In June, the Port of Tauranga had one million containers through the port with 41 per cent of New Zealand's total exports by value flowing through our city with many products, including logs, meat, dairy, fruit and vegetables, pulp paper and linear board.

With primary exports predicted to hit a high of $41.6 billion to June 2018 our roads going to the port are now very congested with heavy trucks and a lot of the time it takes twice as long to drive down Hewletts Rd to go to Tauranga city.

Good common sense is needed for the future and as port containers rise, rail freight to the port is seriously needed now and in the future to stop our road congestion.

Rail freight is a lot cheaper and so is rail line maintenance. Pollution levels are rising and we are supposed to be getting levels down.

The taxpayers will have to pay penalty payments for pollution levels and the ecology of our environment will be seriously affected, as well as our plants and animals and our health. The National government should understand our clean and green exports will too.

Rail freight will help to stop congestion, and pollution levels and road maintenance costs will drop.

H Burrows, Papamoa.