East Coast Main Trunk Railway
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The East Coast Main Trunk Railway is the railway line in the North Island of New Zealand, originally running between Hamilton and Taneatua via Tauranga, connecting the Waikato with the Bay of Plenty. The ECMT now runs between Hamilton and Kawerau, with a branch line to Taneatua from the junction at Hawkens. The line is built to narrow gauge of 1067 mm (3 ft 6 in), the uniform gauge in New Zealand.
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[edit] History
[edit] Original construction
In 1880, the North Island Main Trunk Railway had reached Hamilton from Auckland. From there, the line made its way to Morrinsville in October 1884, Te Aroha in March 1886 and Paeroa in 1898. The route to Waihi through the Karangahake Gorge was surveyed in the next few years with construction starting in 1900, with three bridges, including a road-rail bridge and a kilometre-long tunnel, which has a 1:50 grade and took three years to build with its completion in 1904. Once completed, the line between Paeroa and Waihi opened in November 1905. In 1907, some surveys were undertaken for a route in 1907 and construction started in March 1912, but was suspended in November of the same year. The work started again in 1914, but was suspended again in March 1917 due to a shortage of staff due to World War I. The works started again in 1918, and the railway, which run through the Athenree Gorge, was opened to Tahawai in 1925 and Tauranga in March 1925. The remaining length of line to Te Puke, Whakatane and Taneatua were opened in 1928.
[edit] Original Intention of the rail line
Originally, the railway line was to run through to Opotiki and through the Waioeka Gorge to Gisborne, linking with the Palmerston North - Gisborne line. Work did begin, however due to two World Wars, an economic depression and an influenza epidemic, the railway was never completed.
[edit] Kaimai Tunnel Deviation
The Kaimai Railway Tunnel runs for 8896m under the Kaimai Ranges, making it the longest tunnel in New Zealand, and the longest tunnel in the Southern Hemisphere. Construction of the tunnel started from both sides of the range in 1969: the headings met in 1976 and the tunnel opened to rail traffic on 12 September 1978.
[edit] Closure of the Northern Route
After the opening of the Kaimai Tunnel, the route through the Karangahake Gorge to the eastern junction closed in 1978 and dismantled in the 1980's. The railway from Morrinsville to Paeroa stayed open and continued to Thames until being closed in 1991 and lifted in 1996/1997. The railbridge at Te Aroha is now a walkway over the Waihou River, the route from the tunnel to Waikino through the Karangahake Gorge is now a walkway, from Waikino to Waihi, the Goldfields Railway heritage line preserves the old railway, and State Highway 2 now runs through the Athrenee Gorge along the original rail realignment.
[edit] Passenger Services
[edit] Taneatua Express
When the line opened to its terminus at Taneatua, a passenger train, called the Taneatua Express, ran from Auckland to Taneatua. The original service was 12 hours, but became 10 and a half hours later, and ran two or three times weekly. The last train ran on 7 February 1959, and was replaced by a railcar service, which only ran as far as Te Puke due to negligible traffic to Taneatua. The railway struggled to compete with private cars and the service was cancelled on 11 September 1967. Other than special excursions, no more passenger services were used until 1991.
[edit] Kaimai Express
In 1991, the Kaimai Express started and ran to Tauranga. The train, along with the Geyserland Express, began and used the old Silver Ferns railcars used on the Main Trunk Line. The first express ran on 9 December 1991 and consisted of a morning service from Tauranga to Auckland and afternoon service from Auckland to Tauranga, taking 3.5 hours per journey. The times changed in 2000 to enable the introduction of the Waikato Connection commuter service between Hamilton and Auckland. In 2001, it was announced that the service was too uneconomic to continue, and the last service was on 7 October 2001.
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Main lines
North Island:
East Coast Main Trunk • North Island Main Trunk (inc. Paraparaumu Line)
South Island:
Main North Line and Main South Line, known together as the South Island Main Trunk
Secondary lines
North Island:
Marton - New Plymouth Line • North Auckland Line • Palmerston North - Gisborne Line • Stratford - Okahukura Line • Wairarapa Line (inc. Hutt Valley Line)
South Island:
Midland Line • Nelson Section • Otago Central Railway • Stillwater - Westport Line • Waimea Plains Railway
Branch lines
Upper North Island
Cambridge • Dargaville • Donnelly's Crossing • Glen Afton • Kinleith • Kumeu-Riverhead • Mount Maunganui • Murupara • Newmarket • Okaihau • Onehunga • Onerahi • Opua • Rotorua • Taneatua • Thames • Waiuku and Mission Bush
Lower North Island
Upper South Island
Blackball and Roa • Cape Foulwind • Conns Creek • Eyreton • Fairlie • Little River • Lyttelton • Methven • Mount Somers • Oxford • Rapahoe • Rewanui • Hokitika/Ross • Seddonville • Southbridge • Waiau • Waimate • Whitecliffs
Lower South Island
Bluff • Catlins River • Dunback and Makareao • Fernhill • Hedgehope • Kingston • Kurow • Moeraki • Mossburn • Ngapara and Tokarahi • Outram • Port Chalmers • Roxburgh • Shag Point • Tapanui • Tokanui • Tuatapere • Waikaia • Waikaka • Wairio • Walton Park • Wyndham
Private lines
Glen Massey Branch • Dunedin Peninsula and Ocean Beach Railway • Dun Mountain Railway • Hutt Park Railway • Kaitangata Line • Sanson Tramway • Wellington and Manawatu Railway
Significant proposals
Canterbury Interior Main Line • Nelson Railway Proposals • Taupo Railway Proposals • Wainuiomata Railway Proposals |
