Hamilton | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
General information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Location | Fraser Street, Hamilton [1] New Zealand | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Coordinates | 37°47′30″S175°15′55″E / 37.791611°S 175.26536°E | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Owned by | KiwiRail | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Line(s) | North Island Main Trunk | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Platforms | 2 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Connections | East Coast Main Trunk (goods only) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Construction | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Parking | Yes | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
History | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Opened | 19 December 1877 [2] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Rebuilt | 1975 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Electrified | 25 kV 50 Hz AC June 1988 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Previous names | Hamilton, Hamilton Junction (20 October 1879 – 1 October 1884), Frankton Junction (1884–1955), Frankton (1955-20/7/1975) [2] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Services | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
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.
An engine shed was built at Hamilton Junction in 1882 and by 1884 there was a 4th class station, platform, cart approach, 60 ft (18 m) x 30 ft (9.1 m) goods shed, loading bank, stationmaster's house, urinals and a passing loop for 38 wagons. A lean-to station building with veranda was added in 1900 and gas lighting in 1910. By 1911 the goods shed had grown to 138 ft (42 m) x 30 ft (9.1 m) and there was a crane and fixed signals. [3]
Frankton Junction station consisted of an island platform located on the NIMT just north of the junction between the ECMT and NIMT. It had two signal boxes, and a locomotive depot was located in the Vee of the junction. [4] In 1909 a new, larger station was built to cope with the extra traffic of the through line to Wellington, 16 chains (1,100 ft; 320 m) [5] to the north. [6] The first Auckland - Wellington through expresses ran on 14 February 1909, taking 19 hours 13 minutes, and stopping at Frankton. [7]
Due to the end of steam operation in the North Island in 1968, the depot was closed and a new station, 400 yd (370 m) south of the existing Frankton Junction was tendered for in October 1972. On 6 December 1972 a contract was awarded to Ray Leach Ltd. and by May 1975 the station was nearly complete. [3] It was opened on 6 August 1975, with a side platform on each line. The station was renamed Hamilton at that time and the station formerly with that name, in the town centre, and its associated Road Services terminal in Ward Street, were renamed Hamilton Travel Centre. [3] The listed [8] Frankton South End signal box was relocated to the Hamilton Miniature Engineers' site at Minogue Park, [9] opposite the new Te Rapa loco depot.
The station was important in the growth of Hamilton and historically the trains calling included The Overlander, Blue Streak, Scenic Daylight, Daylight Limited, Northerner, Silver Star, Night Limited, Waikato Connection, Rotorua Express, Geyserland Express, Thames Express, Taneatua Express and Kaimai Express.
The scale of past use of the station is indicated by a 1936 report that 3 months' revenue was £7065 for tickets (27,025 sold), £1482 for parcels and £24,143 for goods, including 43,357 sheep, 5,849 cattle and 1,756,450 bd ft (4,144.8 m3) of timber. [10] The 2016 equivalent would be about $15m a year. [11]
Traffic grew steadily, as shown in the graph and table below.
year | tickets | season tickets | staff | ref. |
1881 | 1 | [12] | ||
1882 | 5,883 | 1 | [13] | |
1883 | 6,039 | 1 | [14] | |
1884 | 7,475 | 1 | [15] | |
1885 | 5,809 | 1 | [16] | |
1886 | 3,634 | 2 | [17] | |
1887 | 4,648 | 2 | 3 | [18] |
1888 | 1,719 | 1 | ||
1889 | 2,077 | 2 | [19] | |
1890 | [20] | |||
1891 | 1,810 | 2 | [21] | |
1892 | 2,178 | 3 | [22] | |
1893 | 2,271 | 3 | [23] | |
1894 | 2,758 | 3 | [24] | |
1895 | 3,735 | 3 | [25] | |
1896 | 3,505 | 4 | [26] | |
1897 | 3,934 | 6 | [27] | |
1898 | 5,188 | 7 | [28] | |
1899 | 5,147 | 7 | [29] | |
1900 | 5,715 | 8 | [30] | |
1901 | ||||
1902 | 11,264 | 3 | 9 | [31] |
1903 | 19,530 | 3 | 13 | [32] |
1904 | 31,845 | 55 | 12 | [33] |
1905 | 30,678 | 56 | 12 | [34] |
1906 | 24,555 | 58 | 16 | [35] |
1907 | 19,420 | 83 | 18 | [36] |
1908 | 21,098 | 124 | 20 | [37] |
1909 | 24,684 | 48 | 26 | [38] |
1910 | 31,830 | 63 | 33 | [39] |
1911 | 41,659 | 116 | 43 | [40] |
1912 | 57,009 | 204 | 48 | [41] |
1913 | 79,655 | 235 | 57 | [42] |
1914 | 80,769 | 313 | [43] | |
1915 | 75,594 | 335 | [44] | |
1916 | 83,163 | 266 | [45] | |
1917 | 88,855 | 194 | [46] | |
1918 | 84,129 | 89 | [47] | |
1919 | 89,672 | 87 | [48] | |
1920 | 105,146 | 127 | [49] | |
1921 | 127,034 | 98 | [50] | |
1922 | 130,403 | 90 | [51] | |
1923 | 121,334 | 86 | [52] | |
1924 | 121,751 | 73 | [53] | |
1925 | 123,021 | 55 | [54] | |
1926 | 119,312 | 92 | [55] | |
1927 | 116,451 | 331 | [56] | |
1928 | 101,809 | 254 | [57] | |
1929 | 96,565 | 181 | [58] | |
1930 | 82,596 | 342 | [59] | |
1931 | 96,979 | 142 | [60] | |
1932 | 85,485 | 129 | [61] | |
1933 | 91,795 | 66 | [62] | |
1934 | 98,184 | 74 | [63] | |
1935 | 99,678 | 113 | [64] | |
1936 | 102,403 | 57 | [65] | |
1937 | 111,915 | 133 | [66] | |
1938 | 110,555 | 575 | [67] | |
1939 | 105,799 | 102 | [68] | |
1940 | 109,174 | 92 | [69] | |
1941 | 119,493 | 87 | [70] | |
1942 | 140,779 | 93 | [71] | |
1943 | 206,437 | 42 | [72] | |
1944 | 212,403 | 54 | [73] | |
1945 | 171,103 | 18 | [74] | |
1946 | 169,589 | 74 | [75] | |
1947 | 124,930 | 128 | [76] | |
1948 | 100,369 | 181 | [77] | |
1949 | 91,446 | 47 | [78] | |
1950 | 91,360 | 33 | [79] |
As noted above, the station has had several names. For Te Huia it is called Frankton, to distinguish it from Rotokauri, the other station in Hamilton used by that train to Auckland. [80] Kiwirail uses Hamilton Kirikiriroa Frankton Station, to describe their Northern Explorer train stop. [81]
In 2009, the canopy over platform 1 (NIMT) was reduced in length. The ECMT carries no passenger services and its platform (platform 2) is used infrequently by excursion trains.
The station is currently served by the Te Huia service to Auckland Strand station using refurbished SA and SD coaches. [82]
Previous services include the Kaimai Express and Geyserland Express railcars to Tauranga and Rotorua (Koutu) respectively, which were cancelled in 2002, and the overnight Northerner, which ceased operation in 2004 under Toll Rail. The Overlander stopped at the station until 2012, until the Northern Explorer succeeded it.
The Waikato Connection commuter service to Auckland ran in 2000 and 2001.
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.
Otiria railway station was a station on the North Auckland line in New Zealand, at its junction with the Ōkaihau and Opua Branches, at Otiria. It is now KiwiRail's most northerly station, though mothballed since 2016.
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.
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.
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.
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. 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.
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.
Rangiriri was a flag station about 2 km (1.2 mi) south-east of Rangiriri, on the North Island Main Trunk line, in the Waikato District of New Zealand, 56 mi (90 km) south of Auckland. It was 588.2 km (365.5 mi) north of Wellington, 3.32 km (2.06 mi) south of Te Kauwhata, 7.26 km (4.51 mi) north of Ohinewai and 9 m (30 ft) above sea level.
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.
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.