Rant - feel free to skip over this

Today's delays have caused several of my Facebook friends to complain about the "poor" service Veolia provide, and that the fare increases aren't worth it. Unfortunately fare increases are a fact of life on many public transport systems worldwide, from Japan's excellent network to Australia's frequently poor networks.

Fare increases are essential in covering the costs of operating a rail network, especially as the price of oil increases (remember we're still using diesel trains). Add to that the high track access fees charged by KiwiRail, the unfit-for-purpose rolling stock (diesel locomotives designed for freight use) and frequent services, and our costs skyrocket. The rail network is already heavily subsidised, and very few, if any, networks operate without one. Half of the running costs are directly met by the prices of your tickets, with the other half being funded by local government and central government. Auckland Transport (AT) also pay for above-track infrastructure such as trains and stations out of your fares. Remember, the cost of driving your car also goes up, and there are far more costs than just fuel: parking, registration, WOF, tyres, etc. With the latest round of fare increases, train fares also now match bus fares, which is also part of the goal of the new HOP card.

Okay, some people now complain that Veolia offer a "crap" service. Yet I'm willing to bet very few of these people have actually read Veolia's Conditions of Carriage (PDF), which states:

2. The operator may use any mode of transport to carry passengers and may substitute the mode of transport used at any time, including during a journey;
3. The operator is not liable to a passenger or any other person:
   1. for any consequences arising from any variation or delay in the time of arrival or departure from any station or stop of any vehicle; or
   2. for any loss or damage as a result of a cancellation or any variation of the time of arrival or departure from any station or stop of any vehicle.
   3. for damage to any property of a passenger; or
   4. for the death of any passenger or other person or for injury, harm, disease or damage to health, whether physical, mental or otherwise (including mental or nervous shock or distress) suffered by a passenger or any other person.

[...]

5. The operator may vary or cancel wholly or in part the scheduled services shown in the operator timetables or may vary the point at which passenger services will pick up and set down passengers;
6. The operator does not guarantee the time of arrival or departure of its passenger services at the times published in its timetable.

In short, Veolia do not guarantee your train arrives on time, or that you even arrive on a train, and if you're late then it's your problem. No refunds for late or cancelled trains; you ride at your own risk, and Veolia aren't responsible for breakdowns as they do not own the trains, AT does. In an average week, I take the train 10 times, and zero of those times I am late for my class or other appointment at the other end, as I choose my services to allow for delays up to 20 minutes, more than enough. Sure, sometimes things do get incredibly pear-shaped and cause hours of delays, but there are at least two things in place or on the way to help drastically reduce these delays:

1. Bi-directional signalling. Prior to the rollout of the Westcad MkIII signalling system, trains could only run on the left hand track, or require mountains of paperwork to run "wrong line" (on the right hand track). Now, trains can run on either track in either direction at the press of a button, so trains can simply go around a failed train. This has already proved useful numerous times, including this morning when a cyclist was hit by a train.
2. A third track from Westfield to Papakura. This is under construction now and parts of the new track can be seen at Wiri. This track will be used solely for freight trains, so if one does break down (and it's likely, given our 20 new "DL" class locomotives were built in China) it doesn't affect any metro services.

Remember a decade ago trains as a method of transport were almost unheard of in Auckland: in 2003 there were just 2.5 million trips made by rail, and in July last year this figure reached 10 million. Clearly something is being done right to result in this huge growth in patronage, and that is despite the frequent delays.

Rail has come a long way since the dark days of Tranz Metro. Yes, we have seen major delays in the Veolia days as well, but with infrastructure improvements and new electric trains on the way, hopefully these delays will become far less common (perhaps when a storm washes out the Eastern Line or something).

Complain all you want: improvements are coming, and Veolia don't have to get you there on time.If you don't want to take the train, perhaps the Southern Carpark Motorway would be a better choice.

</rant>

Updated to include information on Veolia's responsibility in event of a breakdown