Official opening of CRL

Auckland’s City Rail Link (CRL) officially opened today, ahead of the first train services on Sunday September 13.

After a decade of construction, the official opening marks a turning point in the way New Zealand’s biggest city moves and grows.

Auckland Mayor Wayne Brown has a clear message for Aucklanders.

“We want Aucklanders to get on board,” Brown says.

“The City Rail Link is a transformational investment for Auckland. It’s a game changer for our city that will benefit generations to come.

“Aucklanders can look forward to more travel options and a better-connected rail network, making it easier to move across the city. Public transport will be simpler, more convenient and more accessible for more people.

“The benefits of this project will be felt every day. Whether you’re heading to work, school, Eden Park or K’ Road for a meal, the new network will make getting around Auckland faster and easier.

“I encourage Aucklanders to get on board, literally, and make the most of this significant investment in our city’s future.

“From Sunday, a new timetable, new rail routes and three new stations will transform the way Auckland’s rail network operates.

“When many Aucklanders return to work on Monday, they’ll be using a network that connects them to more places and provides more travel choices.

The new East West and South City line services will all connect through the new stations, improving connectivity, optimising services and delivering the transport outcomes Aucklanders and businesses have been waiting for.”

Transport Minister Chris Bishop says the opening is a historic moment for Auckland, coming around a century after an underground city centre railway was first proposed.

“CRL is New Zealand’s biggest, and perhaps most challenging, transport project completed to date,” Bishop says.

“For the first time, trains will run right through the middle of Auckland rather than reaching the city centre and stopping. Auckland’s rail lines will become a connected network, with faster journeys, more frequent services and much greater capacity.

“It brings Auckland’s rail system more in line with major cities around the world and will make a real difference to people heading to work or school, going to an appointment, meeting friends, shopping or getting to an event.

“CRL is a statement of ambition for Auckland and for New Zealand. It shows what good infrastructure can achieve: creating more opportunities for new homes and businesses around stations, better connecting people with jobs and services, and making it easier for a growing city to function.

“This major project is part of a much wider transformation of Auckland’s rapid transport network. It sits alongside new train stations in Drury, the electrification of rail to Pukekohe, upgrades to other stations, the Rail Network Rebuild and Auckland’s growing busway network.”

Bishop also acknowledged the thousands of people who have worked on the project over the past decade, and Aucklanders and city centre businesses who have lived with the disruption required to build it.

“Major infrastructure is difficult to build. Aucklanders have put up with closed roads, construction sites and disruption for years to get to this point.

“From Sunday, the focus shifts from what it took to build the City Rail Link to what it makes possible. For decades to come, Aucklanders will simply be able to get on a train and get where they need to go more quickly and easily. That is what great infrastructure is ultimately about.”