Public transport users expected to flock to lower North Island rail

The lower North Island’s new fleet of 18 hybrid electric trains should be in service by the end of the decade.

The Government last month announced it was funding a new fleet of trains for the lines from Wellington to Palmerston North and Wairarapa, that would increase capacity by 1.5 million trips and would save 15 minutes on the trip to Palmerston North.

The new trains will replace an ageing fleet, including the Capital Connection between Palmerston North and Wellington, which will be replaced by a rail service that will double at peak times, with two daily off-peak trips and weekend services.

The 18 trains will be tri-mode models that run on electric lines, but also have a battery and a backup diesel engine. The trains will switch to battery once the electric lines end at Waikanae.

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Transport minister Michael Wood was in Levin on Friday to promote the new fleet of trains.

Wood said the procurement process for the new trains would start straight away, but it would be the late 2020s before the first tri-mode trains would be in use.

Work was being done on interim carriages to be used in the meantime, and would be on the lines soon.

“Whenever we get new trains into New Zealand, they’re basically bespoke because of our narrow gauge, we can’t just buy them off the shelf.

“We’ll now work with Greater Wellington [Regional Council], they will lead that process about going to the market internationally, finding the right supply and procuring the trains.

“It will take some time, so we wanted to get this budget funding in place as soon as possible so they can get on with the business.”

Upgrades would be done at many stations across the network and the lines to make sure there was a fit-for-purpose service, Wood said.

Work was being done to lift platforms at train stations in preparation for the interim carriages.

The additional services would start once the new trains were in place. The interim carriages were so the existing service continued.

Wood said Labour was a Government that believed in public transport and by building the rail infrastructure they were making it more accessible and affordable for people.

He was confident the new trains and the upgrades would lead to more people using the service.

“Without any doubt at all. Whenever we provide better rail services for people to use, they flock to them. We’ve seen that on our commuter networks in Auckland and Wellington.

“We’ve seen that since put the Te Huia service in at Auckland and actually on the Capital Connection. It was impacted during Covid, but over the last six months we’ve seen a very strong rebound in numbers on the Capital Connection, which shows us there’s strong demand for these services.”

Wood said the Government wanted to encourage as many people as possible to use public transport and the tri-mode train, which would be the first of its kind in the country, made it practical and convenient for people to use public transport with its additional services.

He said it was about sustainability, reducing congestion and emissions, and providing opportunities for people.

Horizons Regional Council chair Rachel Keedwell welcomed the new services because she said there were no options for trains from Palmerston North during the day or at weekends.

She said it was what the communities in the lower North Island needed and strengthened connections because people had options.

Greater Wellington Regional Council chairman Daran Ponter was grateful for the Government funding and it was important the trains were carbon-neutral.

He said it was “making Palmerston North to Wellington a true commuter corridor, rather than the bulls… commuter corridor you’ve got at the moment”.

The funding of the trains was confidential for now, for commercial reasons.