Auckland City Rail Link: New milestone reached with timetable test completed, still no opening date set

Auckland’s long-awaited City Rail Link is inching closer towards completion, with another milestone struck today as crews tested the trains’ rush-hour timetable.

The Herald was granted access to the Te Waihorotiu Station platform this morning to see trains coming and going during a simulated peak-hour test, which involved trains running every four to five minutes across the network.

Auckland rail authorities remained tight-lipped about the opening date, only repeating previous claims that it would be open to the public “in the second half of the year”.

Beneath central Auckland, the empty platform stood ready, but with years of delays and ongoing disruption to commuters, the real test for the $5.5 billion project will come when the crowds finally arrive.

The east-to-west and south-to-west routes were tested at a rate of six trips an hour, which meant there were few times when a train was not docking at the station.

Auckland Transport group manager for rail services Mark Lambert said tomorrow it would be testing an additional two trips on both lines per hour.

The Herald was granted access to Te Waihorotiu CRL station for the peak-hour tests. Photo / Michael Craig

This would be the last planned test before the opening date, Lambert said, but AT, KiwiRail and Auckland One Rail were feeling “pretty comfortable” about opening.

AT said the network would have a peak capacity of 19,000 passengers per hour – an almost 60% increase from the current 12,000 passengers per hour.

Lambert said 138 drivers and 110 train managers tested the trains this week, using about 85 trains.

The station is separated into three levels: a main ticket area off the street, in this case entering from Wellesley St, Victoria St and Albert St; a station concourse more than 400m long; and a 203m station platform beneath that.

Network-wide City Rail Link timetable testing was completed this morning before opening to the public later this year. Photo / Michael Craig

As the trains whoosh past, it’s not hard to envisage the platform bustling with commuters.

Some 4000 golden aluminium rods dangle from the ceiling at the opening of the station before passengers travel underground on escalators.

There are natural elements embedded into the design; the skylights, which pop out on Albert St, allowing for natural light, and the faux-wood finish on the ceilings above the station concourse.

Circular Māori symbols designed by local iwi involved in the project sit above the platforms on the dark mesh, and a large carving greets users at the entrance.

Auckland One Rail CEO Martin Kearney (left), AT group manager rail services Mark Lambert and KiwiRail CRL programme director Bevan Assink speak to media during the testing. Photo / Michael Craig

What was missing today were the passengers.

Lambert said there were “some” anxieties about how the network would perform under real-life conditions, but he was happy with how it had performed so far.

There were previous complaints about the disruption to rail users during the testing period, especially as public transport use has increased during the fuel crisis.

Lambert said if people wanted the new metro to be the “huge success” promised, they needed to test.

“Everybody wants and needs this to be a huge success, so we need to test it.”

The City Rail Link was first planned in 2008, but construction did not begin until 2016 under a 50/50 agreement between Auckland Council and the Government.

At the time of spades in the ground, the cost was estimated at between $2.8b and $3.4b. In 2019, the cost ballooned to $4.4b, and $5.5b in 2023.

Rachel Maher is an investigative reporter covering Auckland issues, education and crime. She started at the Herald as a breaking news journalist in 2022, before joining the Auckland team this year.

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