The Daily Blog Open Mic – Thursday – 11th June 2020

1. https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/418739/kiwirail-defends-troublesome-diesel-locomotives-and-wants-to-buy-more

   More rail-fail management;

   Kiwi rail operational evidence appears today; as failure of management at Kiwi Rail now shows their Management does not “stack up” since buying more diesel Locomotives will only add to theirnemmion levels not reduce them as deisel engines emit the worst air pollution we could have today.
   Questions for Kiwi Rail;

   “KiwiRail says it has no choice but to buy more Chinese made diesel locomotives – even though they’ve been troublesome and unreliable for more than a decade.”

   Rail and Maritime Transport Union general secretary Wayne Butson said not meeting contract performance was typical.

   “These Chinese manufactured ‘Dog and Lemon’ locomotives come in, they perform okay and then they just fall off the edge of the cliff,” Butson said.
   In this year’s budget, KiwiRail set aside more money to buy 10 new locomotives.
   Asked if he was comfortable with the decision to buy more Chinese engines, the minister of finance, Grant Robertson, said it was KiwiRail’s decision.
   “We encourage them obviously to get value or money for their purchases and value for money means both the costs that you pay but also the reliability of the locomotives,” he said.
   But Butson said the decision to keep buying the engines did not make sense.
   “It’s the definition of insanity, I was once told… to do the same thing and expect a different outcome … they keep ordering these Chinese locomotives and they’re expecting them to perform,” Butson said.
   KiwiRail is currently in the last stages of finding a supplier of engines to replace its ageing South Island fleet.
   QUESTIONS FOR KIWI RAIL;

   *Kiwi rail how is that going to lower our carbon emissions you actually committed to recently??
   https://www.kiwirail.co.nz/media/kiwirail-joins-climate-leaders-coalition/
   “KiwiRail has today committed to help New Zealand move to a low-emissions future, through improving its own operations as well as helping other businesses reach their own sustainability targets.”
   *Secondly why don’t you spend real money to finally electrify our whole rail system now (while money is cheap) and being government backed??

   Un-believable are the words that many are saying now as they call for heads to roll..

   • Thanks Cleangreen – the citizens need to be alert to KiwiRail getting on the wrong railway track that leads us into the pool of poo. It’s a clear indication that the Government need to show some gumption and take control of their responsibilities, and not only for rail, not palm them off in some pseudo-efficient, business pc claptrap that we’ve got into with Treasury’s helping hand, let’s have a cost-efficiency drive on those boys and girls, and the uncivil servants. Best to turn their signal to red, and reverse smartly eh!

   • Yep @ CG. Have a listen to that RNZ piece again if its the one with the COO. Consistent this and consistent that. Actually, the only thing that’s consistent is stupidity.
     It’s sort of reminiscent of the Wellington bus network that I’ve just sampled again today. 2 Years later and it’s still not properly fixed – probably because they forgot to ask the experts: i.e. passengers who could have advised where it was they want to go from and to; and the actual drivers who could have set them straight for half the cost, and that a big bang was never a good idea.
     Never mind though eh? The COO will be able to move on to the next fuckup and chalk up another entry on his CV.
     I think the prerequisites for CEO and COO positions is that you must come with imagination bypass surgery already under your belt and the language of neo-liberal sales-speak.
     Really, the only problem is that they’re running out of places to go.

2. This seems a lot of piffle.
   https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/418754/spy-tales-the-asylum-seekers-who-fled-to-new-zealand

   Perhaps Guyon Espiner has to keep active and delivering now he has given up? his job at Radionz.
   9Jun.20 John Daniell writes about growing up among spies and why he decided now was the time to get to the bottom of an SIS secret and make the findings public in new podcast The Service.
   https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/the-service/418496/john-daniell-on-growing-up-around-spies

   Watch out what you place in your rubbish bin!

3. ‘CEAC – Kiwi Rail invest in dirty diesel engine locos, why not electric?’
   Citizens Environmental Advocacy Centre Press report. 11th June 2020.
   Politics/Environment.
   “KiwiRail says it has no choice but to buy more Chinese made diesel locomotives – even though they’ve been troublesome and unreliable for more than a decade.” CEAC say’s that excuse des not stack up.

   https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/418739/kiwirail-defends-troublesome-diesel-locomotives-and-wants-to-buy-more

   CEAC – review of Kiwi Rail Logic;

   Firstly Kiwi Rail has joined a climate-leaders coalition to promote cleaner transport carbon emissions policy.
   https://www.kiwirail.co.nz/media/kiwirail-joins-climate-leaders-coalition/

   “KiwiRail has today committed to help New Zealand move to a low-emissions future, through improving its own operations as well as helping other businesses reach their own sustainability targets.”

   We were encouraged to read Kiwi Rails embracing climate change emissions reduction.

   CEAC needs to point out that using diesel engines instead of switching to electric motivation, in line with what other countries are doing does “not stack up” with Kiwi Rail’s own policy to “move to a low-emissions future”.

   We reviewed a report that Kiwi Rail Management were finally choosing wisely to invest in electric engine restoration of its own fleet that operates between Hamilton and Palmerston North, – only after a ‘pushback from the public who were shocked that Kiwi Rail was about to scrap electric trains on the rail network for diesel around 2018, then the public had voiced a loud rejection to stop replacing the current small electric fleet with diesel.

   Kiwi Rail did choose the right path then, with restoration of their existing passenger electric fleet that runs between Hamilton and Palmerston North.

   Now that “stacks up” with their own policy to “move to a low-emissions future”.
   https://www.kiwirail.co.nz/media/electric-locomotives-to-continue-with-government-investment/

   So now the burning question is;
   Why in June 2020 are Kiwi Rail defending buying more dirty diesels again now – as “That does not stack up”.

   CEAC request Kiwi Rail review their policy on Climate change again as we encourage you to switch to increasing electrification of our rail fleet when you need to purchase locomotives in future as your current logic buying diesel engines is against your own climate change policy to “move to a low-emissions future” for future generations to benefit from coupled together with the health and well-being of our planet and our citizens.

   END.

4. I vote that the Auditor General make an exception for these payments, ‘It’s the exception that proves the rule’. Considering that he is the Auditor General and this was not a general matter, actually a special, emergency, human relief matter, it should be vindicated or whatever.
   https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/political/418796/covid-19-mfat-payments-to-help-nzers-abroad-were-unauthorised-auditor-general

Comments are closed.