Log train services returning to Whanganui line

Log train services between Whanganui and New Plymouth are set to resume.

Regular log train services between Whanganui and New Plymouth will resume in the New Year after an 18-month hiatus.

Trains will run from Whanganui to KiwiRail’s New Plymouth rail depot most days from January 6, where log wagons will be moved by a smaller locomotive to the port.

Forest360 director Marcus Musson expects the train services to reduce traffic on the roads.

“Initially, we will be loading six wagons per day on the Whanganui to Taranaki route. That removes the need for about 80 truck trips each week, reducing emissions and taking large trucks off the roads,” he said.

Musson said forest owners will benefit from lower cartage rates.

KiwiRail executive general manager of freight and rolling stock operations, Paul Ashton, said with the reintroduction of services, people needed to be cautious around track crossings.

“More trains running also means that people should be cautious whenever they approach the tracks,” he said.

“This is especially important on the urban line to Port Taranaki, which has a number of pedestrian level crossings connecting to the popular Coastal Walkway.”