| Lake Road railway station | |
| Country: | New Zealand |
| Coordinates: | -37.9513°N 175.3029°W |
| Line: | North Island Main Trunk |
| Distance: | Wellington 523.48km (325.28miles) |
| Opened: | 1 March 1881 |
| Closed: | 7 July 1940[1] |
| Electrified: | June 1988 |
| Elevation: | 54m (177feet) |
Lake Road railway station was a flag station in the Waikato Region and on the North Island Main Trunk in New Zealand.[2] [3]
By February 1880 the contractor, Mr Fallon, had laid the rails from Ōhaupō to a point south of Lake Road.[4] The line opened to Te Awamutu on Thursday 1 July 1880.[5] Lake Road wasn't shown in the original timetable,[6] but, in 1880, there was pressure from local farmers for a station between Ōhaupō and Ngaroto.[7]
In October 1880 it was decided to open a 7th class station at Wrights Road, mid-way between Ōhaupō and Ngaroto.[8] David Henderson won the contract for the station buildings in November 1880.[9] The station first appeared in the 1 March 1881 timetable.[10] By 1884 Lake Road had a shelter shed, platform and cart approach. Toilets were added in 1908,[11] but there was also a complaint that the platform was only long enough for two coaches.[12]
By 1911 it also had a loading bank. That year a man died when he'd not informed the guard that he wanted to get off at the flag station and fell from the moving train.[13] In 1914 the 1 in 43 gradient at Lake Road was eased to 1 in 100, allowing train tonnages to be increased from a maximum of 209 to 494 tons.[14]
On Sunday 7 July 1940 Lake Road closed to all traffic.