Aratere passengers stuck on board for hours because of electrical fault

Some Thursday morning sailings of the Aratere ferry have been cancelled. Photo / Samuel Rillstone, RNZ

By Soumya Bhamidipati of RNZ

Passengers on the beleaguered Aratere ferry were stuck on board for hours overnight after it broke down on its way to Wellington.

KiwiRail said the ferry left Picton about 8.50pm, but then “experienced an unexpected issue with its propulsion drive” while sailing.

That issue was fixed about 1am and the vessel resumed its trip to Wellington, with a new expected arrival time of about 5am on Thursday.

“Unfortunately, we will have to cancel the 6.15am Thursday morning sailing from Wellington to Picton and the 11am Picton to Wellington return sailing while we undertake further testing,” a spokesperson said.

“Interislander’s customer service teams are currently amending bookings due to these cancellations. All affected customers will be offered an alternative sailing. If the alternative sailing is not suitable, passengers are welcome to reschedule for no additional cost.

“We apologise for the inconvenience.”

Seven commercial vehicle drivers and four foot passengers were on board the ferry while it was anchored for hours, waiting for a specialist electrician to arrive.

“We are looking after the customers on board and once the vessel returns to port, we will transfer them to alternative sailings,” the spokesperson earlier said.

It was initially expected the vessel would need to return to its Picton berth and a tug was on standby to provide assistance.

In April, another electrical fault (with a hydraulic pump) on the Aratere saw a Wellington-to-Picton crossing and its return journey cancelled.

Just two months until ferry retires

The Aratere made headlines when it ran aground last year.

It beached in Titoki Bay, near Picton, on June 21, after its steering autopilot was mistakenly engaged and staff were unable to switch it off. It was refloated on June 23.

Last month, KiwiRail announced the ferry would be retired by the end of August to make way for the construction of new port infrastructure in Picton.

The ferry – which can hold 650 passengers, 230 cars and 28 rail wagons – is the only rail-enabled ferry in Interislander’s fleet, and requires specialised loading and unloading infrastructure.

Two new rail-enabled ferries are not due to arrive until 2029.

Announcing its retirement, Rail Minister Winston Peters said it would have cost $120 million to keep the Aratere in service.

“We will not waste one tax dollar on shuffling infrastructure to keep the vessel in service for the sake of it or add any infrastructure risk to our objective of completion in 2029,” Peters said.

-RNZ