The Cook Strait ferry Aratere may be out of commission again, but that's not a worry for the Minister of Transport.

The KiwiRail owned vessel has had its sailings cancelled this week, as engineers look to fix problems hydraulic issues which are affecting steering.

It's not the first time the ferry has broken down, with it having a series of breakdowns following a 2011 refit.

Minister of Transport Simon Bridges isn't worried by the latest problem saying these things happen from time to time.

"I think if you look at the life of that vessel, and across the average of the vessels that Kiwirail has, it's well over 90% travel rate. As I say, these things happen from time to time, I'm not overly critical."

However, as Newstalk ZB's Georgina Campbell reports, it's not the first time the ship has run into trouble.

"In 2013 the propeller fell off, and it spent three months being refurbished in Singapore."

The company said repairs are underway, and expects them to be completed later this week.