The group that has been campaigning for the return of public passenger rail on the Christchurch-Dunedin-Invercargill route has described the announcement of a monthly return service on the route as “a good start, but one that still does not meet the needs of South Island residents.”

Save Our Trains Southern has been running a public campaign for over two years for the return of a daily, each-way service on this route, with a recent petition of over 12,800 signatures being presented to Parliament in September, and with a submission to be presented to Parliament’s Transport & Infrastructure Select Committee in the near future.

Save Our Trains Southern spokesperson, Dave Macpherson, said ‘what Mainlanders have been calling for is a regular, frequent, affordably-priced public transport rail service, not another high-priced tourist train, good though they may be for visitors from out of the area.”

He noted that the North island already had three different inter-regional passenger rail services that are supported by the Government and local authorities, with new trains now on order for them, and fares that made them competitive with car and air travel.

“But, at the moment, the South Island has zero public passenger rail, and we aim to change that."

The Save Our Trains Southern submission to Parliament, already supported in principle by a cross party group of South Island MPs, calls for

• A daily passenger rail service in each direction between Invercargill and Christchurch;
• At least one additional daily return service between Dunedin and Christchurch;
• Stops at Ashburton, Timaru, Oamaru, Balclutha and Gore, as well as Invercargill, Dunedin and Christchurch, with platform and shelter upgrade work at those stops requiring it;
• Fares to be based on the current North island inter-regional rail fares, which would equate to $70 Dunedin-Christchurch, $95-$100 Christchurch-Invercargill, and appropriate fares for travel to and from the other centres;
• Support to be provided by central Government at exactly the same rate as for local roads and for North island trains - 51% of operating costs;
• New train units to be eventually purchased for these services as part of the ‘family’ of long-distance trains on order for the North island.

Mr Macpherson commented that the introduction of the private ‘Mainlander’ tourist rail service, was “good recognition of the growing popularity, worldwide and in New Zealand, of passenger rail, but by no means addresses the need for trains that will serve our local communities.”

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