Nice ride: An artists' impression of a planned new monorail from Kiwi Burn to Te Anau Downs
The Department of Conservation has approved in principle a monorail to speed up the journey from Queenstown to Milford.
The 43km monorail, from Kiwi Burn to Te Anau Downs, is part of the Fiordland Link Experience proposed by Wanaka-based Riverstone Holdings.
The journey involves a 27-minute catamaran trip from Queenstown across Lake Wakatipu to Mt Nicholas, a 43-minute trip on an all-terrain vehicle on existing backcountry roads to Kiwi Burn, then the 33-minute monotrail trip to Te Anau Downs, which is 91km from Milford Sound.
This would be the largest monorail journey in the world, Riverstone Holdings chairman Bob Robertson says.
“It is low impact and quiet, using electrically-operated vehicles drawing power from totally renewable sources, such as the wind farm at Mossburn.”
Robertson says halving the time from Queenstown to Te Anau Downs, although helpful, is not the objective, but creating a world-class experience is.
“The Fiordland Link Experience is a journey that enables tourists to intimately appreciate our lakes, rivers, mountains and native bush.
“It is not just another mode of travel to get from A to B in the quickest time possible.
“The Fiordland Link Experience is a great example of an infrastructural development that can carry twice the existing numbers [to Milford] – over a million people – yet still allow tourists to get up close and personal with our native bush, gliding silently at farm-fence height, without leaving any impact behind.”
The monorail is designed to take 160 passengers, or 224 with additional carriages.
The cost of the monorail and associated facilities is projected to be $175 million.
A mountain bike track would also be created along the monorail route and from Te Anau Downs to Te Anau – part of the proposed Three Lakes Ride between Lakes Wakatipu, Te Anau and Manapouri.
DoC will now notify the monorail proposal for public comment.
