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Sisters Laura and Emma Keheley, of New Plymouth, are the first foot passengers through the doors of the new Waitohi Picton temporary terminal.
Two sisters on their first trip home this year are the first passengers through the new temporary ferry terminal in Waitohi Picton.
Otago University students Laura and Emma Kehely were the first to check in on Monday after getting the bus from Dunedin to Picton on Sunday.
They were on their way home – their first time as foot passengers on the ferry – to see family in New Plymouth.
“We are so excited to see our family. It’s our first visit home this year. We have a little brother we’ve not seen for a while. We’re really looking forward to seeing our parents, and our dog Caleb,” Laura Kehely said.
Anthony Phelps / STUFF
A temporary Interislander ferry terminal in Picton opens on June 6 with speeches and a barbecue.
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The Waitohi Picton ferry precinct had to be redeveloped by 2025, when the first of two new diesel-electric Interislander ferries arrived.
A new terminal was needed in Wellington too, to handle the larger Cook Strait ferries, which were replacing Interislander’s current fleet that had been plagued by problems this year. The new terminals and ferries were part of the $1.45 billion Inter-Island Resilient Connection (iReX) Project.
David Warburton, programme director for iReX, said the Interislander team was pleased to be welcoming travellers into the temporary terminal, which had an official opening earlier this month.
“It is a milestone in the true sense of the word,” he said. “The ferries that cross this strait are part of the main rail trunk line and a key extension of State Highway 1’s freight route. When we have the new ferries here, we will need the infrastructure to support them, and the opening of the new temporary terminal for foot passengers is a big step in the process.”
Anthony Phelps/STUFF
Te Atiawa chair Rachael Hāte says an influx of workers and investment will be good for the town.
Rachael Hāte, chair of Te Ātiawa o Te Waka-a-Māui, said the opening of the temporary terminal to travellers was a good thing for the community.
As partners, Te Ātiawa was excited to see what the project brought in terms of jobs and opportunities for local businesses, Hāte said.
Harry Singh, iReX project manager for Waitohi Picton, said having the temporary terminal building up and running cleared the way for the next stage of the redevelopment.
Work to demolish the old terminal building would start later this month, followed by ground and seawall strengthening early next year.
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