It is the terminus station for Eastern Line services between Manukau and Waitematā in central Auckland.

[3] Station works were essentially finished by October 2011,[4] and the Manukau Branch line, a 2.5 km spur line[5] off the North Island Main Trunk railway, opened on 15 April 2012.

Similarly, all Southern Line trains began terminating at Papakura or Pukekohe.

In April 2018, Manukau was the 11th busiest train station on the Auckland network with an average of 1,650 passengers on a typical weekday.

[11] It was officially opened on 7 April 2018, and bus services from the facility began the following day.