Mainlander train to shift from monthly excursions to regular South Island timetable
A commuter rail pilot will be funded for Christchurch, Rail Minister Winston Peters and Regional Development Minister Shane Jones announced today.
The 12-month trial will see Mainland Rail return passenger rail services to Christchurch and establish more frequent trains from Christchurch-Dunedin-Invercargill, funded by a $3.4 million loan from the Regional Infrastructure Fund (RIF).
“New Zealand’s railways began in Christchurch in 1863, and it is time we put them back to use again for passenger rail, not just freight and tourism,” Peters said.
The trains will run morning and evening commuter services on the main lines from Rangiora in the north and Rolleston in the south into central Christchurch starting in mid-2027.
The Rolleston trip is expected to take less than 20 minutes by rail instead of 50 minutes by road, taking commuter traffic off already busy roads.
“New Zealanders are sick of transport proposals costing hundreds of millions or billions when pragmatic solutions such as using what we already have are staring us in the face, as is the case in Christchurch and its rail system,” Peters said.
“The fares will be announced closer to the start date, but we are talking about a public transport trial and would expect affordable fares similar to those paid by rail commuters in Wellington and Auckland.
“There’s a saying, ‘it works in practice, but will it work in theory,’ and here is an opportunity for Cantabrians to prove their support for rail as public transport in practice.
“The service proceeding is subject to the local councils confirming their combined half of the costs, and letters of support from the Mayors of Christchurch, Selwyn and Waimakariri, and we look forward to engaging further with Environment Canterbury.”
Paul Jackson, Rail & Tourism Group Holdings chief executive, said they were thrilled by the announcement.
“We’ve been in discussions with central and local government about contributing to a trial for some time,” he said.
“We see this as a vote of confidence in our ability to bring these carriages back into service.”
The $3.4 million RIF funding will also support Mainland Rail to shift its Mainlander train from monthly excursions to a regular timetable between Christchurch, Ashburton, Timaru, Oamaru, Dunedin, Gore and Invercargill.
Jones said the South Island’s rail corridors are regional infrastructure assets.
“This funding is about putting them back to work for communities, tourism and local economies,” he said.
“This is the type of commonsense investment people want to see – using what we already have, reinstating what we once had, and giving people choices in their lives once again.
“The economic development benefits are obvious: railing people into Canterbury, Otago and Southland towns to spend in the local economies, strengthening tourism in the South Island, creating employment, and putting assets New Zealanders already own to better use for the benefit of our economy.”
Sign up to The Daily H, a free newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.