‘No-brainer’: Commuters go loco for Tauranga to Auckland train
Wednesday, 14 May 2025
A passenger train between Tauranga and Auckland would take two-and-a-half hours and be ready in two years, says Green Party co-leader Chlöe Swarbrick.
The service has already been recommended by a parliamentary select committee, but the coalition Government has focussed on roading.
A rail service linking Auckland, Hamilton and Tauranga would connect more than half of Aotearoa’s population.
A Green Party policy for a passenger train between Auckland and Tauranga is a “no-brainer” commuters say, as a “cheaper, safer and faster” alternative to the worst traffic in the country and soaring airfares.
Policy announced on Wednesday proposes extending the existing Te Huia train service, between Hamilton and Auckland, building additional stations in Tauranga, Morrinsville and Waharoa.
The trip between Tauranga and Auckland would take two-and-a-half hours, and could be established in two years, according to the proposal.
“The rising cost of living that New Zealanders are struggling with today is partially driven by increasing transport costs,” says Swarbrick.
“Aotearoa was once a country with frequent, affordable train services joined up right across the country. We've done it before, and we can do it again.
Rangi Ahipene has been travelling to and from Tauranga and Auckland every week for the last year, teaching Māori education and te reo for Takitoru, in partnership with Auckland-based DDB Group Aotearoa.
He said commuting by train would be better than both car or plane.
“Driving takes a long time - three-and-a-half hours each way or more if you hit traffic coming into and leaving Auckland. It takes me an hour or more to get from South Auckland into the city.”
The drive is tiring, which is a hazard, he says.
“I could rest or do some work if I took a train.”
Flying is expensive, and “a hassle”, he said.
“The extra effort of departing and arriving via airports and the hassle and cost of getting into Auckland CBD from the airport.”
The cost of air travel to and from regional cities has been in the spotlight since a Tauranga man complained to the Commerce Commission about Air New Zealand's prices.
Ahipene’s Mount-based business partner Bridgette Tapsell thinks a train is a “no- brainer” if it offers “cheaper, safer and faster” travel to the booming population and economies in Auckland, Hamilton and Tauranga - known as the Golden Triangle and comprising over half of Aotearoa’s population.
“So many people in the Bay travel to Kirikiroa and Tāmaki. Just last night I was at a function talking to a wāhine who travels up weekly and stays two nights a week,” Tapsell said.
Safety and wellbeing are other benefits of rail, as well as higher productivity.
“A high speed train would definitely be safer. It's pretty terrifying crossing the Kaimai Ranges when conditions are bad, sometimes you can barely see.”
“It would also allow us to mahi while travelling, as I do a lot of strategic plans, and Rangi writes courses, so it would be more productive. It would save on accommodation when we stay over because we’re too tired to drive back.“
People visiting whānau, studying, commuting, going to concerts and gigs would also benefit.
“My teenagers would welcome an easier way to get to Tamaki.”
From road to rail
The last passenger train service between Tauranga, Hamilton and Auckland stopped running in 2001.
Since then, Tauranga’s population has boomed and is the fastest growing region, with Hamilton.
Tauranga traffic, considered the worst in the country, has made car journeys take longer.
Domestic air fares have also soared. In 2023 a parliamentary select committee recommended the Government restart the Tauranga to Auckland service.
It acknowledged climate change, road congestion, fuel prices, and accessibility to transport as reasons to restore regional rail.
A briefing to National’s former Transport Minister Simeon Brown, released under the Official Information Act, reveals a public desire for inter-regional rail routes, including Tauranga to Auckland.
The coalition government’s transport policy has focussed on roads.
Investing in a strong rail passenger network for the Golden Triangle could shift cars off the road, reduce emissions-intensive flying, reduce travel costs and create stable jobs and economic opportunities throughout the rail line, says Green Party co-leader Chlöe Swarbrick.
“The Auckland to Hamilton link has a 99% customer satisfaction rate, is meeting or exceeding nearly all of its targets set by Waka Kotahi, and (beyond its seed funding) its annual operating cost is only about $5m.
“In terms of subsidies: taxpayers currently subsidise roading projects to a massive extent. The National Land Transport Fund, funded by road user charges and tax paid on petrol at the pump, is topped up by about $3.4bn from central government, and about $1.4bn by local government.”