One of Invercargill’s highest-profile tourism attractions, Transport World, has announced a restructure, resulting in disestablishment of 30% of roles, in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. 

In a statement on the attraction’s website, Transport World executive director Jocelyn O’Donnell says the impact has been “heartbreaking”, but with New Zealand’s borders expected to be closed for some time, the redundancies were necessary for the organisation to remain sustainable.

All remaining staff have had their hours reduced, while some staff have also been redeployed into other areas of the business.

Transport World includes the Bill Richardson Transport World and Classic Motorcycle motoring museums, and Dig This, which offers the opportunity for visitors to operate large machinery. All were closed before New Zealand entered the Level 4 lockdown, to keep guests and staff safe.

Mrs O’Donnell says survival will be dependent on local and domestic support. 

“Our products – Bill Richardson Transport World, Classic Motorcycle Mecca, and Dig This Invercargill – have helped bring visitors to Invercargill and we want to continue contributing to our city’s economy and vitality. However, no tourism business can survive for long without visitors. We have gone from hosting tens of thousands of visitors to zero,” she says.

“The decision to restructure Transport World was not made lightly. Transport World is part of a family-run organisation and our team is a tight-knit one. I have appreciated the contributions of every person who has been part of the wider Transport World family, and I sincerely regret that we have had to make these changes. I would like to personally thank all of our affected staff for their professionalism throughout this process. Transport World will continue to offer affected staff support.”