Rail transport in Christchurch
There is a heritage line at the Ferrymead Historic Park that is operated with steam, electric, and diesel motive power hauling tourist-oriented services.
The port at Lyttelton is a significant destination for rail freight, particularly for coal from the west coast transported over the Midland Line.
From the 1930s, rail faced increasing competition from road transport, leading to the piecemeal closure of the branch line network up to the 1960s.
Edward Dobson, Provincial Engineer for the Canterbury Province in 1854–68, was responsible for designing and overseeing the construction of many important public works.
Railway lines in Christchurch were at first constructed by the Canterbury Provincial Council to a gauge of 5 ft 3 in (1,600 mm) due to the availability of rolling stock and motive power from Australia using this gauge, with these lines reaching south to Rakaia (in June 1873) and north to Amberley (in February 1876).
Control over the railways passed to the Colonial Government following abolition of the provinces on 1 November 1876, and all lines were re-gauged to the new national standard of 3 ft 6 in (1,067 mm).
The Main North Line was built to serve many purposes: to provide suburban passenger services to Christchurch; transport rural settlers and their produce from agricultural areas to the north of Christchurch; and eventually provide a link to the areas of Marlborough, Nelson and the West Coast.
The Main South Line was constructed to link the port at Lyttelton to Christchurch and to agricultural areas in the Selwyn District.
Manufactured imports were distributed mainly from Christchurch and Dunedin, with agricultural produce exported from Port Chalmers, Oamaru, Timaru and Lyttelton.
The South Island Main Trunk connected the major centres to the branch lines rather than handling long-haul traffic.
Suburban and regional passenger services have operated to termini including Ferrymead, Lyttelton, Rolleston, Burnham, Whitecliffs, Springfield, Little River, Southbridge, Rangiora, and Ashburton.
As the South Island rail network was gradually extended and eventually completed, various long-distance passenger services were introduced and replaced.
The Picton Express was introduced in 1945 upon completion of the Main North Line and, following a period during which railcars ran on this route, was superseded by the Coastal Pacific.
The Electric Traction Group based at the Ferrymead Historic Park has preserved and returned to operational status locomotive EC 7.
[5] Two long-distance passenger services operate from Christchurch: the TranzAlpine to Greymouth and the Coastal Pacific to Picton with departures each morning, returning in the evening.
[7][8][9] Upon review of the ECan commissioned report, the New Zealand Transport Agency rejected the proposal citing cost and the availability of the necessary infrastructure as major concerns.
In August 2005, a small-scale study involving three focus groups was conducted to gauge public interest in commuter rail for Christchurch.
A report commissioned in 2005 by Environment Canterbury from consultants GHD Limited (Network Level Investigative Report – Proposed Introduction of Commuter Rail Services to Christchurch City and Environs, June 2005) suggested that commuter rail would involve substantial costs and further investigation would be needed to determine what the requirements are.
[13] Pete Hodgson, as Minister for Transport, indicated that, providing passenger rail is incorporated into the Regional Land Transport Strategy, central government would be prepared to meet 60% of the costs of purchasing rolling stock and extending infrastructure if so required, and noted that the initiative is consistent with the National Rail Strategy.
[15] Following a meeting held by Environment Canterbury in April 2005 to discuss options for passenger rail in Christchurch, engineering consultants GHD Limited were commissioned to prepare a report.
Limited services would be provided south of Islington, and an upgrade of the Rangiora station would be included to cater for commuters from Woodend.
[19] [20] [21] [22] [23] [24] [25] In May 2021 Transport Minister Michael Woods said that the government was keen to get rapid transit in the form of Light Rail or Bus Corridors moving in Christchurch[26] Work on a new Waltham Mechanical Hub to centralise maintenance began in 2020.
[28] On 18 February 2022 it was announced that the committee had asked for more information before agreeing to a notice of motion with all members (all mayors) saying that they felt it came quite late and instead of forming a working group they voted to request a report from staff before their next meeting in May and that the report would have to outline costs, funding mechanisms and how it lined up with similar projects, in consultation with district council staff, they did this because the original motion would not have gone through and then the opportunity would have been lost, Tane Apanui who put forward the original notice of motion felt it could delay the project and hurt it.
[26] Several rail heritage organisations are based in Christchurch, most of which were established to preserve rolling stock from the steam era.
It also has a large collection of stored or restored heritage rolling stock on site, as well as several rail-related facilities including workshops and two stations.
