Trains stranded after Kaikoura earthquake being moved

A 102-tonne locomotive is shifted on to a trailer on the Kaikoura line. Photo / Supplied

Two trains stranded after the Kaikoura earthquake are finally being moved six months after the quake struck.

KiwiRail has brought in a 132-tyre transporter to shift the two locomotives stuck on the Kaikoura line.

One of the 102-tonne trains has been lifted onto the transporter today and taken to Kaikoura, with the other making the same journey tomorrow.

KiwiRail group general manager Todd Moyle said moving the trains is "another good sign of the progress we are making".

"More than 40 per cent of the work needed to get freight moving again is now complete."

KiwiRail engineering manager Peter Dautermann said moving the trains is "a massive job".

"A team of specialists was needed to manage the shift. The logistics involved in preparing to move these locomotives is enormous."

Two cranes were required to lift each of the trains onto the transporter.

KiwiRail freight service 737 stopped in a tunnel near Hapuku, north of Kaikoura on the morning of the November 14 earthquake.

The freight it was carrying was taken off it in December, and the 23 wagons were lifted out and taken to Christchurch by road earlier this month.

The trains have been wrapped in plastic to protect them from the salt air.