Old trains get make-over

By CATHY ARONSON and WAYNE THOMPSON

The new look for Auckland's ageing trains has been unveiled in a bid to entice commuters on to public transport when the Britomart transport centre opens next June.

The Auckland Regional Council is spending about $8 million to give the 10 trains, which date from the 1980s, a new design and to keep them on the tracks for another 10 years.

The trains will have new seats, carpet instead of vinyl flooring to reduce noise and new wall and ceiling panels with modern lighting.

They will feature security cameras, a passenger information display and a public address system.

New doors will feature half-moon shaped windows and the square fibreglass noses will be replaced with a sleek, aerodynamic style.



The council's passenger transport chairwoman, Catherine Harland, said that because the council had spent so much redesigning the trains it was also considering buying them for about another $3 million to $4 million.

Although it cannot legally own trains, it is in the process of appointing an operator to own and manage them.

"We need a comfortable and quality service to attract interest from a wider group of people."

The council had to set aside $21 million to upgrade Tranz Rail's old trains and lease more after it failed to buy new trains in time for the opening of Britomart.

The new transport centre is expected to create at least a 20 per cent increase in passenger numbers and the council needs about 23 trains.

It wants to reduce reliance on the old ADK trains, which Tranz Rail warned were past their 30-year life expectancy and did not meet international structural standards.

The council has leased two Silver Fern railcars from Tranz Metro and has signed a conditional agreement to lease or buy seven SX carriages and five rail cars from New South Wales.

The spending is part of an effort to get commuters on to trains after the Government paid Tranz Rail $81 million for the Auckland rail corridor this year.

The council wants 25 new trains by 2006 but has not yet secured the money. It is expected to need up to $166 million from Infrastructure Auckland, and the burden could be passed on to the regions and councils.

* The Waitakere City Council is investigating a plan to run tram-trains along a major road.

Diverting light-rail passenger trains from the west Auckland line on to Great North Rd, between Avondale and New Lynn, could bring many benefits, says the city's development committee.

Between the two town centres, the road and the line are about a kilometre apart.

Carolynne Stone, who chairs the committee, said the idea depended on the region agreeing that tram-trains should run from Britomart to Swanson. A line on Great North Rd was possible by 2006.

It would cost about $15.5 million to take a single track from near the Cambridge Clothing Factory in New Lynn to rejoin the main west line at St Jude St in Avondale.

Freight trains would continue to use the main west line.

Feature: Getting Auckland moving

Live traffic reports

Rideline Auckland public transport information