Aerial view of Iwikau village and Happy Valley on the slopes of Mt Ruapehu July 2020. Photo / File
From the high street to the high altitudes of Mt Ruapehu, car parking is an ongoing issue.
Trampers and climbers on Mt Ruapehu this winter will enjoy the benefit of number plate recognition when accessing the upper mountain during peak times. Previously they were waved through on a trust model.
However, Ruapehu Alpine Lifts (RAL) has come under fire from Federated Mountain Clubs for signalling they will let some skiers and snowboarders bypass the car park booking system.
In an announcement in April, RAL said the bookable car parking system will apply to the six busiest weekends of the snow season, but those holding a season pass or a life pass will not be required to use the system and will be waved on through.
Federated Mountain Clubs president Jan Finlayson said giving undue privilege to some skiers and snowboarders went against what is allowed for in the National Parks Act 1980.
She said the new car park booking system for trampers and climbers did not resolve the underlying issue of all people not being treated identically.
"The National Parks Act treats all people equally. Where there is congestion the solution must impact on all users equally.
"The solution should not create haves and have nots in Tongariro National Park," said Ms Finlayson.
She said car parking on Mt Ruapehu is a long-standing issue and a big part of the solution will be directing people away from using private vehicles and towards accessing the mountain through public transport.
"Recreationists on Mt Ruapehu still find themselves on the wrong side of the road barrier. This is why Federated Mountain Clubs needs to be at the table with DoC and RAL to consider the options," said Ms Finlayson.
The Department of Conservation (DoC) issues a concession to RAL to operate and the concession clearly states RAL is required to provide car parking facilities for members of the public, whether or not they are customers of the concessionaire.
DoC operations manager for Tongariro Connie Norgate said DoC had given approval to RAL to continue to implement bookable parking for 2021 as a way to manage visitor numbers within their concession limits of a maximum 5500 people per day per ski area.
"RAL has included an apportionment in its bookable parking allocation for members of the public who are not customers of RAL."
Ms Norgate said DoC acknowledged it wouldn't always be possible for other user groups (such as trampers) to get a car park on the weekend but said RAL also needed to be able to run a viable business.
On Monday, May 17, RAL said they are bringing in new measures to provide car parking for other recreational users.
Chief operating officer Travis Donoghue said previously when the Bruce Rd or the Ohakune Mountain Rd was closed due to the car parks being full, trampers wanting to access the trailheads would be waved through the closed gates.
"We were operating on a high trust basis. Our staff would have a look in the car, and if there was no ski gear then they would be let through."
Travis said the trampers were meant to have a DoC paper permit but acknowledged it was a time-consuming process. He said this year trampers would be able to get a tramping permit online and DoC software would align with RAL number plate recognition software,
"Trampers who have the permit will be allowed straight through," said Travis.
He said the system was still being designed, and by the time bookable parking is in place a webpage would be available so other recreational users can book a car park.
Bookable car parking will apply to six weekends this snow season, from (July 31 to September 5), coinciding with the best snow conditions.
Season pass holders and life pass holders are not required to book car parks this season. Travis said these pass holders will account for 25 to 35 per cent of vehicles in 2021, with season passes reduced by 5 per cent this year.
"Taking these people out of the mix will reduce the competition for online booking."
He said during the ski season in 2020 there was "severe" demand for car parking under Covid-19 alert level 2, as only 30 per cent of available car parks could be released. However, under Covid-19 alert level 1 conditions "it took several days for weekend car parking to sell out."
"We hope to operate these six peak weekends under Covid-19 alert level 1 conditions and we will be able to release 100 per cent of the car parks."
Travis said there have been technological improvements to the online booking system.
"There won't be the sprint to fill in your details once you have clicked and secured your car park."
He said car parks will still be released on Wednesdays at 10am and 6pm.
While the Taranaki Falls carpark has been closed to public use, some car parking has been constructed in the berm below the Chateau Tongariro.
For the majority of the public parking there is a one or three hour parking restriction, depending on where you park. By the public shelter there is a 15 minute restriction.
Day or overnight multi-day hikers can contact Tongariro National Park Visitor Centre in Whakapapa Village to get a parking permit to park longer than three hours.
Submissions about Whakapapa Village parking restrictions closed on Friday last week.