List of New Zealand railway lines.html
 
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The New Zealand railway network consists of four main lines, seven secondary lines and numerous short branch lines in almost every region. It links all major urban centres, with the notable exceptions of Nelson and Taupo. The network is owned and managed by the New Zealand Railways Corporation, trading as ONTRACK. The network was constructed from 1863 onwards, mostly by government bodies, initially by the Provincial and later by central government (usually the Public Works Department). In 1993 New Zealand Rail Limited was privatised (and later renamed Tranz Rail), with the New Zealand Railways Corporation retaining the land (due to Treaty of Waitangi claims on land taken for railway construction). In 2003 the government renationalised the network. Toll Rail operates all freight and most passenger services (including Tranz Metro passenger trains in the Wellington region), Veolia operates MAXX suburban passenger trains in Auckland and the Taieri Gorge Railway operates tourist passenger trains in Dunedin.

Contents

New Zealand national rail network

North Island Rail Network Map
North Island Rail Network Map
South Island Rail Network Map
South Island Rail Network Map

Main Trunk Lines

Name Route Usage
North Island Main Trunk Railway Wellington - Palmerston North - Taumarunui - Hamilton - Auckland Freight & Passenger
East Coast Main Trunk Railway Hamilton - Tauranga - Kawerau Freight only
Main North Line Christchurch - Kaikoura - Blenheim - Picton Freight & Passenger
Main South Line Lyttelton - Christchurch - Timaru - Dunedin - Invercargill Freight & Passenger (Christchurch - Rolleston)
Freight only (Lyttleton - Christchurch, Rolleston - Invercargill)

The latter two lines are sometimes referred to as the South Island Main Trunk Railway

Secondary Main Lines

Name Route Usage
Marton - New Plymouth Line Marton - Wanganui - Hawera - New Plymouth Freight only
Midland Line Rolleston - Springfield - Arthurs Pass - Greymouth Freight & Passenger
North Auckland Line Auckland - Waitakere - Helensville - Wellsford - Whangarei - Otiria Freight and Passenger south of Waitakere Station
Freight only Waitakere to Otiria
Palmerston North - Gisborne Line Palmerston North - Woodville - Waipukurau - Hastings - Napier - Gisborne Freight only
Stillwater - Westport Line Stillwater - Reefton - Westport - Ngakawau Freight only
Stratford - Okahukura Line Stratford - Whangamomona - Okahukura Freight only
Wairarapa Line Wellington - Upper Hutt - Masterton - Woodville Freight & Passenger Wellington to Masterton
Freight only Masterton to Woodville

Branch lines

Northland

Name Route Usage
Dargaville Branch Waiotira - Dargaville Freight only
Donnellys Crossing Section Dargaville - Kaihu - Donnellys Crossing Closed 1959
Kumeu-Riverhead Section Kumeu - Riverhead Closed 1885
Okaihau Branch Otiria - Kaikohe - Okaihau Closed 1987
Onerahi Branch Whangarei - Onerahi Closed 1933
Opua Branch Otiria - Kawakawa - Opua Closed 1985
Operated by Bay of Islands Vintage Railway

Auckland

Name Route Usage
Auckland - Newmarket Line Auckland CBD - Newmarket Freight & Passenger
Mission Bush Branch Pukekohe - Mission Bush Freight only
Onehunga Branch Penrose - Onehunga Freight only, upgrade for passenger services approved[1]}}
Waiuku Branch Glenbrook - Waiuku Closed 1967
Now Glenbrook Vintage Railway
Suburban rail lines

Waikato / Coromandel

  • Cambridge Branch (freight only, closed beyond Hautapu)
  • Glen Afton Branch (closed, partially remains as the Bush Tramway Club's Pukemiro Line)
  • Kimihia Branch (freight only)
  • Rotowaro Branch (freight only)
  • Thames Branch (closed beyond Waitoa, remainder now Waitoa Industrial Line)
  • Waitoa Industrial Line (freight only, ex Thames Branch)
  • Wilton Colleries Line (closed)

Bay of Plenty

  • Kinleith Branch (freight only, serves Kinleith Mill)
  • Mount Maunganui Branch (freight only)
  • Murupara Branch (freight only)
  • Rotorua Branch (mothballed)
  • Taneatua Branch (mothballed)
  • Whakatane Industrial Line (closed)

Gisborne - Hawke's Bay

  • Ahuriri Branch (freight only)
  • Moutuhora Branch (closed - mothballed as far as Makaraka)
  • Ngatapa Branch (closed)

Central North Island

Taranaki

  • Castlecliff Branch (mothballed, see note)
  • Kapuni Branch (freight only, ex Opunake Branch)
  • Mount Egmont Branch (closed)
  • Opunake Branch (closed beyond Kapuni, remainder now Kapuni Branch)
  • Waitara Branch (operated by the Waitara Rail Preservation Society)
  • Wanganui Branch (freight only)

Note: On 5 September 2006, ONTRACK issued a bulletin closing the Castlecliff Branch to all traffic. However, it has not been formally closed as this requires written permission from the appropriate government minister. The track is still in place, with a sleeper chained across the track at the start of the branch.

Manawatu

Wairarapa

Wellington

Nelson

Westland

Canterbury

Otago / Southland

Private lines

Parts of the network were constructed by private companies, and most were unsuccessful. All except the Whakatane Board Mills line and the Sanson Tramway were later acquired by the government. The most successful was the Wellington and Manawatu Railway, which operated between Wellington and Longburn (near Palmerston North) from 1885 to 1908. After the WMR, perhaps the best-known private railway was the New Zealand Midland Railway Company, which constructed parts of the Midland, Nelson and some West Coast lines. After the company was dissolved in 1900 the railway lines and their construction were taken over by the government. Some lines were also built by companies for access such as to coal mines, and by local government bodies.

Significant proposals

Many railway lines have been proposed, especially in the 19th century, but never constructed. Some proposals have been particularly significant due to their extent, publicity, or how close they came to being realised (in some cases, the track bed was built). Some significant proposals include:

Bush tramways

These refer to lines principally constructed to haul timber or minerals, often in isolated areas. A variety of gauges was used, including the NZ standard 1067 mm (3'6"). Typical bush trams were more lightly constructed than ordinary rail lines and had steeper gradients and sharper curves also. With the low speeds that were commonplace, rolling stock and locomotives were generally built to lighter standards than mainline vehicles. It was not uncommon for road vehicles to be adapted for use on the trams, either as haulage power or rolling stock. As road vehicles became more suited for these operations the trams gradually faded away and none are now operating.

A prominent example of a bush tramway was the Taupo Totara Timber Company's line between Putaruru and Mokai, and an example of a mineral tramway was the Dun Mountain Railway.

Street tramways

Major street tramway networks were constructed in Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch and Dunedin, with smaller operations in Gisborne, Napier, New Plymouth, Wanganui, Nelson and Invercargill. Employing horse, steam or electric power, they operated in most cases until the 1950s when improved buses saw most of the tracks scrapped. Christchurch is the only city still with an urban tram operation, which was constructed from scratch in the late 1990s as a tourism venture. See Trams in New Zealand.

Heritage railways

A large number of societies have been set up around New Zealand to operate working heritage railway lines and museums. Most of these are run largely or wholly by volunteer labour, except the Taieri Gorge Railway in Dunedin, which employs paid staff.
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