Kingston Branch
The Kingston Branch was a major railway line in Southland, New Zealand. It formed part of New Zealand's national rail network for over a century: construction began in 1864, Kingston was reached in 1878, and it closed in 1979. For much of its life, it was considered a secondary main line rather than a branch line, and in its earlier years, it was sometimes known as the "Great Northern Railway". Today, the southern portion now forms a part of the Wairio Branch and the northernmost 14 kilometres was used by the Kingston Flyer.
| Kingston Branch | |
|---|---|
Railway station of Invercargill in the 1860s with the wooden rails in use on the line to Makarewa until 1867 | |
| Overview | |
| Status | Closed (Makarewa to Fairlight) |
| Owner | Railways Department |
| Locale | Southland, New Zealand |
| Coordinates | 45.3676°S 168.6761°E |
| Termini |
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| Stations | 34 (total) 2 (operational) |
| Service | |
| Type | regional rail |
| System | New Zealand Government Railways |
| Operator(s) | Railways Department KiwiRail (Invercargill to Makarewa) The Kingston Flyer (Fairlight to Kingston) |
| History | |
| Opened | 1864-10-18 (Invercargill to Makarewa) 1871-02-22 (Makarewa to Winton) 1875 (Winton to Lumsden) 1878-07-10 (Lumsden to Kingston) |
| Closed | 1979-11-25 (Mararoa Junction to Fairlight) 1982-12-13 (Makarewa to Mararoa) |
| Technical | |
| Line length | 139.92 km |
| Number of tracks | Single |
| Character | Secondary Main Line |
| Track gauge | 4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) (until 1875-12-20) 3 ft 6 in (1,067 mm) (1875-12-20 to present) |
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