The Hutt Valley, Melling and Wairarapa rail lines will close between the morning and evening peaks next week from Tuesday to Friday for urgent KiwiRail inspections.

Between 9.30am and 2.30pm on 23, 24, 25 and 26 January, passenger services will be bus replaced and no freight trains will run on the three lines. The Johnsonville and Kāpiti lines are not affected.

Wairarapa services will be bus replaced between Wellington and Upper Hutt during these periods.

Metlink was informed by KiwiRail on Tuesday 16 January that the inspections of overhead power cables are essential during daylight hours for safety reasons, and to avoid a repeat of the incident on Wednesday 10 January.

Power was temporarily lost during the incident when all rail services in and out of Wellington Station were suspended and three trains, containing 129 passengers and six crew, stopped between stations.

While KiwiRail is also conducting inspections during pre-planned intervals over the anniversary weekend, next week’s urgent inspections are required to complete the work and minimise further disruption.

Metlink acknowledges its rail passengers will be inconvenienced while the inspections take place and is grateful for their understanding of the need for the work to be done.

Passengers are advised to allow extra time for their journeys and reminded to check the Metlink website or app before travelling.

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