Te Huia

Te Huia
Te Huia train travelling through Takanini
Overview
Service typeInter-city
StatusOperating
LocaleWaikato, New Zealand
PredecessorWaikato Connection
First service6 April 2021
Current operator(s)Waikato Regional Council
Ridership69,165 (2023)
Websitetehuiatrain.co.nz
Route
TerminiHamilton
Auckland (Strand)
Stops4
Distance travelled138.37 kilometres (85.98 mi)
Average journey time2 hours, 36 minutes[1]
Service frequencyMonday to Wednesday: Twice-daily return

Thursday and Friday: Thrice-daily return Saturday: Twice-daily return

Sunday: No service
On-board services
Seating arrangements147[2]
Catering facilitiesYes – a café / bar
Other facilitiesWi-Fi, Bike Storage, and Toilets
Technical
Rolling stockNew Zealand DF class locomotive (1979) and SR, SRC and SRV class carriages
Track gauge3 ft 6 in (1,067 mm)
Route map
0.00 km
Frankton
6.73
Rotokauri (The Base)
31.47
Huntly
104.63
Papakura
116.53
Puhinui
138.37
The Strand

Te Huia is a passenger train service between Hamilton, Papakura, and Auckland (The Strand) in New Zealand. The service is a five-year trial with subsidies from the NZ Transport Agency and Waikato local authorities. The opening was delayed because of COVID-19 and the need to replace some rail track. A new starting date was announced, and the service began on 6 April 2021.[3][4] Subject to consultation, the 2024 GPS, which sets out government spending plans for transport, does not include the $50m a year to 2026, for inter regional public transport,[5] which was in the draft GPS of August 2023, issued by the previous Labour government, and which was being used to fund Te Huia.[6]

  1. ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 10 February 2021. Retrieved 27 January 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  2. ^ "Te Huia FAQs – On board". Waikato Regional Council. 2021. Archived from the original on 1 February 2021. Retrieved 27 January 2021.
  3. ^ "Slow train coming: Auckland to Hamilton train service unlikely before February". Stuff (Fairfax). 27 August 2020. Archived from the original on 8 November 2022. Retrieved 29 August 2020.
  4. ^ "New launch date for Hamilton-Auckland commuter rail service announced". Stuff/Fairfax. 10 February 2021. Archived from the original on 10 February 2021. Retrieved 10 February 2021.
  5. ^ "Draft Government Policy Statement on land transport 2024/25–2033/34 2" (PDF). 4 March 2024. p. 29.
  6. ^ "Te Manatū Waka | Draft Government Policy Statement on land transport 2024/25-2033/34 1" (PDF). 17 August 2023. p. 48.