle Rd was feeling the impact of the extra wear and tear, but noted the Pahiatua Track was an even harder route for the trucks.

Ongoing problems with the gorge road were a certainty, he said.

"I don't believe this is the end of it - it will continue to happen. I think they should bite the bullet and put a tunnel through, or at least do something about it."

The Kaikoura earthquake had added to the pressure, said Tomoana Warehousing Transport general manager Stewart Taylor.

"Wellington port has reduced capacity to handle shipping containers so a large number of those are coming through to Napier - there's a high volume of freight moving through there, which is adding to the impact."

The extra cost burden was not one that could be passed on to customers in a competitive environment where it wasn't always feasible to include the costs into contracts with customers, he said.

In addition, there was added risk that the time delays could mean missing the transfer for the following journey.

"We will be encouraging our road transport forum to lobby as hard as they can to improve the situation in the long term."

Local courier companies spoken to said the closure was not causing them any major problems.