Revealed: Hamilton-Auckland rail plan would cost $185 per person, per trip

16 NOVEMBER 2018

A passenger service between Auckland and Hamilton requiring a reported $57.7 million in ratepayer and taxpayer subsidies works out as at least $185 per passenger per trip, calculates the New Zealand Taxpayers’ Union.

The Union’s Executive Director Jordan Williams says, “Even if you assume that every carriage is completely full, twice a day, for three years, the three-year $57.7 million subsidy is still an insane $185 per person per trip."

"If you need to pay people nearly $200 each to make a train-trip between Hamilton and Auckland economic then the line is not good value for money. The proposed line doesn’t even run to Auckland City – it stops at Papakura. Getting into the CBD would take another hour again.”

“Regional planners have spent too much time playing SimCity. Neither ratepayers or taxpayers should be forced to pay for this white elephant.”

Notes: $57.7 million is the proposed three year subsidy for operating the Hamilton-Auckland passenger service. If you assume that the service runs at maximum capacity (200 passengers per service), twice a day, every week, for three years, then the subsidy per passenger-trip is $184.93.

ENDS

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