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Police say a 20-year-old killed while walking on train tracks near Petone was trying to get to the Wellington ferry terminal.
Te Ahi Kapura Rokopa Mangu of Te Awamutu died instantly on Friday night after being struck by a southbound commuter train with 12 passengers on board.
Although the driver applied the emergency brake, the train did not have time to slow down. The accident happened at Horokiwi, about 1km from the Petone overbridge.
Senior Sergeant Brett Callender said the man had planned to catch a ferry that night. He was less than 2km from the terminal when a train came around a corner behind him.
"The train applied its emergency brakes, the man leaped to get out of the way but the train hit him from behind and he was killed instantly," Callender said. The train driver was badly shaken by the incident.
Callender said the accident highlighted the dangers of walking on railway lines - a message that did not seem to be getting through.
Ontrack spokesman Kevin Ranshaw said investigations were continuing into how the man had come to be on the tracks.
