Hamilton Central | |||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
General information | |||||||||||
Location | New Zealand | ||||||||||
Coordinates | 37°47′13″S175°16′43″E / 37.786892°S 175.278566°E | ||||||||||
Owned by | KiwiRail | ||||||||||
Line(s) | East Coast Main Trunk (goods only) | ||||||||||
Platforms | 1 | ||||||||||
Connections | North Island Main Trunk | ||||||||||
History | |||||||||||
Opened | 1 October 1884 [1] | ||||||||||
Closed | 1 November 1969 | ||||||||||
Rebuilt | 1964 | ||||||||||
Previous names | Hamilton West until 1 March 1899 [1] | ||||||||||
Services | |||||||||||
|
Hamilton Central was the name of a now-defunct railway station on the East Coast Main Trunk line which runs through the city of Hamilton in the Waikato region of New Zealand. [2] The station was located in Hamilton's CBD and was made an underground station for the latter years of its existence before being closed. The underground platform still exists. [3]
For most of the time since a station opened on the site in 1879, it was named Hamilton. It had closed to regular passenger services when the present Hamilton station opened in 1975, so there was little need for formal renaming. There have been several proposals to reopen the station, often using the name 'Hamilton Central'. [4] [5]
The East Coast Main Trunk line is still well used by freight trains. In 2018, 163 trains a week passed through, 36 between 8am and 5pm weekdays, 90 of them outside those hours and 37 at weekends. [6]
The station probably opened as Hamilton on 22 March 1879, with a lean-to station building, [7] though in July 1879 it was said that it should take about a month to complete the extension. [8] It only had 282 passengers in the year 1880/81 [9] and closed on 19 February 1881. [10] Probably it was affected by delays in opening Claudelands bridge; the 16 mi 73 ch (27.2 km) Eureka contract to Morrinsville was signed on 5 December 1883, [11] though tenders had been invited over two years earlier. [12]
On 1 October 1884 the station reopened as Hamilton West, [13] when the Morrinsville line opened. [14] By 1884 it had a 4th class station building, platform, cart approach, 60 ft (18 m) by 30 ft (9.1 m) goods shed and loading bank. In 1896 there was also a stationmaster's house, urinals and a passing loop for 38 wagons. [7] In 1892 the station got improved and increased accommodation, with further improvements in 1897, 1899 and 1900, when a verandah was added. [7]
The station was renamed Hamilton from 1 March 1899. [15] In 1902 it was described as being, "of wood and iron, and has a ladies' waiting room, a public lobby, stationmaster's room, a long passenger platform, and a large goods shed. Four trains pass the station daily, each way." [16] In 1905 the stationmaster's house was shifted and a porters room, parcels office and store added. The luggage room and verandah were extended in 1909. A crossing keeper controlled the Victoria Street crossing from 1912, when the platform was extended 200 ft (61 m) west and asphalted. In 1924 a new, larger storeroom at the Frankton end replaced one at the other end. [7]
Work to underground the station began in 1961, with removal of sidings, a loading shelter and the goods shed. The line was lowered in 1964. [7] Its platform was moved to a cutting from 1 September 1964. It lost its railcar service to Te Puke on 11 September 1967 and to Rotorua on 11 November 1968. It then lost its station building, which is now a café at Waikato University. [17] In 1969 a new 3-storey, 23,700 sq ft (2,200 m2) Administration Building opened, built by Holm Construction Ltd. for the Ministry of Works and linked by a covered walkway to the Road Services terminal in Ward Street and the underground rail platform. [7] By the mid-1970s most of the station had been covered by carparks, which were later covered by the Centre Place shopping centre. [18] When the current Hamilton station opened on 6 August 1975, the rarely used platform was renamed Hamilton Travel Centre. [7]
The station was once served by several named trains, including the Rotorua, Geyserland, Thames and Taneatua Express es.
Traffic grew to a peak in World War 2, as shown in the graph and table below.
year | tickets | season tickets | staff | ref. |
1885 | 2,554 | 1 | 2 | [19] |
1886 | 5,253 | 2 | [20] | |
1887 | 5,246 | 1 | [21] | |
1888 | 3,687 | 16 | 2 | |
1889 | 3,504 | 29 | 2 | [22] |
1890 | [23] | |||
1891 | 3,328 | 31 | 2 | [24] |
1892 | 3,348 | 26 | 2 | [25] |
1893 | 3,702 | 38 | 2 | [26] |
1894 | 3,748 | 25 | 2 | [27] |
1895 | 3,958 | 2 | [28] | |
1896 | 4,034 | 9 | 2 | [29] |
1897 | 4,447 | 7 | 2 | [30] |
1898 | 4,766 | 3 | 2 | [31] |
1899 | 5,303 | 2 | 2 | [32] |
1900 | 4,838 | 1 | 3 | [33] |
1901 | ||||
1902 | 8,486 | 1 | 3 | [34] |
1903 | 11,358 | 4 | 4 | [35] |
1904 | 17,454 | 4 | 5 | [36] |
1905 | 19,885 | 126 | 6 | [37] |
1906 | 22,461 | 140 | 6 | [38] |
1907 | 25,893 | 212 | 7 | [39] |
1908 | 32,446 | 207 | 8 | [40] |
1909 | 35,357 | 202 | 8 | [41] |
1910 | 32,874 | 208 | 9 | [42] |
1911 | 35,269 | 150 | 9 | [43] |
1912 | 39,339 | 228 | 11 | [44] |
1913 | 49,704 | 275 | 16 | [45] |
1914 | 51,322 | 338 | [46] | |
1915 | 48,465 | 387 | [47] | |
1916 | 46,658 | 424 | [48] | |
1917 | 48,529 | 466 | [49] | |
1918 | 50,899 | 416 | [50] | |
1919 | 59,170 | 339 | [51] | |
1920 | 64,708 | 343 | [52] | |
1921 | 70,815 | 449 | [53] | |
1922 | 73,303 | 567 | [54] | |
1923 | 71,486 | 589 | [55] | |
1924 | 67,103 | 559 | [56] | |
1925 | 59,705 | 435 | [57] | |
1926 | 53,862 | 601 | [58] | |
1927 | 49,481 | 618 | [59] | |
1928 | 43,819 | 514 | [60] | |
1929 | 43,922 | 606 | [61] | |
1930 | 39,431 | 661 | [62] | |
1931 | 59,360 | 567 | [63] | |
1932 | 51,558 | 500 | [64] | |
1933 | 55,308 | 503 | [65] | |
1934 | 61,842 | 518 | [66] | |
1935 | 65,478 | 547 | [67] | |
1936 | 68,877 | 638 | [68] | |
1937 | 73,951 | 578 | [69] | |
1938 | 69,537 | 568 | [70] | |
1939 | 63,611 | 527 | [71] | |
1940 | 62,829 | 873 | [72] | |
1941 | 75,496 | 481 | [73] | |
1942 | 100,724 | 385 | [74] | |
1943 | 156,825 | 387 | [75] | |
1944 | 153,740 | 418 | [76] | |
1945 | 84,973 | 269 | [77] | |
1946 | 83,363 | 252 | [78] | |
1947 | 49,293 | 144 | [79] | |
1948 | 38,902 | 56 | [80] | |
1949 | 34,925 | 64 | [81] | |
1950 | 42,813 | 49 | [82] |
Level crossings at Lake Rd, Seddon St and Victoria St, and rising population and levels of rail and road traffic, resulted in re-routing proposals from 1912, when council suggested the line could be lowered. It was turned down again in 1919, [83] proposed as a diversion south of Frankton in 1929 [84] and costed at £529,000 in 1938.
The National Roads Board then opted for it and, in September 1959, the Ministry of Works started the project. The platform was lowered about 20 ft (6.1 m) into a cut & cover tunnel approached on 1 in 80 gradients, [85] with road over-bridges at River Rd, Tristram/Hinemoa, Seddon Streets and Lake Rd. The new route and platform opened on 19 September 1964, after which Anglesea St was extended north of Ward St. [83]
An NZR bus station (replaced by the Transport Centre in 2001) was built on top of the station, with a ramp link to it. The underground station was used by the Kaimai Express and Geyserland Express from when they started running in December 1991 until 1994 when the station was closed due to vandalism and concerns about passenger safety. The ramp was closed when the Warehouse was built [86] in 2004, [87] though a plan had been prepared to maintain access. [88]
In 2020 reopening, possibly with 3 tracks and possibly just to the west, in Seddon Park, [89] was put forward as a COVID-19 recovery scheme, as part of schemes to upgrade services to Auckland and relay tracks to Cambridge. [90]
Ellerslie railway station serves the Southern and Onehunga Lines of the Auckland railway network in New Zealand. It was opened in 1873. It has an island platform and is 1.37 km (0.85 mi) south of Greenlane and 1.45 km (0.90 mi) north of Penrose.
Pukekohe railway station is a temporarily closed railway station in Pukekohe, New Zealand. It is the southern terminus of the Southern Line of the Auckland railway network.
The Stillwater Ngākawau Line (SNL), formerly the Stillwater–Westport Line (SWL) and the Ngakawau Branch, is a secondary main line, part of New Zealand's national rail network. It runs between Stillwater and Ngakawau via Westport on the West Coast of the South Island. It was one of the longest construction projects in New Zealand's history, with its first section, at the south end, opened in 1889, and the beginnings of the Ngākawau Branch, at its Westport end, in 1875. The full line was completed in 1942. The only slower railway projects were Palmerston North to Gisborne, 1872 to 1942, and the Main North Line to Picton, 1872 to 1945.
Kawakawa railway station was a station on the Opua Branch in New Zealand. and is the terminus of the Bay of Islands Vintage Railway (BoIVR) in the small town of Kawakawa. It was also the terminus of the oldest railway on the North Island, opened in 1867, before being joined to the rest of the North Auckland Line in 1912.
Greatford railway station was a station on the North Island Main Trunk (NIMT) in New Zealand, south of Marton. It is in the Manawatū-Whanganui region. Only a substation and a passing loop remain.
Halcombe railway station was a station on the North Island Main Trunk (NIMT) in New Zealand, serving the village of Halcombe, in the Manawatū-Whanganui region. It opened in 1878 and closed in 1983. Originally it was the main intermediate station on the 85 mi 34 ch (137.5 km) Whanganui to Foxton railway. Only a single track remains through the station site, as the passing loops here and at Kakariki were replaced by the Rangitawa loop, 3.03 km (1.88 mi) to the north, on 14 December 1983.
Mangaweka railway station was a station on the North Island Main Trunk (NIMT), serving the village of Mangaweka in the Manawatū-Whanganui region of New Zealand. The original station opened in 1902 and closed on 15 November 1981. A new station then opened to the east, on the Mangaweka deviation on 18 November 1981, though only for parcels, small lots, and as a passing loop, which still remains.
Hunterville railway station was a station on the North Island Main Trunk in New Zealand, serving the township of Hunterville.
Ngaroto railway station was a station on the North Island Main Trunk in New Zealand, 3.42 km (2.13 mi) south of Lake Rd, 2 mi (3.2 km) north of Te Awamutu, beside the entrance to Yarndley's Bush. Lake Ngaroto is visible from the railway to the north of the station.
Mercer railway station in Mercer, New Zealand, is 72 km from Auckland and 609 km from Wellington on the North Island Main Trunk line. It opened on 20 May 1875 and was closed to passengers about 1970 and to goods in the 1990s. It burnt down in 1879 and also in 1900. Until 1958 it was the first refreshment stop south of Auckland.
Hamilton railway station serves the city of Hamilton in the Waikato region of New Zealand. It is located in the suburb of Frankton, hence the station's former name Frankton Junction, its name for most of its existence. The station is a Keilbahnhof, located at the junction of the North Island Main Trunk (NIMT) and East Coast Main Trunk (ECMT) lines. The station is served by the regional Te Huia service, which runs to Auckland via Rotokauri Transport Hub and Huntly railway station twice daily in the morning, with return services in the evening and by the 6-days a week, Northern Explorer passenger service, between Auckland and Wellington.
Pokeno railway station is a former railway station in Pōkeno, New Zealand on the North Island Main Trunk line. It opened for passengers on 20 May 1875, and for goods on 6 April 1879. It was 39 mi 36 ch (63.5 km) south of Auckland and 41 mi 52 ch (67.0 km).
Raahui Pookeka-Huntly Railway Station is on the North Island Main Trunk line and the Awaroa Branch in the town of Huntly in the Waikato District of New Zealand, 65 mi (105 km) south of Auckland. It is 7.31 km (4.54 mi) north of Taupiri and 2.78 km (1.73 mi) south of Kimihia. The station was named Raahui Pookeka-Huntly for its reopening for the new Te Huia train on 6 April 2021.
Buckland railway station was a station on the North Island Main Trunk in New Zealand, serving the Buckland settlement south of Pukekohe.
Ngāruawāhia railway station was at the junction of the North Island Main Trunk line and its Glen Massey branch, serving Ngāruawāhia in the Waikato District of New Zealand, 74 mi (119 km) south of Auckland and 10 mi (16 km) north of Hamilton. It was opened with a special train from Auckland on Monday 13 August 1877. The next stations were Taupiri 6.5 km (4.0 mi) to the north and Horotiu 5.5 km (3.4 mi) to the south.
Taupiri was a station on the North Island Main Trunk line with a goods shed and an island platform, serving the small settlement of Taupiri in the Waikato District of New Zealand.
Te Kauwhata was a flag station on the North Island Main Trunk line, in the Waikato District of New Zealand, 54 mi (87 km) south of Auckland. It was 591.52 km (367.55 mi) north of Wellington, 3.32 km (2.06 mi) north of Rangiriri, 6.72 km (4.18 mi) south of Whangamarino and 12 m (39 ft) above sea level.
Mangapehi was a flag station on the North Island Main Trunk line, in the Waitomo District of New Zealand. It was 5.89 km (3.66 mi) north of Poro-O-Tarao and 5.15 km (3.20 mi) south of Kopaki.
Mataroa was a station on the North Island Main Trunk line, in the Ruapehu District of New Zealand. It served the village of Mataroa. Mataroa is part way up a long gradient from Taihape to Waiouru, beginning at 1 in 60, but largely 1 in 70 from Mataroa to Hīhītahi, so that Mataroa is 88 m (289 ft) above Taihape and 110 m (360 ft) below Ngaurukehu.
Rangataua was a station on the North Island Main Trunk line, in the Ruapehu District of New Zealand. Like most of the stations on the central part of the NIMT, a large timber trade exploited the native bush until it was largely felled. What is now the small village of Rangataua developed to the south of the station. Just a single track now passes through and virtually nothing remains of the once busy station and workshops.
{{cite book}}
: |last2=
has generic name (help)