But when the one-time Act leader, and a leading figure of the Rogernomics revolution, writes in an online Herald contribution that "as one of the architects of the present system I think I'm allowed to say it is not perfect", and adding that "to solve road congestion we need a more holistic approach", it does seem churlish to say, "about bloody time".
Mr Prebble has been stuck in congestion on the Southern Motorway recently and was stung by a Treasury document recommending the uneconomic national freight rail be closed down and new roads be built to replace the failed iron railways. The new roads fully funded through the road user charges levied on road freight operators.
As a director and shareholder of major transport firm Mainfreight, Mr Prebble says Treasury advice recommending the closure of the railways for sound economic reasons would only add to congestion.
In Auckland it would create even greater problems.
Prebble says that even if the Government emasculates the Resource Management Act in order to fast-track more motorways, public opposition to any new inner city motorways would rule that option out.
It's advice that new Transport Minister Simon Bridges might care to follow as he tries to speed up progress on the proposed $4 billion-$6 billion cross-harbour tunnel.
Without doubling the capacity of the existing approach roads, how is he going to get all those extra cars and trucks in and out of the short stretch of tunnel.
Let's not forget that in the consultation stages of the land transport plan, the experts advised that even if more roads were built, "road congestion levels will deteriorate with volume/capacity ratios exceeding 100 per cent on most of our arterial road network by 2041 and emission levels exceeding current levels".
Mr Prebble is now saying to hell with the State Owned Enterprise Act requirement that Kiwi Rail be a profitable enterprise, and instead, treat the rail network as an under-utilised transport corridor, akin to a motorway, and fund it through the NZTA.
Noting Finance Minister Bill English's Budget speech claim that present levels of support for Kiwi Rail are "unsustainable", and reacting to critics who say using road user charges to fund the rail track would be "corporate welfare", Mr Prebble says, "I ask you what is your solution to reducing road congestion? You have not got one".
As an aside, would adding the rail tracks to NZTA's funding responsibility relieve Auckland ratepayers from their half share of the $2.4 billion City Rail Link?
Gaining NZTA funding might also hasten the third freight track into the city, a line which Mr Prebble says is needed now. Otherwise, at peak times, freight will be forced off the tracks and on to already congested roads. With freight and passenger volumes steadily increasing, this seems inevitable.
In South Auckland, both the Port of Tauranga and Ports of Auckland have "inland ports" where containers are assembled, before and after a voyage. MetroPort, the Tauranga base, alone handles 200,000 container movements a year. An accelerated third rail link would help ensure freight doesn't further clog roads.
The former Act leader challenges his old mates to dismiss all this as "corporate welfare". One suspects he might have done just that himself in earlier times.
But let's not knock a convert. The born again are usually great campaigners for their new belief.
