BRUCE MACKAY/Stuff
Aucklander Steve Simighean was finally boarding a Cook Strait ferry on Monday after a series of issues saw him become a Wellington resident for parking purposes.
Steve Simighean has become an accidental Wellingtonian after being caught in the ongoing Cook Strait ferries saga.
Talking from the queue to board Interislander’s Kaiarahi on Monday morning in Wellington, the Auckland man was just hoping, this time, he would be driving off in Picton in a few hours time.
But after a series of delays and cancellations, which meant he ended up filling out Wellington City Council forms to declare himself a Wellington resident to get a resident’s parking permit and leave his car on the street, he had good reason to be dubious.
Simighean had a car that he needed to deliver to the South Island so, in January booked on the 1pm Interislander sailing on February 16. However, three days before the sailing he received a message that he had been rebooked on the 2am sailing on February 17.
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His planned travel came amid an ongoing series of problems with Cook Strait ferries that arguably started when Interislander’s Kaitaki lost power and drifted towards rocks on January 28, then continued with a series of mechanical issues and weather-related cancellations that left many stranded on the wrong side of the Cook Strait.
As Simighean was driving into Wellington the day before the February 17 sailing, he got a message that the sailing was cancelled due to staffing issues.
STUFF
Interislander’s Kaitaki ferry had a rough start to 2023, with engineering faults putting it out of commission. In January, while carrying hundreds of passengers, it lost all power and drifted towards rocks.
“The message said, ‘sorry but you get a refund and nothing else’.”
He was not able to rebook another sailing until a month later. It was now that he filled out the council forms to become a “resident” of his daughter’s Wellington student flat, which he owned. The residents’ parking permit meant he could park on the street and fly to the South Island.
He then flew back to Auckland and covered his bases by booking a refundable Bluebridge ferry on Sunday, followed by an Interislander crossing on Monday.
BRUCE MACKAY/Stuff
Steve Simighean ended up getting a Wellington resident’s parking permit after a series of Cook Strait ferry issues.
He flew to Wellington on Saturday and was in the capital when a text message from Bluebridge at 9.28pm told him his 2am Sunday sailing had been cancelled due to staff shortages.
There was no help for accommodation or transportation and he was told there was no point in calling the call centre as there was a three-hour wait to talk to an operator.
So, with his final option – on the Interislander – already booked, he made sure he got to the terminal on time on Monday.
BRUCE MACKAY/Stuff
It was a long road but he got there: Steve Simighean boarding a ferry on Monday morning.
“I really feel for those that don’t have a place to stay or can’t find accommodation,” he said. “Where do they go?”
Simighean acknowledged he was lucky. He could sleep at his daughter’s flat and had the financial means to fly back and forth, and double-book tickets.
“Others don’t and may not even have enough for fuel to got home. Surely the government should be stepping in as it is such an important arterial link for the both population and trade.”
The Kaiarahi departed just behind schedule at 8.45am on Monday.
Simighean was on board.
