53-430: The Waitara Branch is a 7.245 km long branch line railway in the Taranaki region of New Zealand's North Island . It was built as part of the region's first railway, linking New Plymouth with the closest suitable port, then the river port of Waitara . In 1884 the Breakwater port was opened in New Plymouth, but the line was saved when a (meat) freezing works was opened at Waitara in 1885. For many years
106-553: A Māori burial ground from the New Zealand Wars a decade earlier. Caroline Perrett (known to all as "Queenie") was not seen by her parents again and not rediscovered by her original family until 1926, 52 years after the incident occurred. The line was officially opened on 14 October 1875, with the first train departing New Plymouth with around 100 passengers. Trains were operated initially by two A class locomotives named "Fox" and "Ferret" which ran mixed trains services over
159-510: A common sight along railroads in industrial and rural cities alike. As automobile and roadway technology improved throughout the early and mid-20th century, most low volume industry spurs were abandoned in favor of the greater flexibility and economic savings of trucking. Today, railroads remain the most economical way to ship large quantities of material, a fact that is reflected in industrial spurs. Most modern day spurs serve very large industries that require hundreds, if not thousands, of carloads
212-505: A fire originating in the lamp room of the building. It was reported that "all the records were burnt, but the safe with cash is intact." Consideration was given in the following months to relocating the Ngaire station building to Waitara as a replacement. In 1929 preparations were made to replace the level crossing between the railway and Mamaku Road (later Devon Road and now part of State Highway 3 ) at Big Jim's Hill. This location had become
265-609: A local port only. The establishment of a freezing works in 1887 provided steady traffic over the line and prevented the line from closure. Other notable traffic included plants from the Duncan & Davies nurseries and produce from the Waitara Taranaki Co-operative Dairy Factory (later Moa-Nui Co-op Daries) sidings, both located at Waitara Road station. The original track was replaced with 53lb rail in 1911, allowing heavier locomotives to work
318-480: A loop in the goods yard, rather than the main line as is more usual. The station complex was upgraded again at the end of 1911 with a full repaint and the addition of a veranda to the station building. The railway junction at Sentry Hill was built facing Waitara rather than New Plymouth. Initially, this made sense as Waitara was the major port for the region, but this decision required that all trains from New Plymouth to destinations south were required to stop and have
371-464: A mainline, they tend to have lower maintenance and signaling (train control) standards. Before the rise of the long-distance trucking in the early 1930s, railroads were the primary means of transportation around the world. Industries of the era were commonly built along railroad lines specifically to allow for easy access to shipping. Short (under a mile, oftentimes only several hundred yards) industrial spurs with very small (under ten car) capacities were
424-527: A railway a matter of necessity," as well as citing the difficulty to sourcing suitable roading metal and the undue burden of the cost of maintaining the road. In 1912 North Taranaki Dairy Company lent their support to the idea, suggesting the extension run further to Mimi Junction. Such an extension would have required a substantial bridge over the Waitara river, with an opening span to allow for steamer traffic to pass through. In 1920 another extension proposal
477-427: A satisfactory solution. To fix this problem, in 1894 a new Sentry Hill passenger station was opened located roughly 49 chains south of the old station and just past the junction points for the new loop line. The old Sentry Hill station was closed and passenger facilities removed (though the yard and goods shed remained at the old location pending completion of the new station site). The new Sentry Hill station location
530-823: A section of the West Rail line . Discontinued services include the Sha Tau Kok Railway and the Wo Hop Shek Branch . A spur line to Siu Sai Wan has been proposed. Delhi On the Delhi Metro , the Blue Line has a Branch Line with 8 Stations, linking Yamuna Bank to Ghaziabad via Anand Vihar ISBT and terminating at Vaishali. The first section of the Branch opened on 8 January 2010 with Anand Vihar as its terminal with six stations. It
583-466: A short distance away on the mainline. In 1907 it was decided to relocate the entire junction half a mile south to a more suitable site. The new site was closer to Lepperton than Sentry Hill and so the new junction was named Lepperton Junction. The station and yards opened in 1908 and included extending the Waitara Branch line parallel with the main line between the old and new station sites. On
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#1732780999120636-531: A subsidy for grain transport, and instead allowed railways to absorb branch line subsidies freely without making effort to improve the profitability of the lines. The term "grain-dependent branch lines" began being used as early as 1978 to refer to the special case of these branch lines in agricultural areas whose viability depended on the economics of grain transport. The Western Grain Transportation Act of 1983 addressed this case specifically, but
689-450: A triangle junction arrangement and avoiding the need to remarshal through trains between New Plymouth and points south. With this solution came a new issue, however, as it caused direct trains to bypass the old Sentry Hill station site which was now located on the branch line instead of the main line. For a time, trains needing to stop at the station would reverse into or out of the station yard before continuing their journey, but this wasn't
742-466: A year. There is an international branch line between Italy and Vatican: the 300-metre Vatican Railway , connecting from the Pisa-Rome railway mainline at Roma San Pietro railway station , to Vatican City station . Many British railway branch lines were closed as a result of the " Beeching cuts " in the 1960s, although some have been re-opened as heritage railways . The smallest branch line that
795-569: Is a secondary railway line which branches off a more important through route, usually a main line . A very short branch line may be called a spur line . Branch lines may serve one or more industries, or a city or town not located on a main line. Branch lines may also connect two or more main lines. An industrial spur is a type of secondary track used by railroads to allow customers at a location to load and unload railcars without interfering with other railroad operations. Industrial spurs can vary greatly in length and railcar capacity depending on
848-554: Is somewhat broken." This proposal was still under consideration in 1893 (along with an alternative route linking just south of Stratford, which would eventually become the Stratford – Okahukara Line ). An alternative survey considered taking the link up the Urenui River. A report in 1899 ended any chance of the route being built through Waitara, citing that the land for most of the route is not well suited for development and, as
901-546: Is still extant a short distance from where it originally stood. It is visible behind the Lepperton Tennis Club courts on Manutahi Road, which has been there since the 1950s. In Waitara, two-thirds of the former Midhirst railway station sits on Memorial Place next to the War Memorial Hall. By the river mouth, the former north signal box from Stratford was relocated to Waitara in 1960 as a clubhouse for
954-567: Is still in operation in the UK is the Stourbridge Town Branch Line from Stourbridge Junction going to Stourbridge Town . Operating on a single track, the journey is 0.8 miles (1.3 kilometres) long and the train takes around two and a half minutes to complete its journey. In North America, little-used branch lines are often sold by large railroads to become new common carrier short-line railroads of their own. Throughout
1007-532: The Bay of Plenty Region , lines were built inland to provide rail access to large logging operations. Today, many of the branch lines have been closed, including almost all of the general-purpose country lines. Those that remain serve ports or industries far from main lines such as coal mines, logging operations, large dairying factories, and steelworks . In Auckland and Wellington , two branch lines in each city exist solely for commuter passenger trains. For more, see
1060-574: The DB class in the 1970s and DBR , DC and DSC class in the 1980s and 90s. In the final years it was not uncommon for trains to be replaced with trucks as tonnages declined. The following stations were located on the Waitara Branch. Distance measured from final junction in Lepperton. Station buildings at Waitara Road and Sentry Hill were simple Class 6 shelter sheds, befitting their status as flag stops only. Waitara's original Class 5 station building
1113-753: The Gladstone Branch in New Jersey; as well as the New Canaan Branch , Danbury Branch , and Waterbury Branch in Connecticut . The Long Island Rail Road also refers to its services as "branches". In Chile, there are a lot of branch lines on its main line, of only a few remain operational. Most only operating in turistic services (like the Antilhue-Valdivia branch line), others have been taken over by other railways (like
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#17327809991201166-1048: The Grand Trunk , Canadian National , or Canadian Pacific ) which would acquire formerly independent short line railways for use as branch lines, with the short line often continuing to exist as a subsidiary. For example, when the Canadian Pacific acquired the Algoma Eastern Railway (a short line) in 1930, it soon after abandoned much of the Algoma Eastern mainline, but retained sections close to Algoma Eastern–Canadian Pacific junctions as short branch lines or spurs. The National Transportation Act of 1967 provided government subsidies for branch lines. Western railway development in Canada worked in concert with land settlement and cultivation, as pioneers were settled near railway lines, often on land
1219-788: The North South Line between Jurong East and Choa Chu Kang stations was operated as a separate line, known as the Branch line . It was merged into the North–South Line with the opening of the Woodlands Extension in 1996. The future Jurong Region Line and Cross Island Line will also have branch lines. New Zealand once had a very extensive network of branch lines, especially in the South Island regions of Canterbury , Otago , and Southland . Many were built in
1272-704: The South Tseung Kwan O Spur Line to LOHAS Park station , opened in 2009. Earlier, a spur line was built in 1985 on the East Rail line to serve Racecourse station , bypassing Fo Tan station . Also, the Tsim Sha Tsui Extension [ yue ] was built in 2004 on the East Rail line to serve East Tsim Sha Tsui station . However, after the Kowloon Southern Link was completed in 2009, this spur line turns into
1325-648: The Waitara Railway Preservation Society was formed with the aim to save the line. This goal was finally achieved in 2001 when the line was purchased with the help of grants from the Taranaki Electricity Trust and the TSB Community Trust . Since that time passenger services have resumed and work is being done to rehabilitate the line. The former Tahora railway station building has been relocated to
1378-489: The 1-35 grade out of New Plymouth or the 1-40 grade out from Waitara led to two new C class locomotives being introduced, with the older locomotives being relegated to shunting duties. The line continued to be served by tank engines for many years, including at various times F class and W class locomotives. By the 1950s the line was operated by tender engines such as the A class , the last of which (A 708) departed Waitara Station on 8 November 1966. These were replaced with
1431-695: The San Rosendo-Talcahuano branch line, which has been taken over by Biotrén and the Laja-Talcahuano train service) however, there is one branch line that still remains as fully operative. The Talca-Constitución branch line, which uses trains with bus motors. Two extensions to the MTR rapid transit network were built as branches of existing lines: the Lok Ma Chau Spur Line to Lok Ma Chau station , which opened in 2007; and
1484-623: The U.S. state of New Jersey . The line is a short branch of the Northeast Corridor Line , running from Princeton Junction northwest to Princeton with no intermediate stops. Also known as the "Dinky Line", at 2.9 mi (4.7 km) it is the shortest scheduled commuter rail line in the United States. The run takes 4 minutes, 47 seconds. Other than the Princeton Line, other surviving branch lines include
1537-469: The United States and Canada, branch lines link smaller towns too distant from the main line to be served efficiently, or to serve a certain industrial site such as a power station either because of a location away from the main line or to reduce congestion. They were typically built to lower standards, using lighter rail and shallow roadbeds when compared to main lines. Much of Canada's branch line history relates to large rail transport conglomerates (such as
1590-608: The Waitara Boating Club. When first opened the railway line was generally referred to using variations of "New Plymouth Waitara Railway." From 1877 when the line to Inglewood opened, it became the "Waitara Branch Railway" and this name was reconfirmed on 5 May 1977 in The New Zealand Gazette . On 13 August 1996 the line was officially renamed as the "Waitara Industrial Line", the legal name it carries to this day. Branch line A branch line
1643-467: The early hours of the morning. The engine was then driven back to the Waitara station yard. In the 13 July 1970 the Waitara railway station had part of its roof torn off in a tornado. The tornado (which travelled inland along Domett Street) also ripped roofs of several houses and the St Johns Anglican church hall. At the other end of the line, the island railway station at Lepperton Junction
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1696-569: The first president of the Canadian National Railway , said that although most branch lines cannot pay for themselves, they are even essential to make main lines pay. In the United States, abandonment of unproductive branch lines was a byproduct of deregulation of the rail industry through the Staggers Act . The Princeton Branch is a commuter rail line and service owned and operated by New Jersey Transit (NJT) in
1749-507: The late 19th and early 20th century. Passenger accommodation was removed after World War Two, to be replaced with Railways Road Service buses. These continued operating until 1991 when private enterprise took over the services. When the Waitara - New Plymouth railway line was opened the rolling stock consisted of "two 11-ton A class locomotives, ...three carriages, three box wagons, six low-sided wagons, two brake vans, two weighbridges and 12 tarpaulins". However issues with hauling trains up
1802-546: The late 19th century to open up inland regions for farming and other economic activities. The branches in the South Island regions were often general-purpose lines that carried predominantly agricultural traffic, but lines elsewhere were often built to serve a specific resource: on the West Coast , an extensive network of branch lines was built in rugged terrain to serve coal mines, while in the central North Island and
1855-471: The line served the Borthwicks freezing works in town, until it closed in 1995. Services ceased on 16 June 1995. The branch was closed on 2 February 1999. The line has since been purchased by the Waitara Railway Preservation Society , who now operate tourist trains on the line. In 1872 surveys began for the best route and two were considered: a coastal route which was more direct, and an inland route which
1908-456: The line. The first trip over the line took just 46 minutes to complete. Shortly after the railway was complete, extensions began due south from Sentry Hill alongside Mountain Road towards Inglewood, which was opened in 1877. Waitara's role as the main port for New Plymouth did not last long. Shortly after the line was completed a breakwater was built at what is now Port Taranaki and Waitara became
1961-512: The line. Workers were camped in portable railway huts at Waitara Station. Passenger services were usually run as mixed services, with a service run early in the morning to take children to high school in New Plymouth, returning in the late afternoon. In 1877 there were two return services, operated from New Plymouth, with a third service added three times a week by 1883. As well as regular services, picnic trains to Sentry Hill were popular in
2014-481: The locomotive swap ends of the train to continue their journey. This operation became an increasing bottleneck in the system, especially after 1886 when through services began between Wellington and the new deep water port at the New Plymouth Breakwater. A proposed "loop line" bypassing Sentry Hill station and allowing the direct running of trains was eventually approved and opened in 1892, creating
2067-552: The rails for the original direct link between Waitara and New Plymouth were finally lifted and the triangle junction arrangement was removed for good. During the 1880s the final route for what would become the North Island Main Trunk railway between Auckland and Wellington was still being considered. The current route was decided in 1884, but, when it was realised just how difficult that route was, further surveys considered two other options in 1888. One of these
2120-572: The railways had owned. However, by the mid-20th century, railways began neglecting lines in western agricultural regions. This was historically driven by factors such as the Crow Rate , which regulated the price railways could charge for shipping grain. Railways had little incentive to invest in rural Prairie branch lines, but were legally unable to abandon them under the National Transportation Act , which also did not provide
2173-507: The requirements of the customer the spur is serving. In heavily industrialized areas, it is not uncommon for one industrial spur to have multiple sidings to several different customers. Typically, spurs are serviced by local trains responsible for collecting small numbers of railcars and delivering them to a larger yard, where these railcars are sorted and dispatched in larger trains with other cars destined to similar locations. Because industrial spurs generally have less capacity and traffic than
Waitara Branch - Misplaced Pages Continue
2226-547: The route would not be able to compete with sea travel, the aim of the route should be to connect as much back country as possible with the local port instead. In 1911 the Clifton Country Council passed a resolution calling for the railway to be extended to the township of Urenui , a distance of approximately 9 miles (14 km). It was stated that "That the ordinary traffic on the main road between Urenui and Waitara has increased to such proportions as to make
2279-417: The same date that Lepperton Junction opened both the “new” Sentry Hill station and the original Lepperton station (located closer to Manutahi Road) were closed to all traffic. From the same date the “old” Sentry Hill station was fully reopened, now serving as a branch line station only. The rails for the direct link between Waitara and New Plymouth remained in situ (though largely unused) until 1914. In that year
2332-473: The site of a few near-misses over the previous decades, including from 'trolleys' which provided no warning to road users of their approach. The level crossing was replaced with an overpass for the highway, known today as Big Jim's Overpass. On the 3rd March 1962 A817 was taken for a joyride from the Waitara Engine shed to the top of Big Jims hill by four locals (including a former railways employee) in
2385-415: The site of the former Waitara Road station and various carriages, locomotives and other rolling stock is being restored to operational standards for use on the line. The former port sidings have been removed as part of a riverside redevelopment, shortening the branch to 7.03 km in length. Aside from the railway proper, other railway buildings still exist in the vicinity. The former Sentry Hill goods shed
2438-504: Was further extended to Vaishali in 2011. The line is planned to be extended from Vaishali to Mohan Nagar via Sahibabad Station to link with the main line. The East West Line of the MRT system in Singapore has a two-station branch to Changi Airport . The first station, Expo , opened in 2001. It was extended to Changi Airport station the next year. From 1990 to 1996, the section of
2491-468: Was located on the north side of the tracks (close to where the good shed was eventually located). The replacement Class 4 station building was located on the south (town) side of the yard when it was built in 1893, after lobbying from the Raleigh Town Board for the station to be in a more convenient location. This change of location created a situation where the passenger station was located on
2544-463: Was longer, but more convenient for future extensions to the south. The inland route was chosen. The contract to build the railway was let in 1873 and the line was completed and opened in October 1875. In 1874, while the land was being cleared at Sentry Hill for the new railway, the daughter of William Perrett (a labourer working on the line) was abducted after he had ignored requests not to dig through
2597-418: Was not entirely satisfactory. There were complaints about poor access to the new platform, and the station location was located on a grade that was less than desirable from an operational perspective. In 1903 a new passenger shelter was even constructed at the old Sentry Hill station site after petitions from the local community and was served by branch line trains, despite the new station still being in operation
2650-610: Was put forward by the Clifton County Council, this time for a light railway between Waitara and Te Kūiti via Mokau and its coal mines. Concern was raised by some councils that this might hamper the push for the completion of the Main North Road and the Mokau River bridge. Nothing came of this proposal. At 2:00am on the morning of 15 June 1893, the station building at Waitara was burned to the ground by
2703-502: Was repealed in 1994 in the wake of the North American Free Trade Agreement and budget-balancing initiatives in favour of a one-time payout by the federal government directly to farmers, to arrange transport of grain themselves. From the mid-1970s to the late 2010s, more than 9,300 kilometres (5,800 mi) of Prairie branch lines were abandoned or had a discontinuance of service. David Blyth Hanna ,
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#17327809991202756-646: Was replaced in 1965 with a smaller station adjacent to Mountain Road ( State Highway 3A ), that survived onsite until 1994 when the building was removed (having been sold in 1992). In 1999, Tranz Rail announced that the Waitara Branch, along with the Hautapu-Cambridge section of the Cambridge Branch railway, were to close. After the AFFCO freezing works had closed, there was little prospect of much new freight traffic being on offer. On 25 May 1999
2809-564: Was via Taumarunui to Waitara. A practical route for the line was found by heading north from Waitara along the coast until reaching the Mimi River valley, before heading inland along the river valley. From the top of the valley, a tunnel to Tangarakau was needed, before following the Ohura River Valley. "The total distance is 40. miles, and the steepest gradient one in 50, and only two small tunnels will be required. The country
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