| Waitara Railway Preservation Society | |
| Terminus: | Waitara |
| Linename: | Waitara Branch |
| Builtby: | New Zealand Government Railways |
| Originalgauge: | 1067 mm |
| Preservedgauge: | 1067 mm |
| Owned: | Waitara Railway Preservation Society |
| Operator: | Waitara Railway Preservation Society |
| Stations: | Two |
| Length: | 7.45km |
| Originalopen: | 1875 |
| Closedpassengers: | 1948 |
| Closed: | 1999 |
| Years: | 1999 |
| Events: | Purchased from Tranz Rail |
| Years1: | 2003 |
| Events1: | Reopened for passengers |
| Years2: | 2004 |
| Events2: | Tahora Station moved to Brixton |
| Years3: | 2015 |
| Events3: | Waiongana River bridge reopened |
| Years4: | 2020 |
| Events4: | Line extended to Lepperton Yards |
| Website: | http://www.waitararailway.org.nz |
The Waitara Railway Preservation Society is a society established in 1999 to operate a heritage railway over the former Waitara Industrial Line railway that operated between Lepperton and Waitara in the New Plymouth District of New Zealand's North Island. The line had been closed that year after 124 years of operation, after the closure of the local AFFCO freezing works in the town.
The preserved line begins at the northern end of the Lepperton Railway Yards (just past the main line turnout) and continues parallel to the Marton - New Plymouth Railway for a few hundred meters before turning right at Sentry Hill towards the Waiongana Stream. After crossing the stream the line runs to the former Waitara Road station and former Waitara Taranaki Co-Operative Dairy Company buildings at Brixton. The line continues from here towards Waitara, passing underneath State Highway 3 at Big Jim's Overpass. Finally, the line drops into the Waitara Valley and into the township of Waitara proper, finishing just before the Waitara River.
In Waitara, most of the infrastructure is gone with only the main line and one loop remaining in the yard. The former Tahora station has been relocated to Waitara Road,[1] where the society's rolling stock is stored. The site of the Lepperton railway station & yard is still owned and operated by KiwiRail, where the station building was removed in 1994.[2]
The branch line has 8 level crossings along its length, all of which are protected by compulsory stop signs. Issues with these were raised in the community in 2004 as legally traffic has to stop even though trains seldom ran more than once a month.[3] The Land Transport Safety Authority (now NZTA) would not allow Give Way signs and reinstating bells and lights had been reported as costing over $250,000 per crossing (almost the purchase price of the entire line in 1999) making installation unlikely for foreseeable future. Rail operations have become more frequent since then but motorists failing to stop for the societies trains is still an issue.[4]
Trains are run twice daily on the first and third Sundays of the month, departing from Waitara. The trip takes 70-80 minutes return. The railway also offers charter services by arrangement.
Since around 2007, trains had only journeyed as far as the Waiongana River bridge due to the deterioration of the sleepers on the structure. In April 2014 the bridge was re-sleepered and maintenance completed on the main bridge structure (including removing the former Waitara town water pipes from the side).[5] This has allowed trains to return to the entire branch line (and a proposed loop at the former Sentry Hill station site).
In 2019 the society entered into a lease to the Lepperton railway sidings (but not the main line and loop) which will allow locomotives to switch ends of the train. As part of this agreement, the society has built a new linking track to bypass the Kiwirails network which is under Centralised Traffic Control.[6]
The Waitara Railway Preservation Society owns a number of diesel shunting locomotives, either operational or awaiting restoration. These include:[7]
| Class & Number | TMS Number | Type | Year | Built by | Makers Number | Status | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| - | - | diesel shunter | 1954 | 2507 | Unknown | Built for Northland Fertiliser Co, Whangarei. Donated in 1999. | ||
| PC 11 | - | diesel shunter | 1958 | 3144 | In service | Built for Portland Cement. Donated to the Taranaki Flyer Society Incorporated[8] in 2010 but returned in 2013[9] when that group folded. | ||
| DSA414 | diesel shunter | 1956 | 3079 | Stored | Arrived 2008 from Ravensdown Fertilizer, New Plymouth. | |||
| DSC2257 | Bo-Bo diesel shunter | 1963 | 403 of 1963 | Stored | Formerly use at Ravensdown Fertilizer, New Plymouth. | |||
| DSC2584 | Bo-Bo diesel shunter | 1966 | 433 of 1966 | Stored | Purchased in 2003. | |||
| - | TR1026 / Price222 | diesel shunter | 1968 | 222 of 1968 | In Service | Built for Pacific Steel in Otahuhu. Purchased by Tranz Rail in 1997 and classified as Price 222, before being reclassified TR 1026. Privately owned. | ||
| TR407 | diesel shunter | 1957 | 177 of 1957 | In service |
Locomotives formerly based at Waitara include:
The WRPS's collection of rolling stock consists of both passenger carriages and freight wagons, and is either owned outright by the society or is leased from the Rail Heritage Trust of New Zealand. This includes:
| Class & Number | TMS Number | Type | Year | Built by | Status | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A 1952 | A56536 | 1939 | In Use | |||
| AL 1837 | AL50182 | 1936 | Under Restoration | |||
| Ad 709 | AD1403 | 60-foot Carriage | Stored | Privately Owned. Former Postal Van Fp 709 / Business Car | ||
| Ad ??? | AD1432 | 60-foot Carriage | Stored | Privately Owned. Former Postal Van / Business Car | ||
| Class & Number | TMS Number | Type | Year | Built by | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| F 582 | F1180 | 50' Guards Van | 1931 | ||
| F 726 | F1892 | 37'6" Guards Van | 1964 | Modified for passenger use. | |
| F 745 | F2094 | 37'6" Guards Van | 1967 | ||
| Class & Number | TMS Number | Type | Sub-type | Year | Built by | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NA 1566 | NA749 | Flat Deck | 1977 | Rebuilt as NAK 6118 in 1987. Mobile ticket office built on deck of wagon. | ||
| NA 1671 | NA2396 | Flat Deck | 1977 | Rebuilt as NAK 6486 in 1987. | ||
| NA 1907 | NA4993 | Flat Deck | 1977 | Rebuilt as NAK 6078 in 1986. Used as open carriage for passengers. | ||
| NA 1777 | NA3562 | Flat Deck | 1977 | Rebuilt as NAK 6541 in 1987. | ||
| NA 1872 | NA4618 | Flat Deck | 1977 | Rebuilt as NAK 6056 in 1987. Pessenger body built on deck. | ||
| NAK | NAK6595 | Flat Deck | ||||
| LA 17200 | LA3264 | High-side | LA-6 | 1931 | ||
| UB 955 | UB833 | Flat Deck | UB-5 | 1938 | Used as open passenger vehicle EA3298. | |
| UC 810 | UC248 | Tank wagon | UC-3 | 1938 | ||
| UG 79 | EA1012 | Horse Box | UG-4 | 1931 | Frame only. Used as passenger vehicle. | |
| US 3082 | US55 | Flat Deck | US-1 | 1968 | ||
| YB 65 | - | Ballast Wagon | YB-2 | 1890 | ||
| YB 600 | YB1466 | Ballast Wagon | YB-4 | 1941 | ||
| YC 710 | YC124 | Ballast Wagon | YC-1 | 1959 | ||
| - | YH477 | Ballast Wagon | YH-1 | 1979 | ||
| Z 282 | Z201 | Box Wagon | Z-14 | 1941 | ||
| ZP 656 | ZP10063 | Box Wagon | 1968 | |||
| - | ZP14531 | Box Wagon | ||||
None of the original station buildings remained when the line was purchased. Since the railway was purchased, new stations have been created. This has included relocating two historic station buildings, both former New Zealand Railways stations.
Magnolia Glade is located just past Waitara Road station and is the site of over 200 new trees planted along the line, including a significant number of Magnolias. Trains are operated as part of the Taranaki Fringe Garden Festival each year while the trees are in bloom.