The rail line running from Auckland to Whangarei has been given a $95 million lifeline by the Government.
The ailing Northland freight line has become the latest recipient from the $1-billion-a-year Provincial Growth Fund, Regional Economic Development Minister Shane Jones and State Owned Enterprises Minister Winston Peters announced on Friday.
The funding - about $94.8 million in total - will see 54km of the 181km North Auckland Line track between Swanson and Whangarei replaced.
It will also swap out five of the 88 bridges on the route and fix 13 tunnels, along with 50,000 sleepers.
Peters said the line would have likely become unsafe and closed within five years without the fix, effectively leaving Northland rail cut off from the rest of the country.