Down at the Station

摘要

Standing on the platform with notebook and pen, Graeme Carter has observed the following. Also on the platform were Bob Armstrong, Dave Turner, Tony Batchelor, Bryan Blanchard, and Rob Merrifield. Toll Rail reported on 23 May 2005 that a lack of progress in its negotiations with the Government is delaying big spending decisions and could slow the shift of freight from road to rail. Melbourne-based Toll Managing Director Paul Little said talks with Ontrack were bogged down on track access charges, with the rail industry being asked to pay 'overnight' for a 15 to 20-year track maintenance deficit. 'Not only is the Government putting in danger here the speed with which goods may be transferred from road to rail, it also needs to recognise that Toll needs a stable environment to spend the tens of millions of dollars it needs to spend in New Zealand. At the moment we are not seeing that and that is an area of concern. Last year, the Government reclaimed the national track network from private ownership for $1 and agreed to spend $200 million improving it.Toll committed to spending $ 100 million on trains.The spending by both would be over five years', Mr Little said.'Toll would have to spend a lot more than $100 million, but investment decisions were on hold while it had no security around the bottom line', he added.The fee for access to the network for the first year was set at the time of the deal. The negotiations under way now are for future fees. An Ontrack spokesman said it intended to follow the processes set down in the New Zealand Rail Access Agreement.