Pushed on how many services were affected, he declined to give an exact number but said "all services" in and out of the station had experienced some form of delay.
An Auckland Transport spokesman said an eastern line train, from Manukau to Britomart, broke down at Quay Park at around 8.45am.
It was pushed into the Britomart station by another train, so that passengers were not stuck on the train, he said.
However, the knock-on effect meant other services down the line were delayed, forcing other services to stop at Newmarket station for 45 minutes, he said.
Passengers were given the option of using the regular bus service which operates from Newmarket into the city centre, he said, with their train tickets valid for that journey.
All services were back up and running by 9.30am, and by 10.30am most were running with only a minor delay.
The out-of-action train would not affect any further services, with plenty of replacement trains available, he said. It was not yet known what had caused the break down.
One commuter described the situation unfolding at Newmarket train station as the "passenger transport version of Saturday's Harbour Bridge gridlock".
"Hundreds of Britomart-bound commuters forced to disembark because a train has broken down in the Parnell tunnel. Total chaos and misinformation and slow response," he said.
On Saturday afternoon Auckland traffic ground to a stand-still after a collision between three motorcyclists and a truck. The midday crash left three people with serious injuries, closing three of the Harbour Bridge's four northbound lanes for three hours, and causing a ripple of congestion across the city's streets, roads and motorways. Some motorists spent up to four hours stuck in the traffic jam.
The Kingslander commuter said: "Passengers on the inbound western line train were told to alight at Newmarket and get on another train, which was packed. Two minutes later we all had to get off.
"Ticket collectors and security staff didn't know what was going on. We stood around in confusion with no indication of whether or when any train would get through to Britomart.
"Most people eventually walked out and caught a bus."
