KiwiRail will meet Hawke's Bay transport leaders behind closed doors next week to have a "free and frank" discussion about the possible future of the mothballed Napier to Gisborne rail line.
Regional transport committee chairman Alan Dick said he needed to give the company's chief executive Jim Quinn a chance to explain the reasons behind the closure and a chance to put forward some ideas from the committee.
"We need to call for a pause and then have some free and frank discussion, to get a bit more information," Mr Dick said.
He hinted that a joint private and public arrangement could be looked at to fund an independent East Coast rail operation.
"All of those options are still on the table, nothing is off."