Electrical issue sees Aratere ferry passengers stuck on board for hours
The beleaguered Aratere inter-island ferry has been cancelled.
Photo:
RNZ / Samuel Rillstone
Passengers on the
beleaguered Aratere ferry
have been stuck on board for hours after it broke down on its way to Wellington.
KiwiRail said the ferry left Picton at about 8.50pm, but soon "experienced an
unexpected issue
with its propulsion drive".
"The vessel is currently anchored in the Marlborough Sounds and Interislander's specialist electrician is en route. The fault means the vessel needs to return to its Picton berth with a tug standing by to provide assistance if needed," a spokesperson said.
There were seven commercial vehicle drivers and four foot passengers on board, the spokesperson said.
"We are looking after the customers on board and once the vessel returns to port, we will transfer them to alternative sailings."
The breakdown has resulted in the 6.15am service from Wellington on Thursday also being cancelled. Impacted passengers were being moved to alternative sailings and would be contacted directly by email and text.
"We apologise for
the inconvenience
," the Interislander website stated.
"If your new sailing time is not suitable you can reschedule to a [more] suitable sailing time at no additional cost."
Another electrical fault, this time with a hydraulic pump, saw an earlier Wellington to Picton crossing and its return journey
cancelled in April
.
The Aratere made headlines when it ran aground last year.
It beached in Titoki Bay, near Picton, on 21 June, after its
steering autopilot was mistakenly engaged
and staff were unable to switch it off. It was refloated on 23 June.
Last month, KiwiRail announced the ferry would be retired by the end of August to make way for the construction of new port infrastructure in Picton.
The ferry - which can hold 650 passengers, 230 cars and 28 rail wagons - is the only rail-enabled ferry in Interislander's fleet, and requires specialised loading and unloading infrastructure.
Two new rail-enabled ferries are not due to arrive until 2029.
Announcing its retirement, Rail Minister Winston Peters said it would have cost $120 million to keep the Aratere in service.
"We will not waste one tax dollar on shuffling infrastructure to keep the vessel in service for the sake of it or add any infrastructure risk to our objective of completion in 2029."
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RNZ News
a day ago
- RNZ News
Aratere passengers stuck on board for hours because of electrical fault
Some Thursday morning sailings of the Aratere ferry have been cancelled. Photo: RNZ / Samuel Rillstone Passengers on the beleaguered Aratere ferry were stuck on board for hours overnight after it broke down on its way to Wellington. KiwiRail said the ferry left Picton at about 8.50pm, but then "experienced an unexpected issue with its propulsion drive" while sailing. That issue was fixed at about 1am and the vessel resumed its trip to Wellington, with a new expected arrival time of about 5am on Thursday. "Unfortunately, we will have to cancel the 6.15am Thursday morning sailing from Wellington to Picton and the 11.00am Picton to Wellington return sailing while we undertake further testing," a spokesperson said. "Interislander's customer service teams are currently amending bookings due to these cancellations. All affected customers will be offered an alternative sailing. If the alternative sailing is not suitable, passengers are welcome to reschedule for no additional cost. "We apologise for the inconvenience ." Seven commercial vehicle drivers and four foot passengers were on board the ferry while it was anchored for hours, waiting for a specialist electrician to arrive. "We are looking after the customers on board and once the vessel returns to port, we will transfer them to alternative sailings," the spokesperson earlier said. It was initially expected the vessel would need to return to its Picton berth and a tug was on stand-by to provide assistance. In April, another electrical fault on the Aratere, with a hydraulic pump, saw a Wellington to Picton crossing and its return journey cancelled. The Aratere made headlines when it ran aground last year. It beached in Titoki Bay, near Picton, on 21 June, after its steering autopilot was mistakenly engaged and staff were unable to switch it off. It was refloated on 23 June. Last month, KiwiRail announced the ferry would be retired by the end of August to make way for the construction of new port infrastructure in Picton. The ferry - which can hold 650 passengers, 230 cars and 28 rail wagons - is the only rail-enabled ferry in Interislander's fleet, and requires specialised loading and unloading infrastructure. Two new rail-enabled ferries are not due to arrive until 2029. Announcing its retirement, Rail Minister Winston Peters said it would have cost $120 million to keep the Aratere in service. "We will not waste one tax dollar on shuffling infrastructure to keep the vessel in service for the sake of it or add any infrastructure risk to our objective of completion in 2029." Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
RNZ News
a day ago
- RNZ News
Aratere passengers stuck onboard for hours because of electrical fault
Some Thursday morning sailings of the Aratere ferry have been cancelled. Photo: RNZ / Samuel Rillstone Passengers on the beleaguered Aratere ferry were stuck on board for hours overnight after it broke down on its way to Wellington. KiwiRail said the ferry left Picton at about 8.50pm, but then "experienced an unexpected issue with its propulsion drive" while sailing. That issue was fixed at about 1am and the vessel resumed its trip to Wellington, with a new expected arrival time of about 5am on Thursday. "Unfortunately, we will have to cancel the 6.15am Thursday morning sailing from Wellington to Picton and the 11.00am Picton to Wellington return sailing while we undertake further testing," a spokesperson said. "Interislander's customer service teams are currently amending bookings due to these cancellations. All affected customers will be offered an alternative sailing. If the alternative sailing is not suitable, passengers are welcome to reschedule for no additional cost. "We apologise for the inconvenience ." Seven commercial vehicle drivers and four foot passengers were on board the ferry while it was anchored for hours, waiting for a specialist electrician to arrive. "We are looking after the customers on board and once the vessel returns to port, we will transfer them to alternative sailings," the spokesperson earlier said. It was initially expected the vessel would need to return to its Picton berth and a tug was on stand-by to provide assistance. In April, another electrical fault on the Aratere, with a hydraulic pump, saw a Wellington to Picton crossing and its return journey cancelled. The Aratere made headlines when it ran aground last year. It beached in Titoki Bay, near Picton, on 21 June, after its steering autopilot was mistakenly engaged and staff were unable to switch it off. It was refloated on 23 June. Last month, KiwiRail announced the ferry would be retired by the end of August to make way for the construction of new port infrastructure in Picton. The ferry - which can hold 650 passengers, 230 cars and 28 rail wagons - is the only rail-enabled ferry in Interislander's fleet, and requires specialised loading and unloading infrastructure. Two new rail-enabled ferries are not due to arrive until 2029. Announcing its retirement, Rail Minister Winston Peters said it would have cost $120 million to keep the Aratere in service. "We will not waste one tax dollar on shuffling infrastructure to keep the vessel in service for the sake of it or add any infrastructure risk to our objective of completion in 2029." Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
RNZ News
a day ago
- RNZ News
Electrical issue sees Aratere ferry passengers stuck on board for hours
The beleaguered Aratere inter-island ferry has been cancelled. Photo: RNZ / Samuel Rillstone Passengers on the beleaguered Aratere ferry have been stuck on board for hours after it broke down on its way to Wellington. KiwiRail said the ferry left Picton at about 8.50pm, but soon "experienced an unexpected issue with its propulsion drive". "The vessel is currently anchored in the Marlborough Sounds and Interislander's specialist electrician is en route. The fault means the vessel needs to return to its Picton berth with a tug standing by to provide assistance if needed," a spokesperson said. There were seven commercial vehicle drivers and four foot passengers on board, the spokesperson said. "We are looking after the customers on board and once the vessel returns to port, we will transfer them to alternative sailings." The breakdown has resulted in the 6.15am service from Wellington on Thursday also being cancelled. Impacted passengers were being moved to alternative sailings and would be contacted directly by email and text. "We apologise for the inconvenience ," the Interislander website stated. "If your new sailing time is not suitable you can reschedule to a [more] suitable sailing time at no additional cost." Another electrical fault, this time with a hydraulic pump, saw an earlier Wellington to Picton crossing and its return journey cancelled in April . The Aratere made headlines when it ran aground last year. It beached in Titoki Bay, near Picton, on 21 June, after its steering autopilot was mistakenly engaged and staff were unable to switch it off. It was refloated on 23 June. Last month, KiwiRail announced the ferry would be retired by the end of August to make way for the construction of new port infrastructure in Picton. The ferry - which can hold 650 passengers, 230 cars and 28 rail wagons - is the only rail-enabled ferry in Interislander's fleet, and requires specialised loading and unloading infrastructure. Two new rail-enabled ferries are not due to arrive until 2029. Announcing its retirement, Rail Minister Winston Peters said it would have cost $120 million to keep the Aratere in service. "We will not waste one tax dollar on shuffling infrastructure to keep the vessel in service for the sake of it or add any infrastructure risk to our objective of completion in 2029." Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
