A new business case to examine the viability of reinstating the Wairoa-Gisborne rail line may be on the way but former Mayor Meng Foon says another study is not required. \\
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\nGisborne District Council and Hawke’s Bay Regional Council are putting up funding of $30,000 each in a process which could lead to a new business case after they were approached by consultancy firm Global Research Consultants. \\
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\nMr Foon said the BERL feasibility report of 2019, funded by the Provincial Growth Fund (PGF) had already shown the line was viable. \\
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\n\u201cInstead of another study, put pressure on the two local MPs (Cabinet ministers Kiri Allan and Meka Whaitiri),\u201d he said. \u201cLobby them hard.\u201d \\
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\nGisborne District Council chief executive Nedine Thatcher Swann said the council and Hawke’s Bay Regional Council (HBRC) agreed to put up $30,000 each after being approached by Global Research Consultants to support an assessment paper looking into the line. \\
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\nThe Napier-Gisborne rail line was mothballed in 2012 after storm damage but the Napier-Wairoa part was reopened in 2019 through PGF funding. \\
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\nMs Thatcher Swann said the purpose of the paper was get to get key Cabinet ministers to consider commissioning a detailed business case. \\
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\nThat would include further investigations of investment funding for repair work to reinstate the Wairoa to Gisborne rail line. \\
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\n\u201cThe chief executive of HBRC, James Palmer, agreed to fund the assessment paper and asked if we would match this,\u201d Ms Thatcher Swann said. \\
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\n\u201cOur contribution is $30,000 and a project team has been pulled together to oversee this next phase.\u201d \\
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\nThe assessment paper is due to be presented to ministers later this month. \\
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\nMs Thatcher Swann said KiwiRail had informally advised that it was supportive of the proposal to reinstate the line. \\
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\nGisborne Mayor Rehette Stoltz said the chief executive decided to back the approach and provide funding of $30,000. \\
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\n\u201cBut in saying that, the council is always keen to ensure a more sustainable future-proofed track network.\u201d \\
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\nMeka Whaitiri, the Labour MP for Ikaroa-Rawhiti, said she looked forward to seeing a report on the project. \\
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\n\u201cI stand with the regional leaders, including KiwiRail, if rail can be sustainable and bring both social and economic benefits to the region,\u201d she said. \u201cThere have been numerous studies on the viability of reopening the line which has shown it is not viable without considerable investment. \\
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\n\u201cIf regional leaders feel additional information has surfaced to reopen the debate, then I look forward to receiving the initial report due to ministers at the end of the month.\u201d \\
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\nMr Foon, now New Zealand’s Race Relations Commissioner, said the rail line would be even more viable today as \u201cfuel prices are though the roof\u201d. \\
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\nThe council would have the BERL business case in its archives, he said. Back then, KiwiRail did not want the line open, he said. \\
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\nBERL described its report as being based on a well being framework, rather than the conventional, narrow cost-benefit approach. \\
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\nThat approach took into account social, environmental, cultural and economic factors. The report said an estimated one-off expenditure of $20m to $23m was required. Additional work to improve resilience against weather would cost up to $6m. \\
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\nOver the following 10 years, $5m to $7m would be required in additional bridge, tunnel and track work. \\
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\nMr Foon said he had always supported fixing and opening the line. He presented a petition to Parliament in 2012 with 10,000 signatories. \\
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\n\u201cWe held many meetings and marches, and had the support of the mayors in Wairoa, Napier and Hastings,\u201d he said. \\
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\nGisborne Rail Action Group chairwoman Gillian Ward said the group had previously held discussions with Mayor Stoltz, but had not been involved in the latest development. \\
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\nThe news was exciting and encouraging but only the beginning of a drawn-out process, she said. \\
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\n*An article by Wynsley Wrigley. Published on the 24 Mach 2022 in the [Gisborne Herald](https:\/\/www.gisborneherald.co.nz\/)*<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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