Christchurch commuter rail pilot to be funded
The Regional Infrastructure Fund will invest in supporting Mainland Rail to return passenger rail services to Christchurch for a 12-month trial and establish the Christchurch-Dunedin-Invercargill Mainlander as a regular service, Rail Minister Winston Peters and Regional Development Minister Shane Jones say. “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,” Mr Peters says. Mainland Rail, which owns rail carriages, intends to provide a 12-month trial service to test Canterbury’s appetite for rail as a public transport service and run more frequent trains from Christchurch-Dunedin-Invercargill.