Service Updates

Weather Disruptions - Tuesday June 29th 9.00am

29-Jun-2021 09:08 AM - Rowan

Severe weather conditions are moving up the South Island and will have potential consequences to the movement and delivery of freight between the North and South Islands over the next 48-72 hours.

Inter Islander Ferry Line have already informed us that due to forecasted Southerly Gales and predicted heavy swells in Cook Strait all ferry sailings on Tuesday 29th June have been cancelled. At this stage they also predict that ferry sailings on Wednesday 30th June will also be cancelled but will advise us of their schedules as the weather conditions alter or improve.

We apologise for the disruption this will cause to the movement of freight between islands but will do all we can to mitigate delays once sailings return to normal.

Thanks you for your patience as we work through the challenges that lie ahead.

 

Potential Inter Islander Ferry Delays

15-Jun-2021 11:18 AM - Rowan
Below is the latest update with regard to the InterIslander ferries as this does look to be an ongoing issue and may be with us for some weeks to come. We (Post Haste and Castle Parcels) are attempting to find space on Bluebridge for this period but so are all other transport companies! I will keep you posted as more information is available but in essence there will be delays between the islands for some weeks in front of us:

Potential Inter Islander Ferry Delays
Tuesday 15th June

InterIslander Ferry Line has alerted us to an issue that will cause potential delays to all ferry sailings across Cook Straight for some time.

The ferry Aratere has had a major issue which will take it out of service for up to four weeks. The ferry Kaitaki has been out of service on routine maintenance for several weeks already which had resulted in rescheduling of all sailings to keep up with demands. The removal of the Aratere from service has dictated that the Kaitaki be brought back into service prior to completion of its maintenance work, however there will still be significant gaps in the sailing times which will have a flow on effect for the movement of trucks both north and south bound. 

We envisage that this will cause ongoing delays to our road linehaul network between the islands during this period and could add an additional 1-2 days to our standard delivery schedule. We will of course do all we can to mitigate any delays but please be considerate when enquiring about late deliveries as it will more than likely be as a result of the rescheduling of the Interislander Ferry sailings.

NZ Post - Network Disruptions Overnight

09-Jun-2021 04:42 PM - Rowan
Last night (08/06/2021), NZ Post experienced several events that have impacted their network and will cause significant delays over the week.

Disruptions: 
  • Multiple events overnight have caused significant disruptions and extensive delays to our delivery network today – Wednesday 9 June. 
  • Disruptions are extensive – aircraft engineering issues, equipment breakdowns, road closures and vehicle incidents. 
 
Products/Areas Affected:
  • These delays will be felt across the country, and the majority of products affected are items destined for Auckland, Dunedin, Invercargill and Central Otago.  
  • Smaller towns experiencing freight delays are as follows: 
    • Whangarei, Rotorua, Taupo, Tauranga, New Plymouth, Napier, Whanganui, Kapiti, Wellington and Lower Hutt. 
  • All perishable and urgent items will be prioritised. Please lodge these items into our network as early as possible so that we can manage this accordingly.
  • We expect the delays within the Auckland and Dunedin centres to be fully recovered over the course of this week (including the weekend).
  • All other areas across the network are expected to be fully recovered over the next 24 hours.
  • We’re working hard to get these items to their destinations safely. Please bear with us as work through these disruptions.

Possible Network Disruption - Christchurch Fog

03-Jun-2021 01:47 PM - Rowan
The forecast for Christchurch tonight is for fog. There is a reasonable chance that the air network may be disrupted and flights in and out of Christchurch may either be delayed or not be able to be completed. 

Please keep this in mind if you plan on sending cold chain or time sensitive items.

South Island Flooding and Road Closures Update Tuesday June 1st 3.00pm

01-Jun-2021 03:51 PM - Rowan
Update from Post Haste Couriers/Castle Parcels/NOW Couriers

The bridge over the Ashburton River on State Highway 1 has been closed following structural damage from the recent flooding. This will create network issues in both directions for some days to come as we find alternative routes that are open and usable. 

We are currently looking at alternative routes to circumvent Ashburton but flooding is still an issue further inland and many roads impassable. There is at present a single passage operational but this could be closed anytime if the volume of traffic crossing bridges upstream of the major rivers intensifies or it is deemed too dangerous, as there is no road lighting on any of these minor roads and travelling during the hours of darkness will be challenging. 

We still have a backlog of freight in Christchurch that we are attempting to clear as time and available vehicles permit, but it would be prudent and we would appreciate if you would limit the amount of freight you are sending to the lower South Island to enable us to clear what is already in place and delayed. 

We will continue to update progress as we can, but please remember these circumstances are out of our control and we can only do what we are able to, given the conditions that currently prevail. 

Thank you for your understanding. 

The team at Post Haste Couriers/Castle Parcels/NOW Couriers