Southern Infrastructure Ltd’s $400 million ‘‘Queenstown Cable Car’’ project has been pitched as a way to alleviate pressure on Queenstown’s transport system by taking up to 3000 passengers an hour each way.
One line would link Queenstown Airport to the CBD, another linking to Frankton and Ladies Mile.
The project, backed by Sir Rod Drury, was referred to the fast-track process earlier this month.
But the Queenstown Lakes District Council had raised concerns including ‘‘critical gaps’’ in information, if the project constituted public transport and that the district could be left with a ‘‘white elephant’’ if patronage did not meet financial demands.
In a statement, Southern Infrastructure said it was important to recognise this was an early stage of the process.
‘‘The detailed work sits ahead and from a community perspective there’s a clear expectation that we continue to see progress alongside that.’’
The referral stage was about whether the project should progress and was not intended ‘‘to resolve every detail upfront’’.
That work happened through the substantive process, it said.
There had been a long cycle of transport planning in Queenstown and in that time the situation on the ground had only become more challenging, the company said.
‘‘There’s strong public interest in solutions that don’t rely solely on ratepayers — particularly where infrastructure can be delivered as a complete, self-contained system, reducing both cost pressure and delivery risk.
‘‘Ultimately, this is about putting forward a solution that can actually shift the dial — something that helps to unlock the network and, over time, liberate Queenstown from gridlock.’’
— Allied Media
