Wild weather, aging ferries disrupt New Zealand travel, reigniting tunnel debate
(MENAFN) Travel for thousands of people on ferries that span the sea between New Zealand's main islands has been hampered by wild weather during the country's busiest summer vacation time.
A common element of the nation's most severe weather is the destruction caused by massive swells and gales in the deep and choppy Cook Strait between the North and South Islands. Delays have also been brought on by aged ferries in New Zealand breaking down.
An underwater tunnel beneath the strait, which is traversed by more than a million people annually, has not been given much thought in New Zealand, in contrast to Britain and Japan. The last prime minister to propose the construction of one was in 1904, yet everyone in New Zealand has an opinion on the matter.
For the same reason that frequently confounds the nation's planners, a tunnel or bridge spanning the roughly 25–30 kilometers (15–18 miles) of erratic sea is highly doubtful. According to analysts, finding a way through New Zealand's isolated, rocky, and dangerous terrain is logistically challenging.
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