Delays after train hits pole in Lower Hutt, brings down overhead cables

Police say no one was injured after the lines came down, following the train's crash into the pole. Photo / file

A commuter train in Wellington hit a pole and brought power lines down, causing significant delays for people heading into the city this morning.

Police said the Tranzmetro train travelling into Ava Station in Lower Hutt hit the pole about 11.30pm, bringing down overhead cables. No one was injured, but about 50 people were held on the train until the lines were isolated and made safe.

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"We don't know why this support pole was leaning on this overhead wire. That's what we'll need to look into in more detail," KiwiRail spokeswoman Lisa Mulitalo said.

"Obviously we've got no power. We've got to repair those poles and can't run electric trains over that line."

Ms Mulitalo said KiwiRail infrastructure staff were this morning trying to get the line back up and running. It was unclear how long the job would take.

"We're hoping that it will be back up for afternoon services but we'll know some more later on this morning I think," Ms Mulitalo said.

She said about 5000 commuters used the Hutt Valley line each morning.

"The big thing for us is to let our customers know we've got limited bus replacements so if they can make alternative arrangements to get to work that would be great," Ms Mulitalo said.

"If they can't they'll just need to be really patient this morning. But we are working as fast as we can to try get them into the city."

The Wairarapa trains used diesel so were operational but experiencing delays this morning as the repair work imposed speed restrictions.

Buses replaced all services on the Hutt Valley Line between Taita and Petone.

KiwiRail advised people to check the Tranz Metro website for updates.

"If anything changes we will notify our customers on the website and via our text messaging service," KiwiRail said.

Kiwirail said today that passengers travelling on the Hutt Valley line this morning should expect significant delays and make alternative travel arrangements.

Maintenance staff had been working through the night to restore the overhead power system but more work was required before normal services could resume.