Rail transport in New Zealand
Encyclopedia
Rail transport in New Zealand consists of a network of gauge (Cape gauge
) railway lines in both the North
and South
Islands. Rail services are focused primarily on freight, particularly bulk freight, with limited passenger services on some lines. Only Auckland
and Wellington
have urban rail systems, both of which are being upgraded and expanded.
of New Zealand from 1863 onwards. New Zealand's first public railway was opened in that year at Ferrymead
by the Canterbury Province
. The first steam-powered railway operated between Christchurch
and Ferrymead.
The Canterbury Provincial Railways
were built to the broad gauge
of . On 5 February 1867, Southland Province
opened a branch from Invercargill
to Bluff
to the international standard gauge
of .
From 1870, the central government of Sir Julius Vogel
proposed infrastructure including railway development, to be funded by overseas loans of £10 million. The central government also adopted a national gauge of . The first narrow-gauge line was opened on 1 January 1873 in the Otago Province
, the Port Chalmers Branch
under the auspices of the Dunedin and Port Chalmers Railway Company Limited. Auckland's first railway, between Auckland and Onehunga, opened in 1873. Vogel also arranged for Brogdens
of England to undertake several rail construction contracts, to be built by "Brogden's Navvies" recruited in England.
Following the abolition of the provinces in 1876, the lines were controlled by the central government, originally under the Public Works Department, and from 1880 under the New Zealand Railways Department
. A few private companies built railways in New Zealand - the New Zealand Midland Railway Company
, Wellington and Manawatu Railway Company, Waimea Plains Railway
, and Thames Valley and Rotorua Railway Company. Only the Wellington and Manawatu Railway Company, nationalised in 1908, achieved any measure of success, with the rest being purchased by the Government before completion of their intended railway lines.
The first major route was completed between Christchurch
and Dunedin
in 1878, later extended to Invercargill
the following year. The North Island Main Trunk, linking capital city Wellington
with largest city Auckland
, opened in 1908 after 23 years of construction.
At the network's peak in the 1950s, about 100 branch lines were operating. Large-scale closures of branch railway lines began in the 1960s and 1970s. The network was initially protected from road transport competition under the Transport Licensing Act 1931
, but this protection was gradually eased until its total abolition in 1983, along with the deregulation of the land transport industry.
The networks of the North
and South
Islands were independent of one another until the introduction of the inter-island roll-on roll-off
rail ferry service in 1962 by the Railways Department, now branded The Interislander
.
For most of their history, New Zealand's railways were administered by the New Zealand Railways Department
, with the Minister of Railways
being a member of Cabinet
. In 1982, the Railways Department was corporatised into a new entity required to make a profit, the New Zealand Railways Corporation
. In 1990, the core rail operations of the Corporation were transferred to New Zealand Rail Limited, a state owned enterprise, with the Corporation retaining non-core assets which were gradually disposed of, apart from a significant land portfolio (due to Treaty of Waitangi
claims) which it continued to manage. New Zealand Rail Limited was privatised in 1993, with the new owners adopting the name Tranz Rail
in 1995.
During the period of private ownership of the network, Tranz Rail was widely accused of diverting freight to its trucks and forcing other freight off the rails. It was also accused of deliberately running down some lines through lack of maintenance. The Midland Line
, which mostly carries coal from the West Coast to Lyttelton, was assessed to be in a safe but poor state by the LTSA
government safety body in 2003, and has needed major repairs. One of the reasons often cited for these policies was the cost of using road transport was less than using rail, because the road infrastructure was provided as a public good
, whereas the rail network was a private good
. Tranz Rail was also alleged to have denied reasonable access to the rail network by heritage operators, who were faced with a lack of access to certification resources and high charges that made their operations marginally economic at best. In recent years heritage groups have also faced increased bureaucratic requirements in the arena of safety certification, as well as problems obtaining suitable public liability insurance.
The government purchased the Auckland metropolitan rail network from Tranz Rail for $81 million in 2002. Tranz Rail retained slots for freight trains, and the Auckland Regional Council was granted slots for it to tender the operation of suburban passenger trains. Auckland railway stations not already local authority owned were transferred to Auckland Regional Transport Network Limited (ARTNL), owned by the Auckland territorial authorities, which was merged with the Auckland Regional Transport Authority (ARTA), a subsidiary of the Auckland Regional Council (ARC).
In 2003 shares in Tranz Rail dropped to a record low price on the New Zealand sharemarket
as a result of its poor financial state. The government then considered various schemes for bailing it out in return for regaining control of the rail infrastructure. Cited reasons included moving freight traffic from road to rail and ensuring access to the tracks for all interested parties. Toll Holdings
of Australia made a successful takeover bid for Tranz Rail, subject to an agreement to sell back the infrastructure to the government for $1. This transaction took place in July 2004. The government committed to $200 million of taxpayer funding on deferred maintenance and capital improvements via a new subsidiary of the New Zealand Railways Corporation, ONTRACK. ONTRACK was then to negotiate rail access fees with the new company, Toll NZ
, but these negotiations eventually fell into arbitration at the start of 2008.
In May 2008 the government successfully concluded negotiations for the purchase from Toll of its rail and ferry assets, for NZ$690 million from 1 July 2008. The name of the new organisation created to operate services on the rail network was revealed to be KiwiRail
at a handover ceremony on that day.
The company has since drafted a 10-year turnaround plan for the rail industry, and two of KiwiRail's major customers, Mainfreight
and Fonterra
, are also investing heavily in rail-related infrastructure. Mainfreight has allocated $60 million for investment in new railhead depots, while Fonterra has invested $130m new rail hub complex in Hamilton and another planned for Mosgiel
.
washed away the bridge at Tangiwai
. 151 lives were lost when the bridge collapsed as a Wellington-Auckland express passenger train was crossing it.
The primary operator is KiwiRail
, a separate Railways Corporation division. KiwiRail operates freight services (KiwiRail Freight), long distance passenger services (Tranz Scenic
), and suburban services in Wellington
(under the subsidiary Tranz Metro
). Other rail operating companies include Veolia
, who operates suburban services in Auckland
, and Taieri Gorge Railway
, who operates tourist trains around Dunedin
.
. At the network's peak in 1953, some 5689 kilometres (3,535 mi) of line was open. There are currently 1787 bridges and 150 tunnels (totalling 80 km in length) on the rail network.
The entire network is built to the , chosen due to the need to cross mountainous terrain in the country's interior and the lower cost of construction.
Difficult terrain meant that some lines took years to complete, and has necessitated a number of complicated engineering feats, notably the Raurimu Spiral
and Rimutaka Incline (no longer in use).
The network has been the subject of major upgrading works on a number of occasions. The most major of these were the Tawa Flat deviation
in Wellington, opened 19 June 1937; the Rimutaka deviation
to the Wairarapa, 3 November 1955; and the Kaimai deviation
in the Bay of Plenty, 12 September 1978. All of these involved major tunnelling works, of close to 9 kilometres (5.6 mi) each in the two latter cases. Significant infrastructure improvements were also carried out on the North Island Main Trunk in the mid 1980s, some as part of the electrification scheme.
Current major projects include electrification of the Auckland suburban network
, and a proposed rail link
to a deep sea port at Marsden Point
. As part of a major capital injection announced in 2010, a number of regional lines are under threat of closure:
As part of KiwiRail's 10 year long-term plan, most new capital will be spent on locomotives, wagons and the Auckland - Wellington - Christchurch freight corridor. Decisions on regional lines will be made in 2012.
Dieselisation
began in the late 1940s with shunting engines. The first mainline locomotives, the English Electric DF class
, was introduced in 1954, but it wasn't until the introduction of the DA class
the following year that steam began to be seriously displaced. The last steam locomotive to be built by NZR, JA 1274
, was turned out in December 1956, and by 1967, steam had all but disappeared from the North Island. Steam remained in the South Island until 16 November 1971, when the last seven JA locomotives that worked the Main South Line were withdrawn from revenue service.
In 1988 25 kV AC
electrification of the North Island Main Trunk between Palmerston North and Hamilton was commissioned. Since 1983 a small number of privately owned steam and diesel locomotives have been permitted to operate special trains.
The Norwegian coupling
was the standard coupler used in New Zealand for non-passenger rolling stock and locomotives until recently. AAR couplers have been progressively introduced, especially with newer rolling stock and rebuilt locomotives.
Freight provides the overwhelming majority of revenue traffic, largely bulk traffic, with general freight being largely restricted to containerised
and palletised products. Major bulk freight includes coal, lime, steel, wood and wood products, paper pulp, milk, cars, fertiliser, grain and shipping containers
. Freight operations are carried out by KiwiRail.
Most freight services are geared towards export industries, with most services emphasising capacity. For example, coal services on the Midland line
, headed by two class DX
locomotives, generally consist of 30 coal hopper
wagons with a total capacity of 1,600 tonnes. In the 2006 - 2007 financial year, 2.9 million tonnes of coal were carried by rail. In the ten months to May 2009, KiwiRail moved 729 million litres of milk by rail from Oringi in the southern Hawke's Bay through Palmerston North for processing in Hawera, south Taranaki.
The previous record for milk volumes was set in the 2000 - 2001 season when 700 million litres were moved. Last year 625 million litres were carried along the same route.
The former rail operator Tranz Rail had been accused of forcing freight onto the roads. In 2002, Tranz Rail introduced a controversial containerisation scheme that assumed that most freight would be carried in containers on unit trains made up of fixed consists of flat deck wagons. Container loading depots were constructed at the major freight terminals. As a result, the government has required minimum level of freight tonnages for Toll to keep its monopoly freight rights on most lines, since renationalising the rail network from Tranz Rail in 2003.
Freight levels have now reached the level that they were at when the railway had a virtual monopoly, prior to 1983. In 1980 11.8 million tonnes of freight was moved by rail, in 1994 this had decreased to 9.4 million tonnes. By 1999 tonnes carried had increased to 12.9 million tonnes, slightly more than the 1975 peak. In the 2006 - 2007 financial year, 13.7 million tonnes of freight were carried. This equated to 3.96 million net tonne kilometres (or the amount of tonnes of traffic gained in 2008 - 2009 compared to the amount of traffic hauled in the 2006 - 2007 year) in the 2008 - 2009 financial year, about 15% of the total freight market.
After the 1983 land transport deregulation there was substantial rationalisation of freight facilities; many stations and smaller yards were closed and freight train services were sped up, increased in length and made heavier, with the removal of guard's vans in 1987 and the gradual elimination of older rolling stock, particularly four-wheeled wagons.
In recent years the amount of freight moved by rail has increased substantially, and started to gain market share in non-bulk areas as well. Freight on the North Island Main Trunk line between Auckland and Palmerston North saw an increase of 39% in freight volumes between 2006 and 2007. The five daily trains on the 667 km line reduced truck volumes on the route by around 120 per day. In 2008, the government proposed to spend $150m to enlarge tunnels for the bigger ISO containers now operating.
A 2008 study by the Ministry of Transport predicted that by 2031 rail freight volumes would increase to 23 million tonnes per annum, or 70% on the 2006 - 2007 financial year.
and Wellington
(which was to be withdrawn in September 2006, but continues on a reduced timetable), the Capital Connection between Wellington and Palmerston North
, the TranzCoastal between Picton
and Christchurch
, and the TranzAlpine
between Christchurch and Greymouth
. Long-distance passenger services are operated by Tranz Scenic
, a part of KiwiRail
. The Wairarapa Connection is sometimes regarded as a long-distance service but is run by Wellington's commuter rail operator, Tranz Metro
, also part of KiwiRail.
A number of services came to an end in the early 2000s: the Kaimai Express to Tauranga, the Geyserland Express to Rotorua, and the Bay Express to Napier all ceased in 2001; The Southerner from Christchurch, through Dunedin
to Invercargill
in 2002—and The Northerner
night service between Auckland and Wellington in 2004.
owns Tranz Metro
, which operates suburban passenger services in the Wellington region. There are five lines, all electrified except for the Upper Hutt to Masterton services (the Wairarapa Connection). Tranz Metro uses EMUs
, and diesel locomotives on non-electrified services. In the 1930s Wellington was the second city (after Christchurch) to have electric suburban trains, and today it is the only city with them. Wellington is regarded as having the best passenger train system in New Zealand.
For nine years Tranz Metro also operated the suburban trains in Auckland, the largest city in New Zealand. However, in mid-2004 Connex (now Veolia New Zealand
) won the contract to run them - Tranz Metro did not tender. There are four lines: the Southern Line, Eastern Line, Western Line and Onehunga Line. All trains are diesel-operated, using both DMUs
and locomotive-hauled push-pull trains. Currently, there is a programme to build new lines, reopen old lines (such as the Onehunga Branch, reopened September 2010) and electrify
existing lines to improve the quality and frequency of services. Most Auckland rolling stock is owned and all services are funded by the Auckland Regional Transport Authority (ARTA).
, Steam Incorporated
, Mainline Steam
Trust and the Otago Excursion Train Trust, own and operate their own carriage and mainline-certified steam or diesel locomotive fleets. These groups have operated special excursion trains on the national network since 1978, and have been allowed to use suitable locomotives to haul these trains since 1983. A small number of other groups have overhauled their own locomotives for main-line use with either heritage or public passenger carriages.
had major workshops at Addington
(Christchurch), Easttown
(Wanganui), Hillside
(Dunedin), Petone
(Lower Hutt, near Wellington) then Hutt
(Lower Hutt, near Wellington) and Newmarket
then Otahuhu
, (Auckland). Only Hutt and Hillside are still operating.
Rail museums in New Zealand usually focus on storage and displays of rolling stock with a short line of around 1 km in length on which trains are operated. This covers most of the historic rail groups in New Zealand. A smaller number of lines are operated as heritage railways, usually on a closed section of a former national network branch line. Typically these lines are longer, usually 5 km or more, and most of their activities are focused on train operations with less emphasis on display and storage.
Current operations of the heritage railway
type include the Glenbrook Vintage Railway
, Bush Tramway Club, Waitara Railway Preservation Society, Weka Pass Railway
, and Taieri Gorge Railway
. The Taieri Gorge Railway, which is a Local Authority Trading Enterprise of the Dunedin City Council, is 60 km in length, making it the most ambitious project of its type to date. All other lines are operated by voluntary societies. The Weka Pass Railway at 13 km is the most lengthy of these. The Bay of Islands Vintage Railway
is 11 km in length, but is in poor condition; having operated its first trains through Kawakawa since operations ceased in 2000 for two weeks from 3 July 2007, the Society is now working on rehabilitating the track between Kawakawa and Opua.
Cape gauge
Cape gauge is a track gauge of between the inside of the rail heads and is classified as narrow gauge. It has installations of around .The gauge was first used by Norwegian engineer Carl Abraham Pihl and the first line was opened in 1862.- Nomenclature :...
) railway lines in both the North
North Island
The North Island is one of the two main islands of New Zealand, separated from the much less populous South Island by Cook Strait. The island is in area, making it the world's 14th-largest island...
and South
South Island
The South Island is the larger of the two major islands of New Zealand, the other being the more populous North Island. It is bordered to the north by Cook Strait, to the west by the Tasman Sea, to the south and east by the Pacific Ocean...
Islands. Rail services are focused primarily on freight, particularly bulk freight, with limited passenger services on some lines. Only Auckland
Auckland
The Auckland metropolitan area , in the North Island of New Zealand, is the largest and most populous urban area in the country with residents, percent of the country's population. Auckland also has the largest Polynesian population of any city in the world...
and Wellington
Wellington
Wellington is the capital city and third most populous urban area of New Zealand, although it is likely to have surpassed Christchurch due to the exodus following the Canterbury Earthquake. It is at the southwestern tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Rimutaka Range...
have urban rail systems, both of which are being upgraded and expanded.
History
The railway network was initially constructed by the provincial governmentsProvinces of New Zealand
The Provinces of New Zealand existed from 1841 until 1876 as a form of sub-national government. They were replaced by counties, which were themselves replaced by districts.Following abolition, the provinces became known as provincial districts...
of New Zealand from 1863 onwards. New Zealand's first public railway was opened in that year at Ferrymead
Ferrymead Railway
The Ferrymead Railway is a New Zealand heritage railway built upon the formation of New Zealand's first public railway, the line from Ferrymead to Christchurch, which opened in 1863. On the opening of the line to Lyttelton on 9 December 1867, the Ferrymead Railway became the Ferrymead Branch and...
by the Canterbury Province
Canterbury Province
The Canterbury Province was a province of New Zealand from 1853 until the abolition of provincial government in 1876. On the east coast the province was bounded by the Hurunui River in the north and the Waitaki River in the south...
. The first steam-powered railway operated between Christchurch
Christchurch
Christchurch is the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand, and the country's second-largest urban area after Auckland. It lies one third of the way down the South Island's east coast, just north of Banks Peninsula which itself, since 2006, lies within the formal limits of...
and Ferrymead.
The Canterbury Provincial Railways
Canterbury Provincial Railways
The Canterbury Provincial Railways were an early part of the railways of New Zealand. Built by the Canterbury Provincial government to the broad gauge of 5 feet 3 inches , the railway reached most of the Canterbury region by the time the province was abolished in 1876...
were built to the broad gauge
Broad gauge
Broad-gauge railways use a track gauge greater than the standard gauge of .- List :For list see: List of broad gauges, by gauge and country- History :...
of . On 5 February 1867, Southland Province
Southland Province
The Southland Province was a province of New Zealand from March 1861 until the province rejoined with Otago Province in 1870.-History:When provinces were formed in 1853, the southern part of New Zealand belonged to Otago Province...
opened a branch from Invercargill
Invercargill
Invercargill is the southernmost and westernmost city in New Zealand, and one of the southernmost cities in the world. It is the commercial centre of the Southland region. It lies in the heart of the wide expanse of the Southland Plains on the Oreti or New River some 18 km north of Bluff,...
to Bluff
Bluff Branch
The Bluff Branch is a railway line in Southland, New Zealand that links Invercargill with the port of Bluff. One of the first railways in New Zealand, it opened in 1867 and is still operating...
to the international standard gauge
Standard gauge
The standard gauge is a widely-used track gauge . Approximately 60% of the world's existing railway lines are built to this gauge...
of .
From 1870, the central government of Sir Julius Vogel
Julius Vogel
Sir Julius Vogel, KCMG was the eighth Premier of New Zealand. His administration is best remembered for the issuing of bonds to fund railway construction and other public works...
proposed infrastructure including railway development, to be funded by overseas loans of £10 million. The central government also adopted a national gauge of . The first narrow-gauge line was opened on 1 January 1873 in the Otago Province
Otago Province
The Otago Province was a province of New Zealand until the abolition of provincial government in 1876.-Area:The capital of the province was Dunedin...
, the Port Chalmers Branch
Port Chalmers Branch
The Port Chalmers Branch was the first railway line built in Otago, New Zealand, and linked the region's major city of Dunedin with the port in Port Chalmers...
under the auspices of the Dunedin and Port Chalmers Railway Company Limited. Auckland's first railway, between Auckland and Onehunga, opened in 1873. Vogel also arranged for Brogdens
John Brogden and Sons
John Brogden and Sons was a firm of Railway Contractors, Iron and Coal Miners and Iron Smelters operating from roughly 1837 to the bankruptcy in 1883. However the business essentially started when John Brogden moved from his father's farm near Clitheroe to set up in business in the rapidly...
of England to undertake several rail construction contracts, to be built by "Brogden's Navvies" recruited in England.
Following the abolition of the provinces in 1876, the lines were controlled by the central government, originally under the Public Works Department, and from 1880 under the New Zealand Railways Department
New Zealand Railways Department
The New Zealand Railways Department, NZR or NZGR and often known as the "Railways", was a government department charged with owning and maintaining New Zealand's railway infrastructure and operating the railway system. The Department was created in 1880 and was reformed in 1981 into the New...
. A few private companies built railways in New Zealand - the New Zealand Midland Railway Company
New Zealand Midland Railway Company
The New Zealand Midland Railway Company partially constructed the Midland line between Christchurch and Greymouth and the Nelson railway in the South Island...
, Wellington and Manawatu Railway Company, Waimea Plains Railway
Waimea Plains Railway
The Waimea Plains Railway was a secondary railway line that linked the towns of Lumsden and Gore in northern Southland, New Zealand...
, and Thames Valley and Rotorua Railway Company. Only the Wellington and Manawatu Railway Company, nationalised in 1908, achieved any measure of success, with the rest being purchased by the Government before completion of their intended railway lines.
The first major route was completed between Christchurch
Christchurch
Christchurch is the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand, and the country's second-largest urban area after Auckland. It lies one third of the way down the South Island's east coast, just north of Banks Peninsula which itself, since 2006, lies within the formal limits of...
and Dunedin
Dunedin
Dunedin is the second-largest city in the South Island of New Zealand, and the principal city of the Otago Region. It is considered to be one of the four main urban centres of New Zealand for historic, cultural, and geographic reasons. Dunedin was the largest city by territorial land area until...
in 1878, later extended to Invercargill
Invercargill
Invercargill is the southernmost and westernmost city in New Zealand, and one of the southernmost cities in the world. It is the commercial centre of the Southland region. It lies in the heart of the wide expanse of the Southland Plains on the Oreti or New River some 18 km north of Bluff,...
the following year. The North Island Main Trunk, linking capital city Wellington
Wellington
Wellington is the capital city and third most populous urban area of New Zealand, although it is likely to have surpassed Christchurch due to the exodus following the Canterbury Earthquake. It is at the southwestern tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Rimutaka Range...
with largest city Auckland
Auckland
The Auckland metropolitan area , in the North Island of New Zealand, is the largest and most populous urban area in the country with residents, percent of the country's population. Auckland also has the largest Polynesian population of any city in the world...
, opened in 1908 after 23 years of construction.
At the network's peak in the 1950s, about 100 branch lines were operating. Large-scale closures of branch railway lines began in the 1960s and 1970s. The network was initially protected from road transport competition under the Transport Licensing Act 1931
Transport Licensing Act 1931
The Transport Licensing Act 1931 was a New Zealand Act of Parliament regulating land transport. It was introduced following a Royal Commission on road and rail competition in 1930...
, but this protection was gradually eased until its total abolition in 1983, along with the deregulation of the land transport industry.
The networks of the North
North Island
The North Island is one of the two main islands of New Zealand, separated from the much less populous South Island by Cook Strait. The island is in area, making it the world's 14th-largest island...
and South
South Island
The South Island is the larger of the two major islands of New Zealand, the other being the more populous North Island. It is bordered to the north by Cook Strait, to the west by the Tasman Sea, to the south and east by the Pacific Ocean...
Islands were independent of one another until the introduction of the inter-island roll-on roll-off
RORO
Roll-on/roll-off ships are vessels designed to carry wheeled cargo such as automobiles, trucks, semi-trailer trucks, trailers or railroad cars that are driven on and off the ship on their own wheels...
rail ferry service in 1962 by the Railways Department, now branded The Interislander
Interislander
The Interislander is a road and rail ferry service across New Zealand's Cook Strait, owned and operated by state-owned rail operator KiwiRail.The Interislander travels between Wellington in the North Island and Picton in the South Island, forming a road and rail link between New Zealand's two main...
.
For most of their history, New Zealand's railways were administered by the New Zealand Railways Department
New Zealand Railways Department
The New Zealand Railways Department, NZR or NZGR and often known as the "Railways", was a government department charged with owning and maintaining New Zealand's railway infrastructure and operating the railway system. The Department was created in 1880 and was reformed in 1981 into the New...
, with the Minister of Railways
Minister of Railways (New Zealand)
The Minister of Railways was the minister in the government responsible for the New Zealand Railways Department 1895–1981, the New Zealand Railways Corporation 1981–1993, and New Zealand Rail Limited 1990–1993...
being a member of Cabinet
New Zealand Cabinet
The Cabinet of New Zealand functions as the policy and decision-making body of the executive branch within the New Zealand government system...
. In 1982, the Railways Department was corporatised into a new entity required to make a profit, the New Zealand Railways Corporation
New Zealand Railways Corporation
KiwiRail Network, formerly ONTRACK , is the infrastructure arm of KiwiRail. The ONTRACK trading name was introduced in 2004 after the government repurchased all of New Zealand's rail infrastructure from Toll NZ. It does not operate revenue rolling stock...
. In 1990, the core rail operations of the Corporation were transferred to New Zealand Rail Limited, a state owned enterprise, with the Corporation retaining non-core assets which were gradually disposed of, apart from a significant land portfolio (due to Treaty of Waitangi
Treaty of Waitangi
The Treaty of Waitangi is a treaty first signed on 6 February 1840 by representatives of the British Crown and various Māori chiefs from the North Island of New Zealand....
claims) which it continued to manage. New Zealand Rail Limited was privatised in 1993, with the new owners adopting the name Tranz Rail
Tranz Rail
Tranz Rail, formally Tranz Rail Holdings Ltd , was the main rail operator in New Zealand from 1991 until it was purchased by Toll Holdings in 2003.- Formation :...
in 1995.
During the period of private ownership of the network, Tranz Rail was widely accused of diverting freight to its trucks and forcing other freight off the rails. It was also accused of deliberately running down some lines through lack of maintenance. The Midland Line
Midland Line, New Zealand
The Midland line is a 212 km section of railway between Rolleston and Greymouth in the South Island of New Zealand. The line features five major bridges, five viaducts and 17 tunnels, the longest of which is the Otira tunnel.-Freight services:...
, which mostly carries coal from the West Coast to Lyttelton, was assessed to be in a safe but poor state by the LTSA
Land Transport New Zealand
Land Transport New Zealand was a Crown entity in New Zealand, tasked with promoting safe and functional transport by land, and includes responsibilities such as driver and vehicle licensing...
government safety body in 2003, and has needed major repairs. One of the reasons often cited for these policies was the cost of using road transport was less than using rail, because the road infrastructure was provided as a public good
Public good
In economics, a public good is a good that is non-rival and non-excludable. Non-rivalry means that consumption of the good by one individual does not reduce availability of the good for consumption by others; and non-excludability means that no one can be effectively excluded from using the good...
, whereas the rail network was a private good
Private good
A private good is defined in economics as "an item that yields positive benefits to people” that is excludable, i.e. its owners can exercise private property rights, preventing those who have not paid for it from using the good or consuming its benefits; and rivalrous, i.e. consumption by one...
. Tranz Rail was also alleged to have denied reasonable access to the rail network by heritage operators, who were faced with a lack of access to certification resources and high charges that made their operations marginally economic at best. In recent years heritage groups have also faced increased bureaucratic requirements in the arena of safety certification, as well as problems obtaining suitable public liability insurance.
The government purchased the Auckland metropolitan rail network from Tranz Rail for $81 million in 2002. Tranz Rail retained slots for freight trains, and the Auckland Regional Council was granted slots for it to tender the operation of suburban passenger trains. Auckland railway stations not already local authority owned were transferred to Auckland Regional Transport Network Limited (ARTNL), owned by the Auckland territorial authorities, which was merged with the Auckland Regional Transport Authority (ARTA), a subsidiary of the Auckland Regional Council (ARC).
In 2003 shares in Tranz Rail dropped to a record low price on the New Zealand sharemarket
New Zealand Exchange
NZX Limited is a stock exchange located in Wellington, New Zealand. Since July 2005 it has been located in NZX Centre, the renovated Odlins building on the Wellington waterfront...
as a result of its poor financial state. The government then considered various schemes for bailing it out in return for regaining control of the rail infrastructure. Cited reasons included moving freight traffic from road to rail and ensuring access to the tracks for all interested parties. Toll Holdings
Toll Holdings
TOLL , properly TOLL Holdings Limited, is Australia's largest transport company, based in Melbourne, Victoria. The company has operations in road, rail, sea and air in 55 countries....
of Australia made a successful takeover bid for Tranz Rail, subject to an agreement to sell back the infrastructure to the government for $1. This transaction took place in July 2004. The government committed to $200 million of taxpayer funding on deferred maintenance and capital improvements via a new subsidiary of the New Zealand Railways Corporation, ONTRACK. ONTRACK was then to negotiate rail access fees with the new company, Toll NZ
Toll NZ
Toll Group Limited is a New Zealand trucking company. A subsidiary of the Australian company Toll Holdings, it has its headquarters in Auckland. It carries out operations by road and in the air, and formerly by rail and sea....
, but these negotiations eventually fell into arbitration at the start of 2008.
In May 2008 the government successfully concluded negotiations for the purchase from Toll of its rail and ferry assets, for NZ$690 million from 1 July 2008. The name of the new organisation created to operate services on the rail network was revealed to be KiwiRail
KiwiRail
KiwiRail Holdings Limited is the rail operations subsidiary of the New Zealand Railways Corporation, which trades as KiwiRail. Headquartered in Wellington, New Zealand, KiwiRail is the largest rail transport operator in New Zealand. Since July 2010 John Spencer has been the Chairman...
at a handover ceremony on that day.
The company has since drafted a 10-year turnaround plan for the rail industry, and two of KiwiRail's major customers, Mainfreight
Mainfreight
Mainfreight Limited is a New Zealand based trucking and logistics firm operating in Australia, China, the United States of America and New Zealand. Bruce Plested founded the firm in 1978, with $2700 and a 1969 Bedford truck. He was later joined by Neil Graham. When the firm was founded, it entered...
and Fonterra
Fonterra
Fonterra Co-operative Group Limited is a New Zealand multinational dairy co-operative owned by almost 10,500 New Zealand farmers. The company is responsible for approximately 30% of the world's dairy exports and with revenue exceeding NZ$19.87 billion, is New Zealand's largest company.- History :In...
, are also investing heavily in rail-related infrastructure. Mainfreight has allocated $60 million for investment in new railhead depots, while Fonterra has invested $130m new rail hub complex in Hamilton and another planned for Mosgiel
Mosgiel
Mosgiel is an urban satellite of Dunedin in Otago, New Zealand, fifteen kilometres west of the city's centre. Since the re-organisation of New Zealand local government in 1989 it has been inside the Dunedin City Council area, but was physically separate from the contiguous suburbs until...
.
Accidents
New Zealand's most serious rail disaster occurred on Christmas Eve 1953, during the visit of Queen Elizabeth II, when a laharLahar
A lahar is a type of mudflow or debris flow composed of a slurry of pyroclastic material, rocky debris, and water. The material flows down from a volcano, typically along a river valley. The term is a shortened version of "berlahar" which originated in the Javanese language of...
washed away the bridge at Tangiwai
Tangiwai disaster
The Tangiwai disaster on 24 December 1953 was the worst rail accident in New Zealand history. An 11-carriage overnight express from Wellington to Auckland fell into the Whangaehu River at Tangiwai, ten kilometres west of Waiouru. The bridge carrying the North Island Main Trunk Railway over the...
. 151 lives were lost when the bridge collapsed as a Wellington-Auckland express passenger train was crossing it.
Network ownership
Ownership of the national rail network is vested KiwiRail Network, formerly known as ONTRACK, a division of the New Zealand Railways Corporation. KiwiRail Network owns and maintains the rail infrastructure, and is responsible for the control of the network (i.e. train control and signalling).The primary operator is KiwiRail
KiwiRail
KiwiRail Holdings Limited is the rail operations subsidiary of the New Zealand Railways Corporation, which trades as KiwiRail. Headquartered in Wellington, New Zealand, KiwiRail is the largest rail transport operator in New Zealand. Since July 2010 John Spencer has been the Chairman...
, a separate Railways Corporation division. KiwiRail operates freight services (KiwiRail Freight), long distance passenger services (Tranz Scenic
Tranz Scenic
Tranz Scenic is the long-distance passenger train brand of KiwiRail, formed from the New Zealand Railways Corporation InterCity Rail services. Tranz Scenic was renamed along with the other operating divisions of Tranz Rail in 1995...
), and suburban services in Wellington
Wellington
Wellington is the capital city and third most populous urban area of New Zealand, although it is likely to have surpassed Christchurch due to the exodus following the Canterbury Earthquake. It is at the southwestern tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Rimutaka Range...
(under the subsidiary Tranz Metro
Tranz Metro
Tranz Metro, part of KiwiRail, is the operator of Metlink suburban trains owned by the Greater Wellington Regional Council in the Wellington Region of New Zealand....
). Other rail operating companies include Veolia
Veolia (New Zealand)
Veolia Transport Auckland, formerly Connex Auckland Ltd, is a division of Australasia's largest passenger train company, French-owned Veolia. It runs Auckland's urban passenger trains under contract from Auckland Transport under their MAXX brand, on infrastructure owned and managed by KiwiRail...
, who operates suburban services in Auckland
Auckland
The Auckland metropolitan area , in the North Island of New Zealand, is the largest and most populous urban area in the country with residents, percent of the country's population. Auckland also has the largest Polynesian population of any city in the world...
, and Taieri Gorge Railway
Taieri Gorge Railway
The Taieri Gorge Railway is a railway line and tourist train operation based at Dunedin Railway Station in the South Island of New Zealand...
, who operates tourist trains around Dunedin
Dunedin
Dunedin is the second-largest city in the South Island of New Zealand, and the principal city of the Otago Region. It is considered to be one of the four main urban centres of New Zealand for historic, cultural, and geographic reasons. Dunedin was the largest city by territorial land area until...
.
Track
The New Zealand rail network has around 4128 kilometres (2,565 mi) of line, of which about 506 kilometres (314.4 mi) is electrifiedRailway electrification system
A railway electrification system supplies electrical energy to railway locomotives and multiple units as well as trams so that they can operate without having an on-board prime mover. There are several different electrification systems in use throughout the world...
. At the network's peak in 1953, some 5689 kilometres (3,535 mi) of line was open. There are currently 1787 bridges and 150 tunnels (totalling 80 km in length) on the rail network.
The entire network is built to the , chosen due to the need to cross mountainous terrain in the country's interior and the lower cost of construction.
Difficult terrain meant that some lines took years to complete, and has necessitated a number of complicated engineering feats, notably the Raurimu Spiral
Raurimu Spiral
The Raurimu Spiral is a single-track railway spiral, starting with a horseshoe curve, overcoming a 132 m height difference, in the central North Island of New Zealand, on the North Island Main Trunk Railway. It is a notable feat of civil engineering, having been called an 'engineering masterpiece'...
and Rimutaka Incline (no longer in use).
The network has been the subject of major upgrading works on a number of occasions. The most major of these were the Tawa Flat deviation
Tawa Flat deviation
The Tawa Flat deviation is a double-track section of the North Island Main Trunk Railway just north of Wellington, New Zealand. It includes two tunnels, Tawa No. 1 and Tawa No. 2 , separated by the Ngauranga Gorge. No. 2 tunnel passes under Newlands and comes out at Glenside, on the way to Tawa...
in Wellington, opened 19 June 1937; the Rimutaka deviation
Rimutaka Tunnel
The Rimutaka Tunnel is a railway tunnel through New Zealand's Rimutaka Ranges, between Maymorn, near Upper Hutt, and Featherston, on the Wairarapa Line.The tunnel, which was opened to traffic on 3 November 1955, is long...
to the Wairarapa, 3 November 1955; and the Kaimai deviation
Kaimai Tunnel
The Kaimai Tunnel is a railway tunnel through the Kaimai Range in the North Island of New Zealand. Since it was opened in 1978, it has held the title of longest tunnel in New Zealand, assuming this distinction from the previous title holder, the Rimutaka Tunnel...
in the Bay of Plenty, 12 September 1978. All of these involved major tunnelling works, of close to 9 kilometres (5.6 mi) each in the two latter cases. Significant infrastructure improvements were also carried out on the North Island Main Trunk in the mid 1980s, some as part of the electrification scheme.
Current major projects include electrification of the Auckland suburban network
Auckland Railway electrification
The Auckland railway electrification has been proposed for several decades, but physical works only began in the late 2000s. After investment into new infrastructure and improved services created massive patronage gains on Auckland's commuter rail network in the middle 2000s, the long-discussed...
, and a proposed rail link
Marsden Point Branch
The Marsden Point Branch is a proposed branch line railway in the Northland region of New Zealand's North Island. It would diverge from the North Auckland Line south of Whangarei and serve Northland Port at Marsden Point...
to a deep sea port at Marsden Point
Marsden Point
Marsden Point is a head of the Whangarei Harbour, near Whangarei, New Zealand, lying close to the northern tip of Bream Bay. It is also a major industrial area, containing Marsden Point Oil Refinery, the country's only such facility, and two large defunct power plant stations...
. As part of a major capital injection announced in 2010, a number of regional lines are under threat of closure:
- All lines that form part of the North Auckland Line in Northland;
- The Stratford–Okahukura Line in Taranaki; (mothballed since 2009)
- The northern portion of the Wairarapa LineWairarapa LineThe Wairarapa Line is a secondary railway line in the south-east of the North Island of New Zealand, connecting the capital city of Wellington with the Wairarapa region. The line ends at Woodville, where it joins the Palmerston North - Gisborne Line...
; - The Gisborne - Napier section of the Palmerston North - Gisborne LinePalmerston North - Gisborne LineThe Palmerston North – Gisborne Line is a secondary main line railway in the North Island of New Zealand. It branches from the North Island Main Trunk Railway in Palmerston North and runs east through the Manawatu Gorge to Woodville, where it meets the Wairarapa Line, and then proceeds to...
.
As part of KiwiRail's 10 year long-term plan, most new capital will be spent on locomotives, wagons and the Auckland - Wellington - Christchurch freight corridor. Decisions on regional lines will be made in 2012.
Motive power
From its inception until the 1950s, steam locomotives were the main motive power on New Zealand's railways. Three sections of line were electrified at 1500V DC - Arthur's Pass to Otira (electrified 1923), Christchurch to Lyttelton (1929), and the Wellington suburban network (1938–40, 1953–55), of which only Wellington's system exists today.Dieselisation
Dieselisation
Dieselisation or dieselization is a term generally used for the increasingly common use of diesel fuel in vehicles, as opposed to gasoline or steam engines.-Water Transport:...
began in the late 1940s with shunting engines. The first mainline locomotives, the English Electric DF class
NZR DF class (1954)
The NZR DF class of 1954 was the first class of mainline diesel-electric locomotives built for New Zealand's national railway network, built by English Electric...
, was introduced in 1954, but it wasn't until the introduction of the DA class
NZR DA class
The NZR Da diesel-electric mainline locomotive class ran on the New Zealand railway system between 1955 and 1989. With 146 locomotives, it was the most numerous class to operate in New Zealand, just five more than the AB class steam locomotive....
the following year that steam began to be seriously displaced. The last steam locomotive to be built by NZR, JA 1274
NZR JA class
The NZR JA class were a type of 4-8-2 steam locomotive used on the New Zealand railway network. The class was built in two batches, with the second batch possessing some differences from the first...
, was turned out in December 1956, and by 1967, steam had all but disappeared from the North Island. Steam remained in the South Island until 16 November 1971, when the last seven JA locomotives that worked the Main South Line were withdrawn from revenue service.
In 1988 25 kV AC
25 kV AC
The 25 kV Alternating current railway electrification system is commonly used in railways worldwide, especially for high-speed rail.-Overview:This electrification system is ideal for railways that cover long distances and/or carry heavy traffic...
electrification of the North Island Main Trunk between Palmerston North and Hamilton was commissioned. Since 1983 a small number of privately owned steam and diesel locomotives have been permitted to operate special trains.
The Norwegian coupling
Norwegian coupling
A Norwegian coupling or meat chopper is a manual coupling consisting of a central buffer with a mechanical hook that drops into a slot in the central buffer...
was the standard coupler used in New Zealand for non-passenger rolling stock and locomotives until recently. AAR couplers have been progressively introduced, especially with newer rolling stock and rebuilt locomotives.
Freight
Containerization
Containerization is a system of freight transport based on a range of steel intermodal containers...
and palletised products. Major bulk freight includes coal, lime, steel, wood and wood products, paper pulp, milk, cars, fertiliser, grain and shipping containers
Intermodal container
An intermodal container is a standardized reusable steel box used for the safe, efficient and secure storage and movement of materials and products within a global containerized intermodal freight transport system...
. Freight operations are carried out by KiwiRail.
Most freight services are geared towards export industries, with most services emphasising capacity. For example, coal services on the Midland line
Midland Line, New Zealand
The Midland line is a 212 km section of railway between Rolleston and Greymouth in the South Island of New Zealand. The line features five major bridges, five viaducts and 17 tunnels, the longest of which is the Otira tunnel.-Freight services:...
, headed by two class DX
NZR DX class
The NZR DX class is a class of 49 Co-Co diesel-electric locomotives that currently operates on New Zealand's national railway network.Built by General Electric in Erie, Pennsylvania, United States, they were introduced to New Zealand between 1972 and 1976. The class is based on the General Electric...
locomotives, generally consist of 30 coal hopper
Hopper car
A hopper car is a type of railroad freight car used to transport loose bulk commodities such as coal, ore, grain, track ballast, and the like. The name originated from the coke manufacturing industry which is part of the steel industry ....
wagons with a total capacity of 1,600 tonnes. In the 2006 - 2007 financial year, 2.9 million tonnes of coal were carried by rail. In the ten months to May 2009, KiwiRail moved 729 million litres of milk by rail from Oringi in the southern Hawke's Bay through Palmerston North for processing in Hawera, south Taranaki.
The previous record for milk volumes was set in the 2000 - 2001 season when 700 million litres were moved. Last year 625 million litres were carried along the same route.
The former rail operator Tranz Rail had been accused of forcing freight onto the roads. In 2002, Tranz Rail introduced a controversial containerisation scheme that assumed that most freight would be carried in containers on unit trains made up of fixed consists of flat deck wagons. Container loading depots were constructed at the major freight terminals. As a result, the government has required minimum level of freight tonnages for Toll to keep its monopoly freight rights on most lines, since renationalising the rail network from Tranz Rail in 2003.
Freight levels have now reached the level that they were at when the railway had a virtual monopoly, prior to 1983. In 1980 11.8 million tonnes of freight was moved by rail, in 1994 this had decreased to 9.4 million tonnes. By 1999 tonnes carried had increased to 12.9 million tonnes, slightly more than the 1975 peak. In the 2006 - 2007 financial year, 13.7 million tonnes of freight were carried. This equated to 3.96 million net tonne kilometres (or the amount of tonnes of traffic gained in 2008 - 2009 compared to the amount of traffic hauled in the 2006 - 2007 year) in the 2008 - 2009 financial year, about 15% of the total freight market.
After the 1983 land transport deregulation there was substantial rationalisation of freight facilities; many stations and smaller yards were closed and freight train services were sped up, increased in length and made heavier, with the removal of guard's vans in 1987 and the gradual elimination of older rolling stock, particularly four-wheeled wagons.
In recent years the amount of freight moved by rail has increased substantially, and started to gain market share in non-bulk areas as well. Freight on the North Island Main Trunk line between Auckland and Palmerston North saw an increase of 39% in freight volumes between 2006 and 2007. The five daily trains on the 667 km line reduced truck volumes on the route by around 120 per day. In 2008, the government proposed to spend $150m to enlarge tunnels for the bigger ISO containers now operating.
A 2008 study by the Ministry of Transport predicted that by 2031 rail freight volumes would increase to 23 million tonnes per annum, or 70% on the 2006 - 2007 financial year.
Long-distance passenger services
In the heyday of passenger rail in the 1950s and 1960s most provincial routes had railcar and locomotive-hauled passenger services. In 1965, 25 million passengers traveled by rail, by 1998 this had decreased to 11.7 million. Today now there are only four long-distance routes: the Overlander between AucklandAuckland
The Auckland metropolitan area , in the North Island of New Zealand, is the largest and most populous urban area in the country with residents, percent of the country's population. Auckland also has the largest Polynesian population of any city in the world...
and Wellington
Wellington
Wellington is the capital city and third most populous urban area of New Zealand, although it is likely to have surpassed Christchurch due to the exodus following the Canterbury Earthquake. It is at the southwestern tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Rimutaka Range...
(which was to be withdrawn in September 2006, but continues on a reduced timetable), the Capital Connection between Wellington and Palmerston North
Palmerston North
Palmerston North is the main city of the Manawatu-Wanganui region of the North Island of New Zealand. It is an inland city with a population of and is the country's seventh largest city and eighth largest urban area. Palmerston North is located in the eastern Manawatu Plains near the north bank...
, the TranzCoastal between Picton
Picton, New Zealand
Picton is a town in the Marlborough region of New Zealand. It is close to the head of Queen Charlotte Sound near the north-east corner of the South Island. The population was 2928 in the 2006 Census, a decrease of 72 from 2001...
and Christchurch
Christchurch
Christchurch is the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand, and the country's second-largest urban area after Auckland. It lies one third of the way down the South Island's east coast, just north of Banks Peninsula which itself, since 2006, lies within the formal limits of...
, and the TranzAlpine
TranzAlpine
The TranzAlpine Express is a passenger train operated by Tranz Scenic in the South Island of New Zealand. This trip is often regarded to be one of the world's great train journeys for the scenery through which it passes . The journey is one-way, taking about four and a half hours...
between Christchurch and Greymouth
Greymouth
Greymouth is the largest town in the West Coast region in the South Island of New Zealand, and the seat of the Grey District Council. The population of the whole Grey District is , which accounts for % of the West Coast's inhabitants...
. Long-distance passenger services are operated by Tranz Scenic
Tranz Scenic
Tranz Scenic is the long-distance passenger train brand of KiwiRail, formed from the New Zealand Railways Corporation InterCity Rail services. Tranz Scenic was renamed along with the other operating divisions of Tranz Rail in 1995...
, a part of KiwiRail
KiwiRail
KiwiRail Holdings Limited is the rail operations subsidiary of the New Zealand Railways Corporation, which trades as KiwiRail. Headquartered in Wellington, New Zealand, KiwiRail is the largest rail transport operator in New Zealand. Since July 2010 John Spencer has been the Chairman...
. The Wairarapa Connection is sometimes regarded as a long-distance service but is run by Wellington's commuter rail operator, Tranz Metro
Tranz Metro
Tranz Metro, part of KiwiRail, is the operator of Metlink suburban trains owned by the Greater Wellington Regional Council in the Wellington Region of New Zealand....
, also part of KiwiRail.
A number of services came to an end in the early 2000s: the Kaimai Express to Tauranga, the Geyserland Express to Rotorua, and the Bay Express to Napier all ceased in 2001; The Southerner from Christchurch, through Dunedin
Dunedin
Dunedin is the second-largest city in the South Island of New Zealand, and the principal city of the Otago Region. It is considered to be one of the four main urban centres of New Zealand for historic, cultural, and geographic reasons. Dunedin was the largest city by territorial land area until...
to Invercargill
Invercargill
Invercargill is the southernmost and westernmost city in New Zealand, and one of the southernmost cities in the world. It is the commercial centre of the Southland region. It lies in the heart of the wide expanse of the Southland Plains on the Oreti or New River some 18 km north of Bluff,...
in 2002—and The Northerner
Northerner (train)
The Northerner was an overnight passenger train between Wellington and Auckland in New Zealand. Originally numbered 227 southbound and 626 northbound, it replaced the unnamed and less revered ordinary express trains supplementing the luxurious Silver Star , which had replaced the Night Limited in...
night service between Auckland and Wellington in 2004.
Suburban passenger services
Both Auckland and Wellington have suburban passenger services. Christchurch and Dunedin formerly had suburban services, but they were withdrawn due to a lack of patronage. KiwiRailKiwiRail
KiwiRail Holdings Limited is the rail operations subsidiary of the New Zealand Railways Corporation, which trades as KiwiRail. Headquartered in Wellington, New Zealand, KiwiRail is the largest rail transport operator in New Zealand. Since July 2010 John Spencer has been the Chairman...
owns Tranz Metro
Tranz Metro
Tranz Metro, part of KiwiRail, is the operator of Metlink suburban trains owned by the Greater Wellington Regional Council in the Wellington Region of New Zealand....
, which operates suburban passenger services in the Wellington region. There are five lines, all electrified except for the Upper Hutt to Masterton services (the Wairarapa Connection). Tranz Metro uses EMUs
Multiple unit
The term multiple unit or MU is used to describe a self-propelled carriages capable of coupling with other units of the same or similar type and still being controlled from one driving cab. The term is commonly used to denote passenger trainsets consisting of more than one carriage...
, and diesel locomotives on non-electrified services. In the 1930s Wellington was the second city (after Christchurch) to have electric suburban trains, and today it is the only city with them. Wellington is regarded as having the best passenger train system in New Zealand.
For nine years Tranz Metro also operated the suburban trains in Auckland, the largest city in New Zealand. However, in mid-2004 Connex (now Veolia New Zealand
Veolia (New Zealand)
Veolia Transport Auckland, formerly Connex Auckland Ltd, is a division of Australasia's largest passenger train company, French-owned Veolia. It runs Auckland's urban passenger trains under contract from Auckland Transport under their MAXX brand, on infrastructure owned and managed by KiwiRail...
) won the contract to run them - Tranz Metro did not tender. There are four lines: the Southern Line, Eastern Line, Western Line and Onehunga Line. All trains are diesel-operated, using both DMUs
Multiple unit
The term multiple unit or MU is used to describe a self-propelled carriages capable of coupling with other units of the same or similar type and still being controlled from one driving cab. The term is commonly used to denote passenger trainsets consisting of more than one carriage...
and locomotive-hauled push-pull trains. Currently, there is a programme to build new lines, reopen old lines (such as the Onehunga Branch, reopened September 2010) and electrify
Auckland Railway electrification
The Auckland railway electrification has been proposed for several decades, but physical works only began in the late 2000s. After investment into new infrastructure and improved services created massive patronage gains on Auckland's commuter rail network in the middle 2000s, the long-discussed...
existing lines to improve the quality and frequency of services. Most Auckland rolling stock is owned and all services are funded by the Auckland Regional Transport Authority (ARTA).
Heritage passenger services
Four heritage rail operators, the Railway Enthusiasts SocietyRailway Enthusiasts Society
The Railway Enthusiasts Society Incorporated is a New Zealand railway enthusiast society registered under the Incorporated Societies Act 1908 on 17 July 1958.-Objectives:The RES objectives are as follows:...
, Steam Incorporated
Steam Incorporated
Steam Incorporated, often abbreviated to Steam Inc., is a railway heritage and preservation society based at the Paekakariki Railway Station, Paekakariki at the southern end of the Kapiti Coast, approximately 50 minutes north of Wellington on the west coast of New Zealand's North Island. Unlike...
, Mainline Steam
Mainline Steam
Mainline Steam is a New Zealand organisation devoted to the restoration and operation of historic New Zealand Railways mainline steam locomotives. Regular day excursions and multi-day tours are operated over rail lines throughout New Zealand...
Trust and the Otago Excursion Train Trust, own and operate their own carriage and mainline-certified steam or diesel locomotive fleets. These groups have operated special excursion trains on the national network since 1978, and have been allowed to use suitable locomotives to haul these trains since 1983. A small number of other groups have overhauled their own locomotives for main-line use with either heritage or public passenger carriages.
Workshops
The New Zealand Railways DepartmentNew Zealand Railways Department
The New Zealand Railways Department, NZR or NZGR and often known as the "Railways", was a government department charged with owning and maintaining New Zealand's railway infrastructure and operating the railway system. The Department was created in 1880 and was reformed in 1981 into the New...
had major workshops at Addington
Addington Workshops
The Addington Railway Workshops was a major railway facility established in the Christchurch suburb of Addington in May 1880 by the New Zealand Railways Department. The workshops were previously in Carlyle Street and closed in 1990.-Description:...
(Christchurch), Easttown
East Town Railway Workshops
The East Town Railway Workshops were a major manufacturing, maintenance and repair facility of the New Zealand Railways Department located by the Marton - New Plymouth Line in the city of Wanganui in New Zealand’s North Island. Output included not only rolling stock but also tools, equipment,...
(Wanganui), Hillside
Hillside Engineering
Hillside Engineering Group is a trading division of the rail operator KiwiRail in Dunedin, New Zealand. Most of its work is related to KiwiRail, but it also does work for the marine industry in Dunedin.-History:...
(Dunedin), Petone
Petone Workshops
The Petone Workshops were a government-owned railways maintenance and repair facility located in Petone, in Lower Hutt in the Wellington region of New Zealand’s North Island...
(Lower Hutt, near Wellington) then Hutt
Hutt Workshops
The Hutt Railway Workshops is a major railway engineering facility in the Lower Hutt suburb of Gracefield in the Wellington region of New Zealand’s North Island...
(Lower Hutt, near Wellington) and Newmarket
Newmarket Workshops
Newmarket Workshops in Auckland was a major New Zealand Railways Department facility, one of 13 workshops nationwide. It was one of two main railway workshops of Auckland, used mainly for maintenance; the older facility at Newmarket was replaced in 1929 by Otahuhu Workshops.- First Workshops :The...
then Otahuhu
Otahuhu Workshops
Otahuhu railway workshops were a major rolling stock maintenance and repair facility of the New Zealand Government Railways Department, in the south Auckland suburb of Otahuhu in New Zealand's North Island...
, (Auckland). Only Hutt and Hillside are still operating.
Heritage and museum railways
About 60 groups operate rail heritage lines or museums. Almost all are members of the Federation of Rail Organisations of New Zealand, and they include street tramways and bush tramways as well as railways. Large-scale rail preservation in New Zealand got underway in the 1960s when many steam locomotives were withdrawn and branch lines closed.Rail museums in New Zealand usually focus on storage and displays of rolling stock with a short line of around 1 km in length on which trains are operated. This covers most of the historic rail groups in New Zealand. A smaller number of lines are operated as heritage railways, usually on a closed section of a former national network branch line. Typically these lines are longer, usually 5 km or more, and most of their activities are focused on train operations with less emphasis on display and storage.
Current operations of the heritage railway
Heritage railway
thumb|right|the Historical [[Khyber train safari|Khyber Railway]] goes through the [[Khyber Pass]], [[Pakistan]]A heritage railway , preserved railway , tourist railway , or tourist railroad is a railway that is run as a tourist attraction, in some cases by volunteers, and...
type include the Glenbrook Vintage Railway
Glenbrook Vintage Railway
The Glenbrook Vintage Railway is a steam railway in Glenbrook, New Zealand. One of New Zealand's premiere rail heritage sites, it is not a museum as such, but rather a fully self-supporting, operating steam railway, built almost entirely by volunteer labour...
, Bush Tramway Club, Waitara Railway Preservation Society, Weka Pass Railway
Weka Pass Railway
The Weka Pass Railway is a New Zealand heritage railway based in Waipara, North Canterbury. It is operated on a 12 km length of the former Waiau Branch railway between Waipara and Waikari. The railway is operated by an incorporated society whose members come from all walks of life and are largely...
, and Taieri Gorge Railway
Taieri Gorge Railway
The Taieri Gorge Railway is a railway line and tourist train operation based at Dunedin Railway Station in the South Island of New Zealand...
. The Taieri Gorge Railway, which is a Local Authority Trading Enterprise of the Dunedin City Council, is 60 km in length, making it the most ambitious project of its type to date. All other lines are operated by voluntary societies. The Weka Pass Railway at 13 km is the most lengthy of these. The Bay of Islands Vintage Railway
Bay of Islands Vintage Railway
The Bay of Islands Vintage Railway Trust is a heritage railway in Kawakawa, in Northland in New Zealand. The railway operates on part of the former Opua Branch railway.-History:...
is 11 km in length, but is in poor condition; having operated its first trains through Kawakawa since operations ceased in 2000 for two weeks from 3 July 2007, the Society is now working on rehabilitating the track between Kawakawa and Opua.
See also
- KiwiRailKiwiRailKiwiRail Holdings Limited is the rail operations subsidiary of the New Zealand Railways Corporation, which trades as KiwiRail. Headquartered in Wellington, New Zealand, KiwiRail is the largest rail transport operator in New Zealand. Since July 2010 John Spencer has been the Chairman...
- List of New Zealand railway museums and heritage lines
- ONTRACKOnTrackOnTrack was a regional rail line that operated in Syracuse, New York from 1994 to 2007. During its operation, Syracuse was the smallest city in the United States to have regional train service. The line ran from Colvin Street on the city's south side via Syracuse University and Armory Square to the...
- Public transport in New ZealandPublic transport in New ZealandPublic transport in New Zealand exists in many of the country's urban areas, and takes a number of forms. Bus transport is the main form of public transport. Two major cities, Auckland and Wellington, also have suburban rail systems which have been gaining more patronage and new investment in...
- Rail privatisation in New ZealandRail privatisation in New ZealandRail privatisation in New Zealand took place between 1993 and 2008.- History :New Zealand's railways were initially run by the former provincial governments. The Canterbury Provincial Railways opened the first line, the Ferrymead Railway, in 1863....
- Toll NZToll NZToll Group Limited is a New Zealand trucking company. A subsidiary of the Australian company Toll Holdings, it has its headquarters in Auckland. It carries out operations by road and in the air, and formerly by rail and sea....
- Trams in New ZealandTrams in New ZealandTrams in New Zealand were a major form of transport from the 19th century into the mid 20th century. New Zealand's first tramway was established in 1862 , followed by a steam tramway in 1871 , and the first electric tramway in 1900 . The tram systems in the main centres, and in some smaller towns,...
- Transport in New ZealandTransport in New ZealandTransport in New Zealand, with its mountainous topography and a relatively small population mostly located near its long coastline, has always faced many challenges. Before Europeans arrived, Māori either walked or used watercraft on rivers or along the coasts...
- Tranz MetroTranz MetroTranz Metro, part of KiwiRail, is the operator of Metlink suburban trains owned by the Greater Wellington Regional Council in the Wellington Region of New Zealand....
- Tranz ScenicTranz ScenicTranz Scenic is the long-distance passenger train brand of KiwiRail, formed from the New Zealand Railways Corporation InterCity Rail services. Tranz Scenic was renamed along with the other operating divisions of Tranz Rail in 1995...
- Tunnels in New ZealandTunnels in New ZealandThis is a link page for railway, road and waterway tunnels, including hydroelectric intakes and tailraces and gun battery tunnels. It includes artificial chambers but excludes New Zealand caves and New Zealand mines.-For hydroelectric usage:...
, section on Rail Tunnels - Veolia (New Zealand)Veolia (New Zealand)Veolia Transport Auckland, formerly Connex Auckland Ltd, is a division of Australasia's largest passenger train company, French-owned Veolia. It runs Auckland's urban passenger trains under contract from Auckland Transport under their MAXX brand, on infrastructure owned and managed by KiwiRail...
External links
- Railway Stations from NZ History online (with Media Gallery)
- Rail Tourism from NZ History online (with Media Gallery)
- New Zealand Railways Magazine at the New Zealand Electronic Text CentreNew Zealand Electronic Text CentreThe New Zealand Electronic Text Centre is a unit of the library at the Victoria University of Wellington which provides a free online archive of New Zealand and Pacific Islands texts and heritage materials. The NZETC has an ongoing programme of digitisation and feature additions to the current...
- Regulation of Rail Transport in New Zealand
- Railways Act 2005