Tunnels in New Zealand

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This list of Tunnels in New Zealand is a link page for railway, road and waterway tunnels, including hydroelectric intakes and tailraces and gun battery tunnels. It includes artificial chambers but excludes caves and mines.

For a list of caves, see List of caves of New Zealand.


This list is incomplete; you can help by expanding it.

Contents

[edit] Hydroelectric Tunnels and Chambers

  • Manapouri Power Station - Machine hall 111 m long, 18 m wide, 34 m high, and road access tunnel 2040 m long, 6.7 m wide and high, with a semi-circular arch roof.
  • Manapouri Tailrace - 2 tunnels - original tailrace tunnel 9817 m, 9.2 m diameter horseshoe section, commenced 1964, breakthrough 1968 drill-and-blast construction, 16 deaths. Second tailrace tunnel 9829 m, 10.05 m diameter, circular section, commenced 1997, breakthrough 2001, commissioned April 2002, tunnel boring machine construction, 0 deaths.
  • Tongariro Power Scheme

[edit] Gun Battery and Military Tunnels

[edit] Railway Tunnels

From longest to shortest.

  1. Kaimai - 8879 m - opened 12 September 1978 - near Apata on the East Coast Main Trunk Railway Line to Tauranga. It is the longest rail tunnel in New Zealand.
  2. Rimutaka - 8798 m - opened 3 November 1955 - between Upper Hutt (Wellington) and Featherston (Wairarapa), replaced the Rimutaka Incline, a Fell mountain railway. It is the longest tunnel in New Zealand that carries regular passenger trains.
  3. Otira - 8566 m - opened 1923 - between Arthur's Pass and Otira, in the Southern Alps on the transalpine Midland line - continuous 1 in 33 grade - electrified until 1997.
  4. Tawa No. 2 - 4324 m - opened 1935, goods on one line, 1937 all traffic - longest double-track tunnel in New Zealand. Between Ngauranga (Wellington) and Glenside (Tawa). With the 1 Km Tawa No 1 Tunnel, part of the Tawa Flat deviation.
  5. Tikiwhata - 2989 m - opened 1943, between Wairoa and Gisborne.
  6. Lyttelton - 2596 m - opened 1867-12-09[1], between Heathcote Valley (Christchurch) and Lyttelton.
  7. Turakina - 2091 m - opened 1947, between Marton, New Zealand and Wanganui.

[edit] Shortest Bored Tunnels

  1. A 39.83 m long tunnel - opened 1906, between Staircase and Avoca, South Island Midland Line.
  2. A 42.05 m long tunnel - opened 1891, near Woodville, in the Manawatu Gorge.

[edit] Some Disused Railway Tunnels

[edit] In the North Island

  • Cruickshanks - opened 1 January 1878, between Mangaroa and Upper Hutt. Public access uncertain (see Valley Signals site for information)
  • Mangaroa - 152 m - opened 1 January 1878, at Tunnel Gully recreation area, Te Marua, Upper Hutt. On a public walkway.
  • Summit - 584 m, and 3 other shorter tunnels, opened 12 October 1878 on the Rimutaka Incline (now a walkway).
  • Okaihau - on the never-opened extension of the Okaihau Branch to Rangiahua, now used for road traffic.
  • Parnell - single track, on the Auckland - Newmarket Line, adjacent to the current double-track tunnel. Closed with no public access.
  • Karangahake - 1006 m, in the Karangahake Gorge, on the former East Coast Main Trunk, closed in 1978. Now part of a walkway.
  • Porootarao - 1071 m, replaced by new tunnel on deviation in 1980.
  • Nine tunnels on the North Island Main Trunk Railway that were deviated around between 1981 and 1985. Most were on the Mangaweka Deviation. Hedgehog tunnel near Taihape is adjacent to State Highway 1; access to the rest is unknown.
  • Four tunnels on the closed Moutohora Branch, ranging from 45 to 258 m in length. One tunnel is accessible on a public walkway, the others can all be viewed from public roads.
  • Three tunnels of unknown status on the closed Ngatapa Branch. Public access unknown.
  • No. 24 tunnel on the Palmerston North - Gisborne line - 123 m (collapsed).
  • No. 12 tunnel on the Wellington & Manawatu Railway (now NIMT) - abandoned in 1900.

[edit] In the South Island

  • Spooners Range Tunnel - 308 m, on the closed Nelson Section. Accessible by public walkway.
  • Kawatiri Tunnel - on the closed Nelson Section. Accessible by public walkway.
  • Abandoned tunnel - near Oaro? on the Main South Line. Partially collapsed.
  • Chasm Creek - former Seddonville Branch. Accessible by public walkway.
  • Charming Creek - former private coal railway. Accessible by public walkway.
  • Former coal tramways at Stockton and Denniston. Public access.
  • Cape Foulwind - former quarry line. Public access but tunnel has largely collapsed.
  • Rewanui Incline - two short tunnels now used by access road.
  • Puketeraki - 157 m. Track deviated around in a cutting. Partly collapsed and ends have been fenced over.
  • Sawyers Bay, Dunedin - 101 m, track deviated through new tunnel. Status unknown.
  • Caversham, Dunedin - 865 m, track deviated through new double-track tunnel. Public access to both ends but it is quite muddy (access is down the steps beside Kaikorai Valley Nurseries (between intersections with Ensor Street and Townleys Road) and also on the opposite side of road to the Caversham entrance of the current tunnel).
  • Chain Hills (Wingatui) - 889 m, track deviated through new double-track tunnel. Public access unknown.
  • Three tunnels on the Otago Central Rail Trail (former Otago Central Railway), ranging in length from 152 to 229 m. All have public access.
  • Three tunnels on the former Roxburgh Branch ranging from 226 to 443 m. Tunnel 1 is in public reserve, access to the others is uncertain.
  • Raki's - on the former Tokarahi Branch. Can be seen from road, on private land.
  • Conical Hill - 71 m, on the former Tapanui Branch. Public access through walkway.
  • Hunts Road - 221 m, former Catlins River Branch. Public walkway access.
  • Glenham Branch, 301 m. Possible public access.

[edit] Sources for Railway Tunnels:

  1. ^ The Lyttelton Tunnel. Christchurch City Council. Retrieved on August 8, 2006.

[edit] Road Tunnels

[edit] Road Tunnels on State Highways

Awakino Gorge tunnel. According to Maori legend, the rock promontory which this tunnel pierces is the remains of the Tainui Waka.
Awakino Gorge tunnel. According to Maori legend, the rock promontory which this tunnel pierces is the remains of the Tainui Waka.
  • There are short (less than 50 m) tunnels on SH 3 between New Plymouth and Te Kuiti - one at the summit of Mt Messenger and a single-lane one in the Awakino gorge.
  • There is a short tunnel north of Okaihau constructed for railway purposes which is accessible to vehicles.

[edit] Tunnels on other Roads

  • Karori Tunnel, between Kelburn and Karori, Wellington opened 1900.
  • Northland Tunnel, between Northland and Karori, Wellington.
  • Hataitai - bus tunnel, Mount Victoria, Wellington.
  • Seatoun tunnel, between Strathmore and Seatoun, Wellington.
  • There are several tunnels on rural Taranaki roads, including an approx 100m tunnel on the Tongaporutu-Ohura road (4km from SH3) which is unusual in that it abuts directly to a bridge.

[edit] Road Tunnels to be constructed

  • Johnstone's Twin Tunnels, on the Auckland Northern Motorway Extension near Puhoi - 340m long - to open in 2009.
  • Victoria Park Northbound Tunnel, just north of the Central Motorway Junction on State Highway 1 in Auckland - 440m long - to open in 2014. The positioning of the tunnel allows a southbound tunnel to be built in the future (project yet to receive construction funding).

See also: List of Tunnels of the World.

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