Papakura railway station semi-retired

Papakura's 85-year-old railway station building, scene of tearful farewells as soldiers left the town's old Army camp for overseas battlegrounds, is entering semi-retirement after a $4.9 million redevelopment.

A new station building on an extended platform capable of handling six-car trains will open tomorrow, the seventh built on the Auckland rail network within a year.

The station is one of Auckland's busiest, catering for about 3000 passengers each week day, and also has a new footbridge with a lift. Its 1922 building will remain available to passengers for ticket purchases.