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MARK TAYLOR / Stuff
The first of the wagons of the new Te Huia passenger rail service from Waikato to Auckland arriving in Hamilton.
The first of the cars of the new Te Huia passenger rail service from Waikato to Auckland stopped in Hamilton on Saturday in a move hailed as “the future of public transport.”
A blessing was held last month for the wagons, which have been undergoing refurbishment since March last year, at KiwiRail’s Hutt workshop with iwi from Wellington and Waikato-Tainui.
The four carriages left Wellington early Saturday morning and were greeted with a karakia from Te Ha or te Whenua or Kirikiriroa as they entered Frankton station.
“This is the future of public transportation and the completion of the first four cars is an important milestone for this project,” said Hugh Vercoe, Waikato regional councilor and chair of the rail governance task force.
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The arrival of the wagons will allow staff training to begin “so that we are ready to go when service begins, which will probably be early next year,” Vercoe said.
“The Waikato Regional Council has been working on this project with the City of Hamilton and the Waikato District Councils, KiwiRail, Auckland Transport and the Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency for some time, with the support of the Government.
“Te Huia will provide reliability in travel time for those regular travelers who would otherwise have to travel the congested State Highway 1 without any certainty about their arrival time.
“They will be able to use this time productively, taking advantage of the trip in a work-friendly environment with free, high-quality WiFi for the entire trip. Even better, this stress-free trip will also reduce the traveler’s exposure to car accident risk. “
Hamilton City Councilman Ewan Wilson said that having high-quality passenger rail service from Waikato to Auckland is exciting for the city.
“Given the current climate, having a connection between the two cities is essential to support the local and regional economy.”
Construction of Rotokauri Station, which also includes a major public bus hub and a parking and transportation facility, has been delayed due to the impact of Auckland’s Covid-19 Alert Level 3 restrictions on supply; however, Huntly Station upgrade works are scheduled.
“Having the wagons finished and on the way to Waikato is an exciting step into the district that will welcome the train to our forest in a few months,” said Waikato District Councilor Eugene Patterson.
Unfortunately, due to Covid-19 restrictions, the arrival of the train on Saturday was not a public event.
The opportunity to board the train will be available on public open days that will be held closer to the launch of the service.
A decision on the Te Huia launch date is expected to be confirmed in the coming weeks, after KiwiRail notified that a temporary speed restriction in Auckland while work on the track is underway would add half an hour each way to the proposed trip. for Te Huia travelers.
“We want our passengers to have the best possible experience from the start, so the service start date is likely to be delayed until early next year when the road problems have been fixed. It is a difficult decision, but we agree with KiwiRail that safety is the priority as they repair and replace some 100 km of tracks, ”said Vercoe.
Vercoe said the rail governance group, which comprises representatives from project partners, was committed to ensuring the success of the service beyond its first five years.
MARK TAYLOR / Stuff
The service has been hailed by Hugh Vercoe, Waikato regional councilor and chair of the rail governance task force, as the future of public transportation.
“The second stage will be the interesting business case presented by Minister Phil Twyford last month. Electrification, the relocation of the railway line and really fast trains will be analyzed in the study to be financed by the Government. “
Vercoe said the rail governance group has supported the next stage of service improvements and the Waikato Regional Council will seek to make the appropriate financial provisions in the 2021-2031 Long Term Plan to further investigate how the service can operate north from Papakura to improve travel time and reduce transfer requirements.
“From day one we will be monitoring Te Huia and will make improvements over time as the number of passengers increases.
“Future upgrades may include additional return services during the day, longer trains to provide more capacity and travel north of Papakura.”
