The Star: March 22, 2018

The Star Latest Christchurch news at www.star.kiwi
Thursday March 22 2018 15
Viewpoint
Partnership and
Interconnectivity
for a Better Future
SOLUTION: The city council has suggested ECan use a targeted rate to keep
six bus routes running.
Dalziel tells ECan how
it can save bus routes
THE CITY council
will be submitting on
Environment Canterbury’s
Long Term Plan.
Our submission focuses
on a number of issues, but
today I want to focus on
the proposed cutting of six
bus routes and reduction
of the amount that can be
subsidised for those who
use the Total Mobility
Scheme payments due to
disability.
I acknowledge that there
is a funding shortfall and
that ECan has no more
public transport reserves
to fall back on. But there
is more than one way for
ECan to address that.
Personally, I believe
that the New Zealand
Transport Agency should
have intervened to provide
additional short-term
subsidies rather than
allowing this piecemeal
approach to what is a
network of bus routes. But
it was not prepared to do
that, leaving ECan with
the problem to solve.
Under these
circumstances, we are
asking ECan to put in
place a two-year targeted
rate to manage the
shortfall these routes and
subsidy produce.
It seems more than
unfortunate that ECan is
required to do this given it
is about to start its review
of the Regional Public
Transport Plan, which will
be completed by the end of
the year.
I sit on the joint public
transport committee
which brings ECan, the
city council, the two
neighbouring districts
(Waimakariri and Selwyn),
Ngai Tahu, NZTA and
the Canterbury District
Health Board to the table
to provide broader input
into the statutory decisionmaking
process that sits
with ECan.
It has just been
announced that the draft
RPTP will be presented
to the joint committee for
approval to go to out for
public consultation on July
18. Public consultation
will take place between
August and September,
with public hearings in late
September. A final draft
RPTP is then approved
by the joint committee on
October 17 and the final
RPTP is adopted by ECan
in November.
Once the RPTP is
adopted, public transport
service reviews can
commence. This is the
process by which the
indicative network
structure adopted in the
RPTP is confirmed at
a street-by-street level.
This will involve further
consultation (early next
year) as detailed routes are
proposed. Once the exact
routes and levels of service
are confirmed, these will
Lianne Dalziel
be packaged into ‘units’
(groups of services) for
tendering.
It seems to me that this
is a much better process
for considering the
network as a whole, rather
than isolating ‘poorly
performing’ routes from
a fare box perspective,
and removing them now
under a separate ECan
LTP process without any
consideration given to
how other routes could be
used/extended to meet the
needs of those who rely
on the ones it proposes
scrapping.
I am not criticising
ECan. It has been left
between a rock and a
hard place by NZTA’s
decision not to give it a
grace period, in spite of
the RPTP review being
so close. I hope that our
submission, along with the
submissions of affected
residents, brings about a
change around the ECan
table. Submissions close
on Monday, March 26, so
please ensure you too have
your say.
•If you want to ask
Ms Dalziel a question,
email mayor@ccc.
govt.nz. Put Reader’s
Question in the subject
line
•More Viewpoint, p17
The Lantern Festival
over last weekend
attracted huge crowds,
and the number of
people visiting Cathedral
Square has achieved
record-high since the
2011 earthquake. Despite
the complaints about
overcrowding, the event
could still be regarded as
quite successful with the
purpose of revitalizing
the city center and
bringing more color
to local urban life. The cheerful smiles on people’s face especially many children
while watching lanterns and performance are encouraging signs of enjoyment and
optimism.
This is my first time to attend Lantern Festival in Christchurch, and I felt at home
while walking along the traditional lanterns and smelling the flavor of Chinese
snacks. It was like standing in a typical festival temple fair in China rather than
in the middle of a Western city in South Hemisphere. Indeed, with the world
becoming increasingly interconnected and interdependent in the globalized age,
we have witnessed exchanges of cultures and civilizations at an unprecedented
pace. And New Zealand has set a good example of multicultural diversity and
harmony. It was said that the Lantern Festival celebrated by East Asian countries
like China, Japan and Korea has some affiliation with Diwali in ancient India, and
both symbolize the triumph of brightness over darkness, the common aspiration
of mankind. Indeed, the interconnection and exchanges of civilizations have dated
back to history and will extend beyond the future. The different cultures have
enriched themselves during the process of exchanges, and mutual understanding
better achieved.
Chinese and New Zealanders also have many other things to celebrate together
besides the cultural galas. Our partnership has never been so close since the
establishment of diplomatic ties. China has become the largest trading partner
of New Zealand since 2013 with the annual trade volume reaching more than 24
billion last year, and the vast Chinese market is providing huge opportunities to
New Zealand enterprises large or small. It is quite easy to bump into a mandarinspoken
backpacker in Christchurch airport or a Chinese student in the UC
campus, as China has also remained as the largest origins of overseas visitors and
students of New Zealand for several years.
We have witnessed such strengthened partnership between China and South Island
in particular. We carried on the plan of opening a consulate in Christchurch in
the end of 2011 despite the occurrence of the earthquake. And Chinese people
have stood beside people of Christchurch through the years of reconstruction
and recovery. With the launching of new flight routes between Christchurch and
Chinese cities like Guangzhou and Hongkong, the interconnectivity between both
sides has been considerably enhanced, facilitating transportation of personnel and
cargo. As many are aware, Christchurch is not only gateway to South Island but
also gateway to Antarctica. The Chinese Icebreaker Xuelong has visited Lyttelton
Port twice during the past summer exploration season. And the bilateral Antarctica
cooperation will be further uplifted with China speeding up preparation for
launching a new base in Ross Sea region.
The connectivity between people is even more important than infrastructure.
ChristchurchNZ has sponsored a business forum during this year’s Lantern
Festival again, bringing together entrepreneurs of both countries to jointly explore
opportunities of future cooperation. Next year will be the China-New Zealand
tourism year. While expecting an increase of Chinese visitors to South Island, we
also welcome more New Zealanders to visit China and have a bite of the unique
Chinese culture by themselves. It will be conducive to promote bilateral exchanges
in various areas like education and culture as the enhancement of our partnership
lies in the deepening interconnectivity of hearts and minds between our two
peoples. And we have a joint obligation to further enhance such interconnectivity
for a better future of both countries.
Author of article: Mr. WANG Zhijian, Consul General of People’s Republic of
China in Christchurch.
This advertorial page is supported by The Chinese Consulate