http://www.stuff.co.nz/taranaki-daily-news/news/4944935/Public-meeting-to-save-Stratford-line

Public meeting to save Stratford line

MATT RILKOFF

30/04/2011

A national rail preservation group is holding a public meeting today to discuss ways to prevent the closure of the Stratford to Okahukura railway line.

Peter Hancock of the Taranaki Flyer Society said the meeting would follow the group's annual meeting was open to anyone who wanted to see the line back in action.

The line was mothballed following a derailment at its northern end in November 2009 and KiwiRail will not make a decision on the future of the line until next year.

At this stage the one bright hope for the line is the possible reopening of the Tatu State Coal Mine in Ohura.

This has the potential to provide enough freight for KiwiRail to justify spending the millions they say it will cost to reopen it.

Whether that happens or not Mr Hancock said closing the line permanently would be a strategic mistake as rising oil prices were making rail an increasingly affordable alternative to road.

"Rail is coming back there is no question about it. That it's not happening in New Zealand, that is the problem. That is because the government wants to support road and not rail so much," Mr Hancock said.

New Plymouth MP Jonathan Young yesterday said the business case for reopening the line did not currently stack up and therefore it did not make sense to spend taxpayer money to reopen it.

"If I was to spend say $10 million now I would put it into State Highway 3," he said.

"If money wasn't an object I would say absolutely, get it up and going, get it up there for the future. But at this point in time the freight levels through this line are minimal and people are choosing to ship freight by road."

However Mr Young said the reopening of the Tatu State Coal Mine could change that and make the line viable once more.

Federation of Rail Organisations of New Zealand spokesman Don Selby was optimistic the line would be reopened.

He did not believe KiwiRail wanted to close the line and delaying their decision until 2012 was to give people time to come up with plans for its survival.

"My gut feeling is it will survive. I don't believe KiwiRail want to close it. What they are looking for is a reason not to close it," he said.

Taranaki Flyer Society annual and public meeting to discuss saving the line is today at Pioneer Village at 1pm.

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- Taranaki Daily News