A proposed railway station at Raumati has not been included in the Regional Council’s revised rail plan.

“The removal of Raumati Station from the long-term plan will be disappointing for many Kapiti people who have been passionate about this and have put a lot of effort into lobbying for its construction.  However, I hope they’ll understand that circumstances have changed,” says Cr Paul Swain, the Regional Council’s Public Transport Portfolio Leader.

“Recent projections find that there’d be very little genuinely new patronage for a station at Raumati. Most people who would potentially use the new station are already using either Paraparaumu or Paekakariki.

“A station at Raumati would slow down travel times for people from Paraparaumu and Waikanae. When you’re travelling that far, adding a couple of minutes on to your journey times each way does matter. It goes against our goal, in the rail plan, to speed up journeys from Waikanae to Wellington.

“At a cost of around $10m, a station at Raumati is unlikely to attract government funding. This would mean the full cost would land on the ratepayer. Council believes this amount of money could be better spent providing better facilities elsewhere.

“In addition, park and ride, access to the station and its closeness to Paraparaumu Station are all issues that have been taken into account.

“Instead of building a new station at Raumati, our focus needs to be on future development at Waikanae, Paraparaumu and Paekakariki stations, particularly providing more park and ride facilities in line with demand.”

The draft Regional Rail Plan is available online at www.gw.govt.nz/rail-network

People will have an opportunity to give feedback on the plan as part of the Council’s Regional Public Transport Plan consultation in April 2014.

ENDS

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