Te Akeake railway station
Te Akeake railway station | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Te Akeake railway station in 2024 | |||||||||||
| General information | |||||||||||
| Location | New Zealand | ||||||||||
| Coordinates | 35°20′57″S 174°06′29″E / 35.3491°S 174.1081°E | ||||||||||
| Line(s) | Opua Branch | ||||||||||
| Platforms | Yes | ||||||||||
| Tracks | Single line | ||||||||||
| History | |||||||||||
| Opened | 1888 | ||||||||||
| Closed | 1931 | ||||||||||
| Services | |||||||||||
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Te Akeake railway station[1] is a station on the Opua Branch in New Zealand.
The station, sometimes named Teakeake,[2] opened after an application for a stopping place, 1.5 mi (2.4 km) from Taumarere, was made on 7 July 1888. About 1898, after an "application from natives", on 28 December 1893, a shelter shed and platform were built.[3] It closed on 14 August 1931[4] and remained closed, when the platform was moved[1] north from 3 mi 63 ch (6.1 km) from Kawakawa,[3] by about 900 m (980 yd).[5] The repositioned station reopened in December 2022 as a new terminal for the Bay of Islands Vintage Railway (BoIVR).[6]
Whangae Bridge
[edit]An 1883 account described a station being built between the tunnel and the bridge over the Whangae River. It also said the banks were being washed away until stone facings were added to them.[7]
From 14 August 1931 Te Akeake was replaced as a flag station by Whangae Bridge,[8] on the other side[9] of the 264 ft (80 m),[7] or 93 yd (85 m)[10] Opua Tunnel 14,[11] or Whangae Tunnel.[12][13] Opua Tunnel was closed by a slip in 1936.[14] The station closed on 1 September 1963.[4] For the Cycle Trail a steeply graded bypass has been built around the tunnel.[6]
It was 2 mi 34 ch (3.9 km) from the station it replaced, 1 mi 27 ch (2.2 km) from Opua, 4 mi 01 ch (6.5 km) from Taumarere and 51 mi 60 ch (83.3 km) from Whangārei, had a shelter shed[3] and was served by the Auckland–Opua Northland Express.[15]
Incidents
[edit]In 1964 a man died when a locomotive took a corner too fast and toppled into the water, just south of the tunnel.[12] A temporary siding was built to get the engines out of the creek.[16] The works were still in place in 2018.[17]
On Saturday 26 June 1999, near the same location, a Vintage Railway steam train from Opua to Kawakawa was derailed at low speed when the track spread. The safety report said track maintenance was inadequate.[18]
Cycle trail
[edit]Pou Herenga Tai – Twin Coast Cycle Trail opened along the rail line between Kawakawa and Ōpua in 2017.[19]
Taumarere (Long Bridge)-Te Ake Ake closed in 2021 to dig the rails out from under the trail, using $5.59m from the COVID-19 Response and Recovery Fund. Kawakawa-Ōpua is leased from KiwiRail by BoIVR, which sublet the Ōpua-Taumarere to Far North District Council for the cycle trail until it was ready to extend the railway. The Ōpua-Te Ake Ake section of the trail reopened on 26 December 2022. Cyclists and walkers can use a train for a gold coin donation. A cycle trail alongside the railway is planned, when the line is reopened to Opua.[6]
References
[edit]- ^ a b Bay of Islands Vintage Railway Newsletter. No. December 2022 https://web.archive.org/web/20230423143811/https://www.bayofislandsvintagerailway.org.nz/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/2022.12.31-BOIVR-Newsletter.pdf. Archived from the original (PDF) on 23 April 2023. Retrieved 23 April 2023.
{{cite magazine}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ^ "Sun (Auckland)". paperspast.natlib.govt.nz. 15 December 1928. Retrieved 20 May 2024.
- ^ a b c Scoble, Juliet. "Station Archive". Rail Heritage Trust of New Zealand.
- ^ a b Scoble, Juliet (2010). "Names & Opening & Closing Dates of Railway Stations" (PDF). Rail Heritage Trust.
- ^ "1:63360 map Sheet NAK26". www.mapspast.org.nz. 1937. Retrieved 20 May 2024.
- ^ a b c "Popular east coast cycle trail section to reopen". Far North District Council. 14 December 2022. Retrieved 20 May 2024.
- ^ a b "The Kawakawa railway extension. New Zealand Herald". paperspast.natlib.govt.nz. 25 September 1883. Retrieved 26 May 2024.
- ^ "Northern Advocate". paperspast.natlib.govt.nz. 14 August 1931. Retrieved 20 May 2024.
- ^ New Zealand Railway and Tramway Atlas (4th ed.). Quail Map Co. 1993.
- ^ "Our home letter. New Zealand Herald". paperspast.natlib.govt.nz. 22 May 1882. Retrieved 20 May 2024.
- ^ "KiwiRail Network Map". kiwirail.maps.arcgis.com. November 2018. Retrieved 20 May 2024.
- ^ a b "Man Killed When Engine Derailed, Press". paperspast.natlib.govt.nz. 31 August 1964. Retrieved 20 May 2024.
- ^ "Photograph of Whangae tunnel". MOTAT. 1985.
- ^ "Train services ar a standstill. Northern Advocate". paperspast.natlib.govt.nz. 3 February 1936. Retrieved 20 May 2024.
- ^ "Auckland Star, Volume LXIII, Issue 8, 11 January 1932, Page 16". paperspast.natlib.govt.nz. Retrieved 24 May 2024.
- ^ "Rig falls in swamp. Press". paperspast.natlib.govt.nz. 5 September 1964. Retrieved 31 May 2024.
- ^ "Blockage in Lower Taumarere-Kawakawa River" (PDF). Northland Regional Council. 8 April 2018. p. 7.
- ^ "Report 99-115 vintage train derailment" (PDF). Transport Accident Investigation Commission. 2 August 2000.
- ^ "July, 2017 - Twin Coast Cycle Trail". Retrieved 11 July 2024.
External links
[edit]- photos of Whangae tunnel about 1890, 1985
- photo of derailed diesel locomotive Dg 774 in the water in 1964 - story in Papers Past