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The Interislander is a road and rail ferry service across New Zealand's Cook Strait, between Wellington in the North Island and Picton in the South Island. It is owned and operated by state-owned rail operator KiwiRail. Three roll-on roll-off (RORO) vessels operate the route, taking three hours to complete the crossing. Interislander was started in August 1962 by KiwiRail's predecessor, the New Zealand Railways Department (NZR). The service primarily provided a RORO rail link between its North and South Island networks, allowing NZR to compete directly with coastal shipping companies for inter-island freight. It also provided the first RORO road link between the two islands, which saw the Interislander compete with, and then completely replace, the Union Company's Wellington–Lyttelton ferry service. Today, the service is still well patronised despite competition on the Wellington–Picton sea route with Bluebridge and from airlines, carrying around one million passengers and 230,000 vehicles per year on 5,500 sailings. ==History== Before 1962 the North Island and South Island rail networks were not connected, and the New Zealand Railways Department struggled to compete with ships for inter-island transport. In the days before containerisation, rail freight between the islands had to be railed in a wagon to Wellington, unloaded and transferred onto a ship to Picton or Lyttelton, then loaded into another wagon before being railed the rest of the way. The Union Company ran an overnight ferry between Lyttelton and Wellington using steamers.〔(【引用サイトリンク】title= 'The floating bridge' - Cook Strait ferries )〕 The Cook Strait Inter-Island Rail and Road Service (as it was known) started on 11 August 1962 with the roll-on roll-off ferry . The service dramatically increased efficiency, since freight could stay in the same wagon the whole journey, reducing time and money. ''Aramoana'' took just 3 hours 20 minutes to cross Cook Strait, dramatically decreasing time between the two islands for cars and passengers - Wellington to Christchurch travel time was reduced from 11 hours on the Union ferry to 9 hours by Railways ferry and road. The initial service was one sailing each way per day, Wellington to Picton in the morning and Picton to Wellington in the afternoon.〔 The service was an immediate success, although it was criticised for high prices. At NZ£9 10s one way for a family of four and a car up to 4.04 m〔(【引用サイトリンク】title= Drive inter-island brochure - nzhistory.net.nz ) The fares have been corrected for 1962, when the New Zealand pound was still in use.〕 (equal to $363 in 2010 dollars,〔(【引用サイトリンク】title= New Zealand CPI Inflation Calculator - Reserve Bank on New Zealand )〕) many people thought the service was overpriced for a Railways-operated service. However, there was a fine line to tread when it came to setting the price - too low, and shipping companies and airlines would claim unfair competition. Nevertheless, it was a cash cow for the Railways - in the 1963/64 financial year, it contributed £535,000 of the Railways' £538,500 working profit.〔 The service expanded with the addition of in 1966, in 1972 and in 1974. The Union Company responded to the competition by converting to take roll-on roll-off (RORO) road traffic and ordering a new RORO ship, . However, the resurgence was short-lived: on 10 April 1968, ''Wahine'' foundered at the entrance to Wellington Harbour during a storm, resulting in 53 deaths. By the time replacement ship entered service in 1972, competition from the Cook Strait ferries and increased competition from air travel, especially following the National Airways Corporation's introduction of the Boeing 737 in 1968, saw the Wellington-Lyttelton service become uneconomic. The Union Company withdrew in 1974, and after two years under the Ministry of Transport, the service was cancelled in September 1976.〔(【引用サイトリンク】title= Wellington Ferry Service Ends - nzhistory.net.nz )〕 In 1982 ''Arahura'' joined the fleet to replace the ageing ''Aramoana'' and ''Aranui''. The faster ''Arahura'' reduced the time across Cook Strait by 20 minutes to three hours. When the New Zealand Railways Corporation (the successor to the Railways Department) was restructured in 1984, the service was renamed "SeaRail". In 1989, it was renamed the Interisland Line, and the service became known as The Interislander. The fleet was upgraded with improved facilities and a new livery including Pelorus Jack.〔(Cook Strait Rail Ferries ) - New Zealand Maritime Record〕 In 1991, New Zealand Rail Ltd, including the Interisland Line, was spun off from the Railways Corporation. In 1993, New Zealand Rail Ltd was privatised and became Tranz Rail in 1995. In 1999, Tranz Rail leased , and between 1999 and 2001 disposed of ''Arahanga'' and the ''Aratika''. In 2004, Toll NZ bought out Tranz Rail, and the Interisland Line was renamed the Interislander. Both ships were repainted in a new livery, with a fern replacing Pelorus Jack on the funnel - he moved to the hull with the logo. In 2005, Toll leased ''Challenger'', which in 2007 was renamed . ''Kaitaki'' was the first Interislander ferry without a rail deck, and the first with a bow door (all the other ferries were stern boarding). On 1 July 2008 the New Zealand Government purchased Toll NZ Ltd, including the Interislander, becoming part of KiwiRail. In 2011 ''Aratere'' was significantly lengthened by adding a 30-metre midsection to increase her capacity. In November 2012, Interislander staff threatened strike action over the upcoming Christmas period, demanding better wages. Owner KiwiRail responded with a lock-out notice. Freight company Mainfreight slammed the union's actions as "bloody disruptive". In November 2013, ''Aratere'' snapped a drive shaft and lost a propeller in the Cook Strait. Interislander chartered to help with the peak summer period while ''Aratere'' was under repair. In December 2014, it was announced ''Stena Alegra'' would be chartered long-term to replace the aging ''Arahura''. ''Arahura'' last sailed on 29 July 2015, and the ''Stena Alegra'', refurbished and renamed ''Kaiarahi'', entered service in September 2015. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Interislander」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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