Due to redundant signaling systems,KiwiRail; will be removing signaling and points at Stratford, essentially removing rail access to the large Stratford marshalling yard.

TRAINZ national coordinator, Niall Robertson says, “Until relatively recent times Stratford was a busy junction handling trains to and from the north via Taumarunui, the south and from Kapuni, but KiwiRail have closed the connection to the north and to Kapuni and it could be said that they are under-utilising the line to the south”. Robertson adds, “If you don’t chase freight to justify using these assets then you have the great excuse to shut them down!”

TRAINZ chair Guy Wellwood says that he is aware of vast logging opportunities in the King Country that could potentially be exported through Port Taranaki, with supplementary amounts that foresters want railed from Te Wera east of Stratford.

TRAINZ believes that Fonterra products should be railed more directly to Hamilton and Tauranga via Stratford instead of having to travel an extra 230km via Palmerston North. Robertson says, “There are about 200 logging trucks every day travelling from the Rangitikei and Whanganui regions along SH3 and passing 5 or 6 schools in New Plymouth alone on the journey to Port Taranaki”. Robertson adds that these logs could be handled by about 4 daily trains from Marton or Whanganui, away from cars, schools, cyclists and pedestrians.

The group says the issue goes beyond Stratford.

“KiwiRail currently carries only 9% of New Zealand’s national freight task, when rail should be handling 30–40%,” Wellwood says. “We have to ask why rail is being allowed to perform so poorly, especially in regions where it could deliver safer, cleaner, and more efficient transport solutions.”

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