Haere mai ki Matangi!

Haere mai ki Matangi!

Greater Wellington’s first new Matangi train has arrived in Aotearoa / New Zealand!

The ship carrying the first train arrived in Auckland this morning and is due to leave for Wellington at about 4.30pm, arriving here early Saturday morning.

The train will be taken from CentrePort to KiwiRail’s depot at Kaiwharawhara where it will undergo rigorous testing, as part of the commissioning process. Over the next few months it will be able to be seen along the Hutt Valley and Kapiti lines. It is expected to begin revenue service by December.

The train is the first of 48 being built by Hyundai Rotem Mitsui for Metlink, Greater Wellington’s public transport network.

The Matangi trains have a modern, stainless steel exterior. Inside, they are air-conditioned, spacious, and are equipped with high quality passenger information systems. The trailer car of each two-car unit has a low floor area designed especially to give greater access to people in wheelchairs and passengers with buggies.

The trains are a key part of a $500m-plus package of improvements to Wellington’s regional rail network, the result of Greater Wellington Regional Council’s successful business case for the rail programme several years ago.

As well as the new trains, the programme, a joint initiative of Greater Wellington and KiwiRail, includes:
• Extension of electrification and double tracked lines to take commuter services to Waikanae;
• Installation of power supply equipment and railway signalling;
• Adding another line into Wellington Railway Station to reduce delays;
• Making the Johnsonville Line tunnels larger; and
• Improving a number of platform and station facilities.

The new trains will begin arriving regularly from October.

The first trains will run on the Upper Hutt Line, followed by Johnsonville from April 2011, then Kapiti from July 2011.

ENDS