Work begins on new rail station

Work on the long-awaited Manukau city centre rail link and station is now underway.

Manukau Mayor Len Brown marked the official beginning of construction at a sod-turning this afternoon with Transport Minister Steven Joyce, KiwiRail Chairman Jim Bolger and Auckland Regional Transport Authority (ARTA) Chairman Rabin Rabindran.

The station and rail link is a joint project between KiwiRail, Auckland Regional Transport Authority (ARTA) and Manukau City Council. The 2km rail line is the first new rail route to be built in Auckland since the eastern line in 1930.

Manukau Station will be part of a tertiary campus building, stage one of a planned three hectare campus being developed by Manukau Institute of Technology.

Mr Brown says the council has been pushing for a rail link into Manukau city centre for at least a decade and a tertiary campus in the area for almost as long.

“Now we’ve got both happening at the same time, and as part of a project that will see each helping the other to succeed.

“The Manukau station will be a busy place, with about as many passengers going through it as Newmarket. Only Britomart will be busier.

“Large numbers of passengers and students will be coming to this part of the city centre – and people means opportunities for commercial development and new businesses to establish.

“The campus and train station development will be a catalyst for further investment in this area. It unlocks the economic potential of the city centre and the educational potential of our young people.

“It will be easy to change between bus and train at Manukau station. It will become the hub for the majority of bus services in the south of Auckland.

“We want Manukau city centre and the region to be places that are easy to get to and get around. This development will play a big part in achieving that,” Mr Brown says.

About Manukau Station

The station and rail link is a joint project between KiwiRail, Auckland Regional Transport Authority (ARTA) and Manukau City Council.

The 2km new Manukau rail line will link Manukau city centre with the Southern Line at Puhinui. It is the first new rail route to be built in Auckland since the Eastern Line in 1930. It will run alongside the new SH20 motorway extension and will be mostly double-tracked to achieve convenient and frequent services.

A seven metre deep, 300m-long rail trench will house two 180m-long lateral platforms and the station. The project is part of a $600m upgrade of Auckland's rail network which, when completed, will allow more frequent and reliable passenger services and improve pedestrian safety around the rail network.

Manukau Station will be a transport interchange where passengers can easily transfer between trains and buses. The station will be part of a tertiary campus building, stage 1 of a three hectare campus being developed by Manukau Institute of Technology

The station is due to open in late 2010/early 2011. Stage one of the planned tertiary campus being developed by Manukau Institute of Technology (MIT) will be open to its first students at the start of the 2012 academic year.

Trains could initially run every 20 or 30 minutes at peak as demand grows. When the Auckland rail network electrification is complete peak service will be every 10 minutes.

Train passengers will arrive at the station on a platform approximately seven metres below ground level.

After coming up an escalator passengers will step out to a covered bus interchange on Davies Avenue, with capacity for eight bus bays. The Manukau station will be the main hub for most of the bus services in the south of the Auckland region.

Approximately 600,000 passengers a year will use the train station, a similar level to Newmarket, only Britomart will be busier. About 1.2 million people are expected to use the bus station each year.

New roads will be created on either side of the station and rail line as part of the development.

Manukau City Council has provided approximately $25 million funding for the enabling works for the rail line, the bus interchange, surrounding road upgrades and a bridge over the rail line. Kiwirail is providing $50m for the rail track, signals and trench where trains will arrive and ARTA $15.2m for passenger facilities.