Wairarapa Line

The Wairarapa Line is a secondary railway line in the south-east of the North Island of New Zealand. The line runs for 172 kilometres (107 mi), connecting the capital city Wellington with the Palmerston North–Gisborne Line at Woodville, via Lower Hutt, Upper Hutt and Masterton.

The first part of the line opened in 1874 between Wellington and Lower Hutt, with the entire line to Woodville completed in 1897. It was the only New Zealand Government Railways route out of Wellington until 1908, when the government bought out the Wellington and Manawatu Railway Company who owned and operated the present North Island Main Trunk section between Wellington and Palmerston North. The line originally included the famous Rimutaka Incline, which used the Fell mountain railway system to cross the Rimutaka Range between Upper Hutt and Featherston. In the mid-1950s, the line between Petone and Featherston was substantially realigned, with the line diverted to the east of the Hutt River between Petone and Haywards to serve new housing developments in Lower Hutt, and the construction of the Rimutaka Tunnel to replace the Rimutaka Incline. Part of the former route west of the Hutt River has been retained as the Melling Branch.

The southern portion of the line between Wellington and Upper Hutt is electrified and is also known as the Hutt Valley Line. Transdev on behalf of the Greater Wellington Regional Council runs suburban services along the Hutt Valley section, as well as the Wairarapa Connection service between Wellington and Masterton. KiwiRail runs regular freight services along the line between Wellington to Masterton and between Pahiatua and Woodville. No regular services currently run over the Masterton to Pahiatua section see under Freight Service. The section may be reviewed as part of KiwiRail's turnaround plan.

The Labour Party promised during the 2017 election campaign to upgrade the track to improve operation of the Wairarapa Connection, and on 9 October 2018 the Minister of Transport Phil Twyford announced that the proposed $196 million for the region included $96 million for the Wairarapa Line; $50 million in the Wairarapa and $46.2 million south of the Rimutaka Tunnel including double-tracking the Trentham to Upper Hutt section. Work is to start in April 2019. The double-tracking was completed in November 2021. Other "infrastructure renewals" on the line include three bridges with timber elements and track renewal (including in the Rimutaka Tunnel), replacement of signals between Masterton and Featherston and upgrades to Upper Hutt. Passing loops at Carterton and Woodside had previously been removed, leaving Featherston with the only loop between Upper Hutt and Masterton; the Carterton loop may need reinstating at some time for more frequent trains. The New Zealand Upgrade Programme announced on 30 January 2020 included passing loops at Carterton, Featherston and Maymorn and a second platform at Featherston. It is planned to have up to 7 peak services from Masterton at 15-minute intervals.

Proposals for railed transportation out of Wellington were made as early as the start of the 1850s, barely a decade after European settlement of the area began. In 1853 and 1857, investigation of horse-hauled tramways was undertaken, but no action was taken. Robert Stokes, a member of the provincial government, proposed a railway over the Rimutakas in 1858 and finally succeeded in gaining government interest in 1863. The Wellington Provincial Government established a committee to investigate proposals, and on 2 July 1866, it passed the Wellington, Hutt and Wairarapa Railway Ordinance. The act authorised a railway employing either 3 ft 6 in (1,067 mm) or 1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in) standard gauge to carry 200 tonnes at speeds of 24 kilometres per hour (15 mph), but construction did not commence as sufficient funds were not available in the fledgling New Zealand colony, nor were they successfully raised in England.

In 1870, Julius Vogel included a Wellington-Wairarapa railway in his Great Public Works Policy and visited London to arrange a loan to finance the policy. On this trip, he was approached by several contracting firms and a contract that included the first section of the Wairarapa Line was awarded to Brogden & Sons. The construction of the line can be considered in three stages: the Hutt Valley section, the route over the Rimutakas, and the line through the Wairarapa via Masterton to Woodville.

On 20 August 1872, construction of the Wairarapa Line began with the turning of the first sod at Pipitea Point, the site of Wellington's first railway station. Construction was delayed due to the difficulties associated with building a railway along the narrow, rocky shoreline of Wellington Harbour, and the section to Lower Hutt was not opened until 14 April 1874. Further difficulties were encountered in building the rest of the route up the Hutt Valley along the Hutt River's western bank, including the need to divert the river and reinforce its bank in places. On 1 February 1876 the line opened to Upper Hutt. On 28 December 1877 the line to Kaitoke was officially opened by the Governor,. On 1 January 1878 the line to Kaitoke was opened to the public; becoming the railhead for the Wairarapa for nearly ten months (to 16 October).

The Rimutaka Range posed a severe difficulty to those involved in planning and constructing the Wairarapa Line. On 1 January 1878, the Hutt line opened to Kaitoke at the western foot of the range, and a steep but manageable route with a grade of 1 in 39-40 was found from Kaitoke up the Pakuratahi River valley to the site of Summit station, 348 metres (1,142 ft) above sea level. However, from Summit down the eastern slope to Cross Creek near Featherston, a gradient of 1 in 14-16 was required. This was far too steep for regular steam locomotives to handle, and accordingly the Fell mountain railway system was employed. This used a centre rail to which specially designed locomotives and brake vans clung, allowing them to climb the steep slope upwards or control the descent. Despite the terrain, construction of this unique route was completed swiftly, opening to Featherston on 12 October 1878.