Major rail upgrades to bring more frequent and reliable services mean no trains will be running from Friday 20 June to Monday 23 June 2025, as essential upgrade works are carried out across the city’s rail lines over the extended Matariki long weekend.

This closure across the Eastern, Western, Southern, and Onehunga Lines is needed so that KiwiRail, City Rail Link Limited and AT can continue vital network upgrade works ahead of the City Rail Link opening in 2026.

No trains will operate during this period, including on Monday 23 June, a standard weekday. People should also be aware there will be changes to train services during the upcoming winter school holidays.

To support passengers, AT will operate frequent all-stop rail replacement bus services throughout the rail closure period. For some passengers AT’s regular scheduled bus services will also be a good alternative.

AT’s Group Manager Rail Services Mark Lambert says closures like this are needed to get the wider Auckland rail network ready for the faster, more frequent train services that will come when the City Rail Link opens.

“We understand this closure will be disruptive—especially with Monday being a regular workday—but it is a necessary step to ensure the future reliability and efficiency of our rail network,” Mr Lambert says.

“We’ve timed this work over a long weekend to reduce disruption for our passengers as much as possible, and we’re doing everything we can to keep people moving.”

The upgrade work includes track renewals, foundation upgrades and drainage improvements as part of KiwiRail’s Rail Network Rebuild programme, the installation of fibre optic cables across the rail network, and maintenance work at train stations that would be too disruptive to undertake when services were running.

“The work AT and our partners are doing now will help unlock the benefits of the City Rail Link and transform how people move around our city,” Mr Lambert says.

“We know that for many people this is likely to be frustrating. But this is a once-in-a-generation upgrade, so we’re asking Aucklanders to bear with us just a little longer so we can deliver a faster, more reliable, and more frequent rail service for everyone.”

KiwiRail Chief Metro and Capital Programme Officer David Gordon says: “KiwiRail is progressing works at pace especially on the Southern Line where we still have more to do to improve foundations and drainage to ensure our network is resilient.”

“Our teams will be working night and day to get as much completed as possible during the four days.”

Notes:

Extended Matariki weekend rail closure

• The extended rail closure over Matariki weekend extends from Friday 20 June to Monday 23 June.
• Buses will replace trains on all lines, with all-stops rail replacement buses stopping at or near every train station.
• Newmarket and Remuera stations will be fully closed during this period to enable work to progress more quickly on station maintenance projects.
• Information for passengers about the closure and alternative transport options is being shared widely across AT’s customer communication channels and at stations.
• The AT Journey Planner (on the AT Mobile app or AT website) is the easiest way for people to plan their journeys while train services aren’t running.

Partial rail closure during the winter school holidays

• There will be also changes to train services from 28 June to 13 July during the winter school holidays.
• Parts of the Southern Line will be closed for essential drainage works and reduced frequencies will be in place for the rest of the Southern Line, the Eastern Line, and the Western Line.
• The Onehunga Line will retain its all-day 30-minute service during this period.
• Rail replacement buses, including an express service will serve closed parts of the Southern Line as we do our best to keep passengers moving.

The City Rail Link will bring Auckland closer together

• City Rail Link will double the number of Aucklanders within a 30-minute train journey to the central city and increase rail capacity by at least 50 per cent on its opening day.
• It will also significantly cut journey times – for example Henderson to the city centre in just 35 minutes (save 24 minutes). Another example is Maungawhau Station (formerly Mt Eden) to Waitematā (Britomart) in under 10 minutes, which is about half the current time.
• Trains will run more frequently - every four minutes through the central city, every five minutes from all stations north of Puhinui on the Southern and Eastern Lines, every 8 minutes on the Western Line from Henderson and every 10 from Pukekohe.

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