9. Hon MARIAN HOBBS (Labour—Wellington Central) Link to this
to the Minister of Transport
What recent developments, if any, have there been in providing environmentally friendly bus services in the Wellington region?
Hon ANNETTE KING (Minister of Transport) Link to this
This afternoon I will attend the signing of a contract between the Greater Wellington Regional Council and New Zealand Bus Ltd, which will result in the complete rebuilding of Wellington’s 60 electric-powered trolley buses.
Hon Tau HenareThat is a good question. Actually, I have a bus ticket and I do use the bus on quite a regular basis. Funding for this project is shared between Greater Wellington Regional Council and the Government through Land Transport New Zealand. The contract will ensure that larger, more comfortable trolley buses will continue to provide an essential transport service to Wellington residents, while contributing to reduced greenhouse gas emissions and reduced local air pollution.
I thank the Minister—I am really delighted—and ask: what are the environmental benefits of trolley buses?
That is a very good question, and I pay a compliment back to the member and to Sue Kedgley, who have been strong advocates for the trolley buses in Wellington. Trolley buses produce no local air pollution, which makes Wellington inner city a great place in which to work and live. I am advised that the new buses will also save over 1,600 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions per year, compared with their diesel bus equivalents. The amount of electricity used by the fleet of 60 buses—and this will be very interesting to Mr Brownlee, the Opposition spokesperson on energy—is equivalent to that produced by about half of one new windmill installed at TrustPower’s new Tararua wind farm.