Two new railway stations will open in South Auckland in several weeks' time — with trains set to stop for passengers in Drury and Paerātā for the first time in more than 50 years.
The first passenger service to call at the new stations is scheduled to depart Pukekohe at 6.11am on Sunday, August 2, stopping at Paerātā at 6.17am and Drury at 6.25am before arriving in the city centre at 7.24am, according to Auckland Transport's new timetable.
From the subsequent Monday, weekday services would begin earlier, with the first train leaving Pukekohe at 5.11am and reaching the city at 6.24am.
The stations opening next month are the first two of three being built between Papakura and Pukekohe, with a third at Ngākōroa expected to follow in 2027 after a legal challenge early in that project delayed its construction.
Auckland Council transport committee chairperson and Franklin ward councillor Andy Baker welcomed the openings in a statement this morning.
“These new stations are going to make such a big difference for people living in South Auckland and Franklin and save them countless hours stuck on the Southern Motorway.
“For people who live in or move to subdivisions near the new stations they will have great modern public transport options from day one," he said.
Auckland Transport chief executive Stacey van der Putten said the openings were part of a wider transformation of the region's public transport network.
"With the opening of these two new stations we are giving people real transport choices at a time when we know Aucklanders are looking further out of the city for more affordable housing and a lifestyle that suits them," van der Putten said.
Long decades between stops
Both rural areas had been without rail services since 1972, when their original stations — which dated back to 1875 — were closed to passengers.
KiwiRail, which built the stations with funding from central government, has said the projects are designed to help get ahead of greenfield housing growth, with an extra 130,000 people expected to call South Auckland home over the next 30 years.
KiwiRail's chief metro officer Bevan Assink, a regular train commuter himself, said the project would future-proof the network for the region's growth.
"These new stations will provide the wider community with faster routes into the city, more environmentally friendly public transport options, and reduce congestion on roads."
Drury is one of the largest future urban areas under development in Auckland, expected to accommodate tens of thousands of new residents over the coming decades, while Paerātā station sits alongside the growing Paerata Rise housing development.
Each station will include connections to bus services and park-and-ride facilities for drivers, with up to 350 car parks at both Drury and Paerātā and room for expansion.
Two new bus services — frequent line 42 linking Paerata Rise, and bus line 384 connecting Ramarama — will begin on the same day of the opening.
The stations follow the completed electrification of the line between Papakura and Pukekohe and will later connect to the City Rail Link once it opens.
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