Stillwater–Ngākawau Line

A railway link from Greymouth east to Brunner was opened in 1876, but work on a link from this point to Westport became delayed for ten years by disputes over the best route to link the West Coast with Nelson and Canterbury. Ultimately, the New Zealand Midland Railway Company (NZMRC) was formed to construct the route, and in 1886, work recommenced. The junction of the route to Westport and the Midland Line to Canterbury was established just east of Brunner in Stillwater, and the NZMRC put most of its energy into the first portion of the SWL from Stillwater to Reefton. This was due to the comparatively easier terrain faced by the route in the valley of the Grey River, and in 1889, the line was opened to Ngahere. On 29 February 1892, the NZMRC opened the line all the way to the south bank of the Inangahua River, directly opposite Reefton, and with the Stillwater–Reefton portion complete in their view, they redirected their energy to the Midland route from Stillwater to Otira.

In the mid-1890s the NZMRC ran out of funds and, after a dispute in the courts, was taken over by the central government. Work on the SWL recommenced in the 20th century, with the Inangahua River bridged, the present-day Reefton station established, and a further section to Cronadun opened in 1908. At the Westport end, construction also commenced, with a 9 km line opened in 1912 from Westport to Te Kuha at the western end of the Lower Buller Gorge. In 1914, the line from Cronadun reached Inangahua Junction, where the NZMRC intended its lines to Westport and Nelson to diverge (in fact, Inangahua remained the probable site for a junction until all work on the Nelson Section ceased in 1931).[1] However, the outbreak of World War I brought a halt to construction with only the section through the Buller Gorge to complete.

The Buller Gorge posed many difficulties for construction, but most of the formation and 2[2] of the remaining 12 bridges[3] had been built, when Parliament voted 40:22 on 8 October 1931 to back a Railway Board proposal to stop work on the Westport-Inangahua line as well. The Labour leader, Harry Holland, suggested, "the influence of the oil interests against the national railways".[1] Some of the workers were transferred to road building.[4] Only after the 1935 election brought about a change in government was there a serious push to complete the line (as well as the similarly postponed Main North Line). Work was formally restarted on 16 July 1936 with a first sod ceremony.[5] The outbreak of World War II created further delays on construction, but this time, work continued through wartime, including electric signalling, a turntable at Westport and easing of grades at Omoto, Jacksons and Stillwater.[6] The 'last spike' ceremony was on 2 December 1941.[7] The Public Works Department was in charge of construction and were able to operate trains the length of the line by July 1942, but ownership of the route was not transferred to the New Zealand Railways Department until 5 December 1943.

Before the line was completed, mixed trains operated on sections open for service, and between August 1936 and August 1938 a daily morning railcar service was provided from Hokitika on the Ross Branch to Reefton and return by a diminutive Midland railcar.[8] Once the line was completed Vulcan railcars operated from Westport to Stillwater, where they connected with services to Christchurch, and a local service ran between Greymouth and Reefton. From 7 September 1942 there were two railcars each way between Greymouth and Westport, taking a little over 3½ hours.[9] The poor roads in the region meant there was more demand for a passenger service than on many other rural routes in New Zealand that lost their passenger services by 1940, but road upgrades led to increasing competition from the private car and all passenger services on the line ceased in 1967, due to the deteriorating mechanical condition of the railcars.[10]

Commodities such as coal, timber, and cement have been the mainstay of freight on the line, and in the 1950s, when coal was still shipped from Westport and Greymouth, the occasional closure of one port meant every operational locomotive on the West Coast was pushed into duty to haul coal up or down the SWL to the other port. Today, the coal traffic still exists in substantial quantities, but it is no longer shipped from West Coast ports; it is carried by train to the deep harbour in Lyttelton on the east coast.

When the line was completed, U^C class steam locomotives were utilised on the line, with the B and B^A classes introduced in 1957. This was the last mainline duty performed by the B and B^A locomotives, and as bridges on the SWL were strengthened, they were displaced in the 1960s by the heavier A and A^B classes. In 1969, the SWL became one of the last lines in New Zealand to be dieselised, with the DJ class introduced. DJs were used in 1968, when the line was closed for over 3 weeks by the Inangahua Earthquake[11] and which also caused a derailment.[12] In the 1980s, DC locomotives were also placed into service on the line.

One notable feature was the necessity to bank heavy trains heading south from Reefton to Stillwater due to the difficult uphill grade. This was a common feature during the era of steam locomotives, and although banking was dispensed with on most lines when the conversion to diesel-electric motive power was made, the SWL was initially an exception. Some trains had two DJ class locomotives at each end, but this practice has now come to an end, with trains usually formed and loaded in such a way that banking is unnecessary. Trains on the line are regulated by track warrants.[13]

Stations and sidings on the southern section of the line (those north of Westport are listed in the Seddonville Branch article) -

Name	Distance from Greymouth[14]	Opened[15]	Closed[15]	Elevation[16]	Notes
Stillwater	8 mi 55 ch (14.0 km)	14 Nov 1887		27 m (89 ft)	The station had a small NZR refreshment room from 8 January 1927 to 15 March 1962[14] (taken over on lease[17] till at least 1970)[18] and a Post Office from 26 September 1906 to 30 June 1976. There was a fire at the station on 4 August 1960.[14] The TranzAlpine called until 23 September 1999, after which Brunner was substituted as a stop.[19] A platform, 8 tracks[20] and a shed remain,[21] with a sawmill next to the station.[22]
Kamaka	10 mi 72 ch (17.5 km)	1 Aug 1889	25 Apr 1959	26 m (85 ft)	Until 27 May 1907 it was named No Town Road. The goods siding closed on 1 April 1957. Kamaka closed to passengers and parcels on 25 April 1959 and its building was moved to Blackball.[14]
Red Jacks	13 mi 46 ch (21.8 km)	c.1904	by May 1966		Opened as a sawmill siding in 1904.[23] A passing loop remains.[20]
Ngahere	14 mi 44 ch (23.4 km)	1 Aug 1889	after 1990[24]	34 m (112 ft)	Ngahere was a temporary terminus until 14 February 1890, when the Ahaura Section opened for traffic. A Post Office was at the station from 25 July 1893 to 30 June 1909 and from 8 August 1938 to 21 April 1970. The Midland Railway improved the station and added to the stationmaster's house in 1900 and there were further upgrades in 1909, in preparation for it becoming the Blackball junction in 1910. In 1909 it was noted cattle yards were needed. The stockyards closed on 26 February 1983. Ngahere closed to passengers on 11 September 1967[15] and to all except wagon lot traffic on 16 May 1982.[14] Only a single line remains.[20]
Matai	17 mi 19 ch (27.7 km)	17 Apr 1890	12 Oct 1970	41 m (135 ft)	By 1895 large quantities of timber had been cut close to the railway.[25] In 1896 it was reported Matai had a shelter shed. By 1940 Matai had a passing loop able to hold 22 wagons.[14] The station closed to passengers on 11 September 1967.[15]
Ahaura	21 mi 16 ch (34.1 km)	6 May 1890	3 Nov 1986	53 m (174 ft)
Raupo	24 mi 52 ch (39.7 km)	9 Feb 1891	28 Jun 1968	69 m (226 ft)
Totara Flat	26 mi 19 ch (42.2 km)	9 Feb 1890	16 May 1982	78 m (256 ft)
Ikamatua	30 mi 60 ch (49.5 km)	27 Jul 1891	26 Feb 1983	103 m (338 ft)
Hukarere	32 mi 37 ch (52.2 km)	4 Sep 1906	14 Aug 1967	113 m (371 ft)
Waimaunga	33 mi 79 ch (54.7 km)	27 Jul 1891	10 Dec 1967	123 m (404 ft)
Mawheraiti	36 mi 63 ch (59.2 km)	28 Aug 1891	2 Mar 1988	152 m (499 ft)
Hinau	37 mi 77 ch (61.1 km)	28 Aug 1891	15 Nov 1959	155 m (509 ft)
Maimai	39 mi 63 ch (64.0 km)	28 Aug 1891	27 Apr 1980	166 m (545 ft)
Tawhai	41 mi 33 ch (66.6 km)	28 Sep 1890	23 Nov 1946	181 m (594 ft)
Taipo-iti	45 mi 42 ch (73.3 km)	13 May 1907	15 Nov 1959	193 m (633 ft)
Reefton	46 mi 75 ch (75.5 km)	13 May 1907		181 m (594 ft)
Waitahu	48 mi 76 ch (78.8 km)	11 May 1908	6 Nov 1967	169 m (554 ft)
Cronadun	52 mi 30 ch (84.3 km)	11 May 1908		134 m (440 ft)
Larry's Creek	55 mi 19 ch (88.9 km)	1 Jul 1914	17 Mar 1968	112 m (367 ft)
Rotokohu	57 mi 34 ch (92.4 km)	1 Jul 1914	27 Apr 1980	95 m (312 ft)
Landing	61 mi 8 ch (98.3 km)	1 Jul 1914	27 Apr 1980	82 m (269 ft)
Oweka	64 mi 3 ch (103.1 km)	19 Aug 1921	22 Jan 1957	95 m (312 ft)
Inangahua	65 mi 62 ch (105.9 km)	1 Jul 1914		61 m (200 ft)
Buller	67 mi 1 ch (107.8 km)	5 Dec 1943	20 Jun 1971	58 m (190 ft)
Mackley Ballast Pit	71 mi 26 ch (114.8 km)			47 m (154 ft)
Rahui	73 mi 8 ch (117.6 km)	5 Dec 1943	2 Aug 1964	45 m (148 ft)
Tiroroa	80 mi 68 ch (130.1 km)	5 Dec 1943	17 Aug 1959	37 m (121 ft)
Cascade	83 mi 76 ch (135.1 km)	18 Nov 1943	18 Aug 1958	30 m (98 ft)
Te Kuha	86 mi 61 ch (139.6 km)	1 Apr 1912	1 Aug 1960	17 m (56 ft)
Ferry	87 mi 55 ch (141.1 km)				1907 approved but not built.[14]
Queen Street	92 mi 49 ch (149.0 km)	6 Jan 1951	12 Feb 1968
Westport	93 mi 35 ch (150.4 km)	5 Aug 1976		5 m (16 ft)	Westport station in 1960. The footbridge linked the station to the goods shed, which now houses the Westport Railway Preservation Society On Wednesday, 9 September 1874 the first sod of the Westport and Mount Rochfort Railway was turned in Palmerston Street, Westport,[26] by the Buller MP, Eugene O'Conor.[27] In 1876 William Smith built much of the railway[28] and the first 4th class station station and Walter Bull the stationmaster's house.[14] The first section of the Westport and Mount Rochfort Railway opened to Fairdown on 31 December 1875.[29] Plans for a new station were made in 1897 and by 1898 there was a 2nd class station, platform, cart approach, 51 ft (16 m) x 19 ft (5.8 m) goods shed, loading bank, cattle yards, hand crane, coal bunker, weighbridge, engine shed and urinals.[14] In 1906 there was a staff of 41 at the station and about another 50 in the railway workshops, which had been established in 1880.[30] By 1972 staff were down to 19.[31] Cape Foulwind Railway was linked to Westport by a bridge in about 1888.[32] The Cape Foulwind station was moved near to Rintoul Street in 1889. It had a platform, loading bank and goods shed.[14] The first sod for the Westport-Inangahua railway was turned on 20 January 1906.[33] The Westport and Reefton railway's first public train ran 6 mi (9.7 km) to Te Kuha on 31 January 1912.[34] On 31 December 1967 the station was burnt down in a suspected arson attack.[35] A new station and Road Services terminal opened on 25 February 1971.[14] The engine shed was demolished in 1973.[36] to passengers 11 September 1967.[15] Cement silos on the wharf were demolished after the Holcim cement works closed in 2016.[37] In March 2022 Toki bridge was opened in place of the old footbridge to the goods shed,[38] where the Westport Railway Preservation Society, formed in March 1993, now has one of the line's original engines, a NZR C class (1873), rescued from a dump in Buller Gorge, a Milburn Cement shunter, a guard’s van and various wagons.[39]

The table below shows Reefton as the main intermediate passenger station in 1949, but the mainstay of the line was 'goods' and 'other goods' at Waimangaroa and Granity, which were very likely mostly coal, which remains the main traffic on the line.

Photos -

• 1966 Ikamatua
• 1967 railcars passing at Cronadun
• 1958 Inangahua with railcar and goods shed
• 1945 locomotive beside Cascade Creek coal bins and coal flume
• concrete arch bridge
• 1920s building the line in the Buller Gorge and a suspension bridge
• 1900s navvies building the line between Westport and Te Kuha
• 1900s Buller Bridge on Fairwind Railway
• Westport station - early 20c, 1947, 1970
• Westport rail yard in 2012