Work Continues On Auckland's Western (Rail) Line

KiwiRail Chief Operating Officer – Rail Operations Siva Sivapakkiam:

KiwiRail is continuing work to fully re-open Auckland’s Western Line, and now expects that to happen following the Labour Weekend network shutdown.

One of the two tracks west of New Lynn Station was closed last Tuesday (11 October) after a slip was discovered below the rail line.

KiwiRail teams have been assessing damage at the slip site and have undertaken repairs to an overhead electrical pole and the retaining wall next to the track, as well as ensuring the track and ballast (the rocks under the track) are fit for purpose.

Geotechnical specialists have installed ground monitoring equipment at the site but this needs to be in place for a number of days to gather sufficient data. Safety has to be the priority and we need to be sure there is no further ground movement before we reopen the track.

The entire Auckland metro network, including the Western Line, is closed for our usual Labour Weekend shutdown and geo-technical testing at the site will continue over the long weekend.

While some commuter services have continued running on the Western Line since 12 October, using the second track, we appreciate the impact this has had on commuters. We thank Aucklanders for their patience.

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