Southern Line (Auckland)

Last updated

Southern Line
 STH 
Auckland AT Metro AM Class, Takaanini (20240202b) (cropped).jpg
Southern Line train at Takaanini
Overview
Owner KiwiRail (tracks and platforms)
Auckland Transport (trains and buildings)
Locale Auckland
Termini
Connecting lines Eastern Line
Onehunga Line
Western Line
Stations17
Service
Type Commuter Rail
System AT Trains
Operator(s) Auckland One Rail
Rolling stock AM class
Technical
Line length49.62 km (30.83 mi)
Number of tracks2 (Britomart – Westfield)
3 (Westfield – Wiri
2 (Wiri – Pukekohe)
Track gauge 1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in)
Electrification 25 kV 50 Hz AC overhead
Route map

Contents

km
BSicon tKBHFa.svg
0.0
Britomart
(Auckland)
BSicon PORTALg.svg
BSicon ABZgl.svg
BSicon kSTR2+r.svg
BSicon kSTRc3.svg
Quay Park junction
BSicon ABZg+l.svg
BSicon eHST2+r.svg
BSicon STRc3.svg
BSicon kLLSTR+4.svg
The Strand
BSicon STR2.svg
BSicon STRc13.svg
BSicon ABZg+4.svg
Eastern Line junction
BSicon MASK*.svg
BSicon STRc1.svg
BSicon RP22+4.svg
BSicon lhSTRa@f.svg
BSicon RP2c3.svg
BSicon STR+4.svg
BSicon LSTRe.svg
BSicon RP2c1.svg
BSicon RP4c2.svg
BSicon MSTR.svg
BSicon hSTR.svg
BSicon RP22+4.svg
BSicon MASK*.svg
BSicon RP43+1.svg
Ronayne Street
BSicon RP4c2.svg
BSicon MSTR.svg
BSicon hSTR.svg
BSicon RP43+1.svg
BSicon RP4c4.svg
BSicon MASK*.svg
BSicon RP43+1.svg
BSicon RP4c4.svg
BSicon MSTR.svg
BSicon hSTR.svg
BSicon RP22+4.svg
BSicon RP2c3.svg
Parnell Rise
BSicon hSTRe@g.svg
BSicon lHST.svg
BSicon RP2c1.svg
BSicon MASK*.svg
BSicon RP22+4.svg
Parnell
BSicon TUNNEL1.svg
BSicon SKRZ-G2u.svg
Cowie Street
BSicon CONTgq.svg
BSicon ABZgr+r.svg
BSicon BHF.svg
3.7
Newmarket
BSicon SKRZ-G2u.svg
Remuera Road
BSicon SKRZ-G4u.svg
BSicon HST.svg
4.8
Remuera
BSicon SKRZ-G2u.svg
Market Road
BSicon SKRZ-G2u.svg
Omahu Road
BSicon SKRZ-G2u.svg
Green Lane
BSicon HST.svg
6.2
Greenlane
BSicon SKRZ-G2o.svg
Mitchelson Street
BSicon SKRZ-G2o.svg
Walpole Street
BSicon SKRZ-G2u.svg
Main Highway
BSicon HST.svg
7.6
Ellerslie
BSicon SKRZ-G2u.svg
Ellerslie-Panmure Highway
BSicon SKRZ-G2u.svg
BSicon v-SHI2gr.svg
BSicon vBHF.svg
9.1
Penrose
BSicon dCONTgq.svg
BSicon STR~L.svg
BSicon STRr.svg
BSicon STR~R.svg
BSicon SKRZ-G2u.svg
South-Eastern Highway
BSicon BUE.svg
Church Street East
BSicon STR.svg
BSicon LSTRa.svg
BSicon KDSTaq.svg
BSicon cdSTR2+r.svg
BSicon lDST~R.svg
BSicon ABZgr.svg
BSicon 2SHI2l.svg
BSicon cSTRc3.svg
BSicon dSTRc2.svg
BSicon 2SHI2r.svg
BSicon STR3.svg
Southdown Freight Centre
BSicon ABZg+1.svg
BSicon cSTRc1.svg
BSicon dSTR+4.svg
BSicon 2SHI2+l.svg
BSicon 2SHI2+r.svg
BSicon cSTRc4.svg
BSicon vSKRZ-G2u.svg
Railway Lane
BSicon vBHF.svg
Ōtāhuhu
BSicon vSHI2g+l-.svg
BSicon SKRZ-G2u.svg
Kaka Street
BSicon SKRZ-G2u.svg
Mangere Road
BSicon HST.svg
Middlemore
BSicon HST.svg
Papatoetoe
BSicon SKRZ-G2u.svg
St George Street
BSicon SKRZ-G2u.svg
Bridge Street
BSicon HST.svg
Puhinui
BSicon SKRZ-G2o.svg
Cavendish Drive
BSicon ABZgl.svg
BSicon CONTfq.svg
BSicon SKRZ-G4u.svg
BSicon SKRZ-G2u.svg
Wiri Station Road
BSicon HST.svg
Homai
BSicon SKRZ-G2u.svg
Browns Road
BSicon SKRZ-G2u.svg
Jutland Road
BSicon SKRZ-G2u.svg
Station Road
BSicon HST.svg
Manurewa
BSicon SKRZ-G2u.svg
Weymouth Road
BSicon SKRZ-G2u.svg
BSicon HST.svg
Te Mahia
BSicon SKRZ-G4u.svg
State Highway 1 NZ.svg SH 1
Southern
Motorway
BSicon BUE.svg
Spartan Road
BSicon BUE.svg
Manuroa Road
BSicon HST.svg
Takaanini
BSicon BUE.svg
Taka Street
BSicon BUE.svg
Walters Road
BSicon SKRZ-G2o.svg
Subway Road
BSicon SKRZ-G2u.svg
Clevedon Road
BSicon HST.svg
33.1
Papakura
BSicon SKRZ-G2u.svg
Onslow Road
BSicon SKRZ-G2u.svg
Settlement Road
BSicon BUE.svg
Boundary Road
BSicon BUE.svg
Opaheke Road
BSicon BUE.svg
Sutton Road
BSicon SKRZ-G2u.svg
Waihoehoe Road
BSicon HST.svg
Drury
BSicon SKRZ-G4u.svg
State Highway 1 NZ.svg SH 1
Southern
Motorway
BSicon SKRZ-G2u.svg
Great South Road
BSicon SKRZ-G2o.svg
McPherson Road
BSicon HST.svg
Ngākōroa
BSicon HST.svg
Paerātā
BSicon BUE.svg
Crown Road
BSicon CONTgq.svg
BSicon ABZgr+r.svg
BSicon SKRZ-G2u.svg
Cape Hill Road
BSicon SKRZ-Gv2u.svg
BSicon lRP4O~Gq.svg
Stadium Drive
BSicon BHF.svg
51.3
Pukekohe
BSicon CONTf.svg
km
Southern Line (Auckland)
Map

The Southern Line in Auckland, New Zealand, is the name given to suburban train services that operate between Britomart and Pukekohe via Newmarket. Services are operated by Auckland One Rail under the Auckland Transport brand.

Routing

From Britomart to Newmarket, Southern Line services use the Newmarket Line, then follow the North Auckland Line to Westfield Junction, and thence onto the North Island Main Trunk (NIMT) line as far as Pukekohe, the terminus of the Southern Line. In its entirety, this line follows the original 1875 North Island Main Trunk route between central Auckland and Pukekohe.

The line, originally single-tracked, was duplicated, piecemeal, between 1909 and 1939. In 1915, the original single-track Parnell tunnel was bypassed by a twin-track tunnel. The older tunnel can be seen alongside the current one, between Parnell station and Newmarket Junction.

History

In 1930, the Westfield Deviation opened a new eastern route for the NIMT between Auckland and Westfield via Glen Innes. The route between Auckland and Westfield via Newmarket then ceased to be part of the NIMT. The portion between Newmarket and Westfield became part of the North Auckland Line (NAL), which runs between Westfield and Whangārei.

The Southern Line suburban services continued to run on the older route. A new line, called the Eastern Line, was introduced for services on the new route. While the Eastern and Southern lines have a different route between Auckland and Westfield, they share the same tracks between Westfield and Puhinui station.

Third Main Line

Construction for the third main line, as part of the Wiri to Quay Park began in 2020 and was completed by 2025. [1] It is expected to ease congestion on Auckland rail lines by allowing "through" trains to pass stationary trains at stations, improve rail freight access from the Port of Auckland to the Westfield yards and allow more frequent passenger and freight services. [2] The new line runs between Westfield Junction and just south of Wiri Depot. [3]

These improvements will avoid an estimated 175,000 annual freight movements on the state highway network. Work began at the end of 2020. The $315 million funding package for these works was announced as part of the Government's New Zealand Upgrade Programme.

Electrification

Along with the rest of Auckland's suburban railway network, the Southern Line was electrified from Waitematā to Papakura, with electric services beginning in 2014. Services between Pukekohe and Papakura were initially provided by diesel multiple units (DMUs). In 2020, as part of the New Zealand Upgrade Programme, the government announced $371 million in funding to extend electrification from Papakura to Pukekohe. The project was completed in early 2025, and electric train services from Pukekohe commenced on 3 February 2025. [4] [5] [6]

Future

New stations are to be built at Drury, Ngākōroa and Paerātā as part of the Pukekohe electrification project. [4] After the opening of the City Rail Link in 2026, the Southern Line will become the South-City Line, looping through the tunnels. South-City Line trains will start and end at Pukekohe. [7]

Services

Suburban services are operated by Auckland One Rail under the AT Metro brand.

Stations

Stations on the Southern Line
Distance from BritomartNameOpenedNotes
0.00 km (0.00 mi) Britomart 7 July 2003 [8]
Parnell 12 March 2017
3.84 km (2.39 mi) Newmarket 20 December 1873 [8]
4.91 km (3.05 mi) Remuera 20 December 1873 [8]
6.38 km (3.96 mi) Greenlane 20 December 1873 [8]
7.75 km (4.82 mi) Ellerslie 20 December 1873 [8]
9.2 km (5.72 mi) Penrose 24 December 1873 [8]
14.33 km (8.90 mi) Ōtāhuhu 20 May 1875 [8] New station and bus-train interchange opened 29 October 2016. [9]
16.2 km (10.07 mi) Middlemore 20 July 1947 [8]
18.06 km (11.22 mi) Papatoetoe 20 May 1875 [8]
19.56 km (12.15 mi) Puhinui 29 June 1925 [8] New station and bus-train interchange opened 26 July 2021. [10]
22.78 km (14.15 mi) Homai 15 August 1924 [8]
24.41 km (15.17 mi) Manurewa 20 May 1875 [8]
26.24 km (16.30 mi) Te Mahia 16 August 1926 [8]
27.84 km (17.30 mi) Takaanini 9 December 1913 [8]
31.46 km (19.55 mi) Papakura 20 May 1875 [8]
Drury 2026New station set to open in 2026. [11]
Ngākōroa 2026New station set to open in 2026. [11]
Paerātā 2026New station set to open in 2026. [11]
49.62 km (30.83 mi) Pukekohe 20 May 1875 [8]

See also

References

  1. "The Third Main Line". KiwiRail. 2025.
  2. "Agenda for a meeting of the Infrastructure Committee - 5.9 Hamilton to Auckland Passenger Rail – Progress Update and Future Direction" (PDF). Waikato District Council. 27 June 2017. Archived (PDF) from the original on 13 April 2021.
  3. "The Third Main Line". KiwiRail. 2023.
  4. 1 2 Coughlan, Thomas (29 January 2020). "Government announces billions of infrastructure spending, with roads the big winner". Stuff. Archived from the original on 1 February 2020. Retrieved 2 February 2020.
  5. "Electric trains to Pukekohe". Auckland Transport. Retrieved 8 June 2023.
  6. "Trains return to Pukekohe after two-year station closure". RNZ. 3 February 2025. Retrieved 3 February 2025.
  7. "How the train network and timetables will change for the City Rail Link". Auckland Transport. 3 August 2025. Retrieved 11 August 2025.
  8. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 Scoble, Juliet (2010). "Names & Opening & Closing Dates of Railway Stations" (PDF). Rail Heritage Trust of New Zealand. Archived from the original (PDF) on 24 January 2018. Retrieved 11 November 2018.
  9. "New Otahuhu Station and a New Network for South Auckland". Auckland Transport. Archived from the original on 31 October 2016. Retrieved 25 October 2016.
  10. "Puhinui Station reopens Monday 26th July 2021". Auckland Transport. 27 July 2021.
  11. 1 2 3 "Southern Stations". KiwiRail. Retrieved 22 February 2023.