Darien
FENTON
Transport Spokesperson
17 January 2014 MEDIA STATEMENT
KiwiRail up the creek, again
The embarrassing break-down of the Stena Alegra, the ferry brought in by KiwiRail to replace the crippled Aratere, gives
rise to more questions about safety on our inter-island ferries, says Darien Fenton, Labour’s Transport spokesperson.
“A comedy of errors has played out over several years, culminating with the Aratere losing a propeller in Cook Strait
late last year.
“Now it looks like we’ve got another floating dunger.
“KiwiRail might have moved quickly to replace the crippled ferry, but it’s come at a cost and we need to be confident
that the right decisions have been made.
“The Cook Strait service is a critical part of our transport and tourism network. I don’t want to see confidence in this
essential service further eroded.
“KiwiRail has a duty to assure passengers that its replacement ship is safe and reliable, and needs to do so quickly.”