Marton - New Plymouth Line

The Marton - New Plymouth Line (MNPL) is a secondary main line railway in the North Island of New Zealand that links the Taranaki and Manawatu-Wanganui regions. It branches from the North Island Main Trunk Railway (NIMT) in Marton and runs near the South Taranaki Bight of the west coast before turning inland, meeting the Stratford - Okahukura Line (SOL) in Stratford and running to New Plymouth. Construction of the line was completed in 1885, and since the completion of the SOL in 1933 it has been an alternate route to the NIMT when required. In its early days it was plied by the North Island's first regional express, the New Plymouth Express, but it has been freight-only since the cancellation of the last passenger services in 1977.

Construction

Construction of the line commenced in the mid-1870s from both the southern and northern ends. The line was completed when the two ends met between Hawera and Manutahi in 1885.

Southern end: Marton - Manutahi

The southern portion of the line was conceived as part of the Foxton and Wanganui Railway, which was intended to link the two ports of Foxton and Wanganui with hinterland settlements such as Marton and New Plymouth, and form the first portion of a trunk route between Wellington and Taranaki.Geoffrey B. Churchman and Tony Hurst, "The Railways of New Zealand: A Journey Through History" (Auckland: HarperCollins, 1991), 132.] A tramway had originally been considered for the Rangatikei District, but this plan was abandoned in 1872 and surveys for a railway undertaken in 1873. Contracts were awarded the next year for construction, but mass sickness caused work to slow in 1875David Leitch and Brian Scott, "Exploring New Zealand's Ghost Railways", revised edition (Wellington: Grantham House, 1998 [1995] ), 32.] and the collapse of a girder during the construction of a bridge over the Whanganui River in 1876 compounded the delays. [ [http://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/cgi-bin/paperspast?a=d&srpos=9&cl=search&d=EP18760922.2.17&e=-------en--1----2%22Wanganui+railway%22-all "Collapse of the Girder of the Wanganui Railway Bridge"] , "Evening Post" 14(72) [ 22 September 1876 ] : 2.]

The line from Wanganui to Aramoho opened on 21 January 1878; this line became the Wanganui Branch, with Aramoho the junction station on the MNPL for Wanganui."New Zealand Railway and Tramway Atlas", fourth edition, edited by John Yonge (Essex: Quail Map Company, 1993), 11.] The first section of what became the MNPL opened on 17 May 1877, with a rugged line through the valleys of the Whangaehu River and Turakina River to Turakina. The route had been chosen due to its cheapness to construct, but its alignment and torturous grades attracted criticism from the day it opened. The next section, through easier terrain, opened to Marton on 4 February 1878. The remainder of the route of the Foxton and Wanganui Railway became the NIMT from Marton through Palmerston North to Longburn and the Foxton Branch from Longburn to Foxton.

With the completion of the line south of Wanganui, attention was focused on the line to the north. The section from Aramoho to Kai Iwi, including the Westmere Bank, opened on 28 June 1879. The Westmere Bank's grade is 1 in 35 and it remains the line's ruling gradient. From Kai Iwi, Waitotara was reached on 20 September 1880; Waverley on 23 March 1881; and Manutahi via Patea on 28 August 1883."New Zealand Railway and Tramway Atlas", ed. Yonge, 9.] From this point, construction proceeded to complete the small gap between the southern and northern sections.

Northern end: New Plymouth - Manutahi

Like the southern end, the first portion of the northern section was built as part of a different railway. Construction of what became the Waitara Branch began on 21 August 1873, with the line finished on 14 October 1875. The next year, construction began on the MNPL south from Sentry Hill after John Brogden and Sons were awarded the contract for the first section in January. [http://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/cgi-bin/paperspast?a=d&srpos=11&cl=search&d=EP18760108.2.8.5&e=----03-1878--en--11----0Wanganui+railway-all "New Plymouth"] , "Evening Post" 13(6) [ 8 January 1876 ] : 2.] Until 1908, the Waitara line was the through route to New Plymouth with the MNPL branching at Sentry Hill, but in that year the junction was moved slightly south to Lepperton and the MNPL became the through route.Churchman and Hurst, "The Railways of New Zealand", 137.] The first portion of the line south opened on 30 November 1877 to Inglewood, followed by an extension to Stratford on 17 December 1879."New Zealand Railway and Tramway Atlas", ed. Yonge, 10.]

Short stages of the line were opened over the next two years, including to Eltham on 7 February 1881. On 1 August 1881 the first train from New Plymouth reached Hawera, carrying 300 passengers, [ [http://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/cgi-bin/paperspast?a=d&srpos=17&cl=search&d=WT18810802.2.12.3&e=-------en--11----0New+Plymouth+railway-all "Railway Extension to Hawera"] , "Waikato Times" 17(1417) [ 2 August 1881 ] : 2.] although the line was not handed over to the Railways Department from the Public Works Department until 20 October 1881. The final section, of approximately 16 kilometres, from Hawera to Manutahi passed through rugged country and required viaducts over the Tangahoe and Manawapou Rivers. Due to wet weather, surveying took longer than expected, and in 1882, contracts had still not been let despite the imminent completion of the southern portion to Manutahi. The Wellington Chamber of Commerce applied pressure on the Public Works Department to prioritise the section's approval, fearing that its construction was in jeopardy and any failure to link the two railheads would be considerably detrimental to both the profitability of the existing railway network and to the wider economy.Wellington Chamber of Commerce, [http://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/cgi-bin/paperspast?a=d&srpos=27&cl=search&d=EP18820623.2.21&e=-------en--21----0Wanganui+Foxton+railway-all "The Foxton-Taranaki Railway: Memorial from the Chamber of Commerce"] , "Evening Post" 23(145) [ 23 June 1882 ] : 3.] The final section was subsequently granted approval and it was not until 23 March 1885 that construction was finished and the through line from Marton to New Plymouth was open for revenue service.

Turakina deviation

The criticism of the difficult Turakina route south from Wanganui voiced at the opening of the line progressively increased over the years. By the mid-1930s it had become a severe bottleneck and the Railways Department decided to construct a deviation. In 1937 construction began on a new 16 km route to replace 23 km of the original route. It included significant tunnelling work and had a ruling gradient of 1 in 70 rather than 1 in 35. Due to the project's importance, work continued throughout World War II, with only a brief pause in 1942 at the height of fears of a Japanese invasion. Defects with the tunnels caused delays in completion, and the deviation opened on 7 December 1947. On the old route, A^B class steam locomotives were capable of hauling only 175 tons; on the new deviation, they could handle up to 420 tons. The formation of the old route remains for much of its length, and is used as O'Leary Road near Fordell; a couple of platform edges at old station sites also remain.

Kai Iwi deviation

By the start of the 21st century the narrow loading gauge in a 70 m long tunnel near Kai Iwi was posing limitations on the growth of freight traffic. Containers no greater than 2.6 m in height can pass through the tunnel. In September 2007 ONTRACK announced plans for a deviation, and in December, a contract worth NZ$2.8 million was let to Hurlstone Earth Moving for a 992 m deviation to eliminate the tunnel. Once completed, trains on the line will be able to carry 2.9 m high cube containers. The deviation will also eliminate a time-consuming permanent speed restriction of 15 km/h in the area.Simon Wood, [http://www.wanganuichronicle.co.nz/localnews/storydisplay.cfm?storyid=3757988&thesection=localnews&thesubsection=&thesecondsubsection= "Full Steam Ahead on Wanganui-Stratford Line"] , "Wanganui Chronicle" (11 December 2007), accessed 11 December 2007.]

Operation

Passenger services

Not long after the completion of the Wellington - Manawatu Line by the Wellington and Manawatu Railway Company (WMR) on 3 November 1886 the New Plymouth Express was introduced, jointly operated by the WMR and NZR. However, upon its introduction in December, its timetable was the subject of protests. The service stopped at only the larger towns, prompting indignation from residents of smaller towns who felt that the line's wayside traffic was being sacrificed so that through passengers could save an hour's travel time. [ [http://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/cgi-bin/paperspast?a=d&srpos=4&cl=search&d=EP18861208.2.26&e=-------en--1----2%22Wanganui+railway%22-all "The Foxton-Wanganui Railway Time-table"] , "Evening Post" 32(174) [ 8 December 1886 ] : 2.] Local traffic was primarily catered for by slow mixed trains. The Express initially operated twice weekly, with connections to Onehunga in Auckland by steamer. In 1901 the express began operating daily; in 1908, with the incorporation of the WMR into the NZR, the service was run by the single government operator; and from 1909, the steamer connections ceased as direct expresses between Wellington and Auckland began operating on the newly-opened NIMT.J. D. Mahoney, "Kings of the Iron Road: Steam Passenger Trains of New Zealand" (Palmerston North: Dunmore Press, 1982), 71.]

In 1926, the Taranaki Flyer passenger train was introduced between Wanganui and Palmerston North, replacing one mixed train. Two additional mixed trains ran south from New Plymouth daily.Churchman and Hurst, "The Railways of New Zealand", 133.] The opening of the SOL in 1933 saw the introduction of the New Plymouth Night Express between Auckland and New Plymouth, using the MNPL between New Plymouth and Stratford. It ran thrice weekly, with extra trains at peak periods.Mahoney, "Kings of the Iron Road", 67.] In 1938, the RM class Standard railcars entered service and they operated an evening service between Wellington and Palmerston North to complement the Express. In a test run, one of these railcars completed the journey in 6.5 hours. However, difficulties on the 1 in 35 grades of the Turakina route and Westmere Bank meant that the railcars had to have different gears installed, reducing their top speed from 120 km/h to 105 km/h.David Jones, "Where Railcars Roamed: The Railcars Which Have Served New Zealand Railways" (Wellington: Wellington Tramway Museum, 1999), 18.]

Increasing competition from road and air led to a decline in passengers after World War II. The New Plymouth Express and Taranaki Flyer ran for the last time on 31 October 1955 and were replaced by Standard and 88-seater railcars. The New Plymouth Night Express was similarly replaced by 88-seater railcars the next year.Churchman and Hurst, "The Railways of New Zealand", 141.] The railcar substitute for the Taranaki Flyer ran for the last time on 7 February 1959,Tony Hurst, "Farewell to Steam: Four Decades of Change on New Zealand Railways" (Auckland: HarperCollins, 1995), 74.] , but the other services survived into the 1970s. From 1968, the sole services operated by the Standard railcars were those on the MNPL and SOL, as they had been withdrawn from all others nationwide; they were finally displaced from these services in late 1972.

The Blue Streak refurbished 88-seater railcars, displaced from the NIMT by the introduction of the Silver Fern railcars, were introduced to the Wellington to New Plymouth morning service, displacing unrefurbished 88-seaters. The evening service, whicb by then ran solely on Fridays and Sundays, had been the final domain of the Standard railcars, but they were replaced by the 88-seaters after the last run of an unrefurbished 88-seater on the morning service on 17 December 1972.Hurst, "Farewell to Steam", 71.] However, the 88-seaters were aging and plagued by reliability problems, and on 30 July 1977 all passenger trains between Wellington and New Plymouth were cancelled, thus ending passenger service between Marton and Stratford. The railcars replacing the New Plymouth Night Express had ceased to operate the Auckland-Taumarunui section since 1971, and when they were withdrawn after 11 February 1978, a diesel-hauled carriage train was introduced on the New Plymouth-Stratford-Taumarunui run. It ran for the last time on 21 January 1983 and was the last regular passenger train to operate on any part of the MNPL. Since this time, the only passenger services have been excursions run by enthusiast societies.

Freight

In the early years of the line, freight was primarily local and the railway served as a link between ports and their hinterland. Long distance freight progressively developed over the course of the 20th century, aided by the decline of coastal shipping and the need to carry freight to ports in other regions. Only one train operates the length of the line each way every weekday, but multiple services use portions of the line. A weekday service operates each way between New Plymouth and Auckland via the SOL, utilising the MNPL between New Plymouth and Stratford. An additional freight runs when required on this section early in the morning Tuesdays to Fridays, departing Stratford at 3am and returning from New Plymouth by 5am. Three trains operate every weekday from Fonterra's Whareroa factory to New Plymouth; two carry natural gas from the Kapuni Branch, and one runs between New Plymouth and Wanganui, with provisions for a second if required. Almost no services operate on weekends. [ [http://railnz.co.nz/times/TrainTimetableGuide.htm "New Zealand Train Timetable Guide"] , effective 17 June 2007, accessed 29 November 2007.]

Motive power

Steam locomotives were the primary motive power on the MNPL until the early 1960s. Tank locomotives were prevalent until the 1920s. At the start of the 20th century, W^B class locomotives were based in Wanganui, W^A and W^F locomotives from Palmerston North were used on the line, and M and double Fairlie E class locomotives were based in New Plymouth. Tender locomotives only gained precedence in the 1920s with the introduction of the A^B class, though W^F locomotives continued to assist over the difficult grades out of Aramoho.Mahoney, "Kings of the Iron Road", 72 and 75.] W^W class tanks were also used on the MNPL in this era. After World War II, K and K^A locomotives were introduced, the most powerful steam power used on the line.

In the early 1960s DA class diesel locomotives began taking over most duties, with steam locomotive workings ceasing in 1966. When introduced in 1972, the DX class were not common on the MNPL, but as the DA class was phased out, their usage became frequent. Since the 1980s, DX and DC class locomotives have been common on the line.

References