Calls to reconnect Auckland, Hamilton and Tauranga by passenger rail are gaining momentum, with campaigners pointing to growing public demand and new political support for extending Te Huia into the Bay of Plenty.
The Green Party has proposed improving and electrifying Te Huia and extending the passenger service through to Tauranga as part of its recently announced transport policy. New Zealand First has also left the door open to passenger rail proposals, while saying any project would need to demonstrate that it is practical and financially viable.
Rail advocates say recent passenger demand shows there is an appetite for services through the so-called Golden Triangle. More than 900 people travelled by train between Auckland, Hamilton and Tauranga, or on local Bay of Plenty excursions, during a special service in May, with tickets selling out in less than two days.
A second Auckland-Hamilton-Tauranga Kaimai Express, scheduled for 18 October, has also sold out. The Future is Rail says the response strengthens the case for investigating whether regular passenger services could be established between the three centres.
The Future is Rail and Tauranga Rail have asked the Bay of Plenty Regional Transport Committee to fund a feasibility study examining timetables, operating requirements, costs, funding and governance for a regular inter-regional service.
The proposed study could go further, examining the potential for a future Bay of Plenty metro rail network with stations at Ōmokoroa, central Tauranga, Mount Maunganui and Te Puke, creating a local rail spine alongside connections north to Waikato and Tāmaki Makaurau.
With existing rail infrastructure already connecting the three regions and Te Huia operating between Waikato and Auckland, supporters say the next step is determining what investment would be required to turn occasional sold-out services into a regular passenger rail network.
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