Sth Island Rail Nearly Fixed

in Trains by Jon C — September 6, 2010 at 12:06 pm | 0 comments

South Island’s rail lines are slowly getting back into action after the weekend earthquake.

The main line south of Christchurch is open and most remaining repairs should be done within the day.

West Coast coal trains may operate from this evening and the backlog of containers in transit is starting to clear. Rail is being asked to move additional freight into the South Island to assist with the distribution of fast moving consumer goods.

The latest:

The line between Rangiora and Christchurch will open tomorrow.
The Belfast–Rangiora line is closed due to extensive damage along a 5km length of track and to one bridge (Bridge 18). But this should be fixed in the next 24 hours..
The Rolleston–Cass line has now been assessed. An empty coal train will depart today with a structures engineer on board to assess viaducts under load. It is expected to be fully opened after this.
The Midland line which is closed and should open this afternoon.
All other lines are open,
The Middleton to Ashburton line has a speed restriction of 25km/hr over bridges and 40km/hr over other track as aftershock mitigation.
Passenger trains between Christchurch and Greymouth and between Christchurch and Picton have been suspended until further notice. The TranzAlpine is replaced by buses today but may be running tomorrow.