A commuter rail service between Selwyn townships and Christchurch is being investigated by a community board, with planning under way for a one-off trial later this year.
The Tawera Malvern Community Board is investigating the proposal and will assess demand for a passenger service using the existing Midland rail line to connect townships, such as Springfield, Kirwee, and Darfield, to Christchurch.
Community board member Samantha Samuel said the proposal is still in its early stages.
“The trial is the result of community feedback calling for a commuter service in the face of increasing traffic from a growing population.
“The infrastructure is already there, so it’s looking at what we can do to start the conversation towards a commuter train in the future.”
The plan for the trial is a phased approach, proposed to start with a one-off event express train service and then a “move towards a commuter train”.
“Starting off with a one-off event will allow us to gather information and hopefully build a business case for commuter trains.”
The trial process aims to understand the costs and answer the crucial 'who pays' element of any future service.
Mainland Rail has started to introduce event express rail, with a sold-out inaugural journey between Christchurch and Invercargill in January (which cost from $149 for a one-way fare or return $298 per person).
Samule said Mainland Rail is looking to utilise Rolleston as a connection for future events in Christchurch, and she has been working with them on the potential to extend it to as far as Springfield.
“We're still working on a feasible event option for the community, and there are lots of different factors to consider, such as timing, cost, and safety.”
At the community board meeting last week, she said the suggestion of an event-express train to the Six60 concert to open the new One New Zealand Stadium at Te Kaha in Christchurch on May 16 “wasn’t a viable option”.
It would need leave Springfield by 3.45pm to make the 5pm start on the Saturday. The concert finishes around 11pm so would not return to Springfield until at least 2am.
Samuel further clarified that as the concert had already sold out in early February, the timing wasn’t right to package the concert with the train service.
For a first-up trial, a daytime event would be preferred, she said.
“I am trying to work towards having something in place by May, but it’s a work in progress.”
Springfield resident Simon Williams spoke at the board meeting in support of the proposal.
Williams believes it “could be a real game changer” as the population is growing and spreading all over the place, specifically referencing West Melton and Darfield.
“There's a huge need, in my view, for trains into Christchurch from here.”
He sees Springfield as the ideal start and end point, as it was previously home to a railway depot and has “a beautiful station there which no one's using”.
