16 Dec 2023

Auckland trains shut down for repairs over Christmas and New Year

7:54 am on 16 December 2023
A train stands at Penrose station as services were suspended due to a large fire on James Fletcher Drive in South Auckland.

File photo. Photo: RNZ / Felix Walton

Auckland's passenger rail network will shut for two weeks over the summer for improvement and maintenance work.

The closure will run from Boxing Day until 14 January, and is part of the annual network shutdown.

KiwiRail is expecting 1800 people to be working on the tracks at 89 sites across the city.

KiwiRail chief capital planning and asset development officer David Gordon said the Christmas-New Year break was the best opportunity to get stuck in to projects, when many people were not commuting.

There will be additional work on the Western Line, which will be closed again from 19-21 January.

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