Setting up of "blue highway" was made possible by a government grant and a $2.25 million underwrite to Eastland Port for the charter of the ship the Rangitata. Photo: Supplied/ Eastland Port
After three months of moving goods along the East Coast by sea rather than road, the government-funded "blue highway" has reached its end.
The coastal container route ran between Gisborne and Napier, an alternative to State Highway 2, which was closed for three months between Napier and Wairoa.
Eastland Port said during that time there were 18 voyages and 294 containers - 233 for the meat industry and 61 for produce - moved between the two ports.
The coastal container service came with significant environmental benefits too, with ship freight emissions being less than 15 percent of road freight.
But Gisborne's Eastland Port operations manager Andy Kinsella said, with State Highway 2 back open, the companies had told him it was easier and more convenient to use roads.
"We reached out to the customers and said, 'What are your thoughts on continuing the service?' They were straight up and see look, trucks is going to be far easier for us."
He was told the door-to-door nature of trucks made them more suitable for the short journey between Gisborne and Napier.
Setting up the route was made possible by a government grant of $500,000 to get the necessary infrastructure in place, and a $2.25 million underwrite to Eastland Port for the charter of the ship, the Rangitata, for three months.
Regional development minister Kiri Allan said the regions were "the backbone of Aotearoa" and the coastal shipping route "provided certainty during a time of upheaval for many".
"The reopening of SH2 was another significant step in the recovery of our regions," she said.
Andy Kinsella said, although the route was off the table for now, it would not be the last we saw of it.
It would resume, he said, either once the port completed its $60m wharf rebuild, or in the event of another disaster.
"It's comforting to know we have all the gear and processes in place and on hand to get a service up and running instantly should our region get cut off from another catastrophic weather event," he said.
