The Germans have cracked on to a nice little scheme to get tourists to directly fund major infrastructure, and Winston Aldworth believes it could work here.

The first of a series of new fixed speed cameras has gone live today.

Jayne and Mike Rattray started a movement which has raised $600,000 - and it all began with a few friends hitting the road.

The arrival of Air New Zealand's first Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner does not herald the start of lower airfares — but travellers will get access to new international destinations.

The first of 10 of the model touched down in Auckland yesterday and the rest are expected to be in service by 2017.

A police officer was punched in the head by a motorcyclist after a high-speed chase through Dunedin last night.

It's become the first airline in the world to receive the new 302-seater 787-9 Dreamliner from the Boeing factory in Seattle. Air New Zealand CFO Rob McDonald says the wait's been worth it. He says Air New Zealand has a significant place in the world, when taking into account the number of passengers on board - and how many kilometres they travel. He says the features and economics that first drew the airline to the aircraft are even more valid than ten years ago.

How's this for fuel economy? A Mercedes has travelled 1968 kilometres from North Africa to England without having to refuel - and still had another 160km in it.

Plaugues of rats are chewing and gnawing their way around rural Tararua, chomping on wiring in vehicles.