Greater Christchurch on track for ‘Events Express’

Saturday, 9 August 2025

Mainland Rail is in talk with Greater Christchurch councils about a private express train service during major event days.

Thousands of future event goers - potentially from as far afield as Ashburton - may be able to avoid gridlocked streets by travelling to Christchurch by train.

The Press can reveal private train operator Mainland Rail is in the midst of creating an “event express train” service in time for the opening of One New Zealand Stadium at Te Kaha in April 2026.

Mainland Rail director Paul Jackson - who has already bought the train carriages - said there were gaps in the freight schedule that lined up with the timing of upcoming events.

“Our plan provides a smart, simple solution to move up to 5700 people per event without adding pressure to roads or parking,” Jackson said.

The trains could ferry people to events at Hagley Park and the Addington area, as well as the new stadium.

“Christchurch is already the slowest-driving major city in the country. Our Event Express Train model will help fix that, at no cost to ratepayers for the procurement of the trains.”

The company presented a plan update in a confidential meeting of the Greater Christchurch Partnership on Friday.

Paul Jackson, director of Mainland Rail, said the proposal was low cost with a high impact.

What Jackson could say, was that a “key ingredient” to the plan was a proposed new railway station along the rail corridor at the corner of Moorhouse Ave and Colombo St.

It was otherwise a 4.3 kilometre journey - taking as much as 22 minutes by car, according to a Google Maps estimate of peak traffic - from the nearest station in Addington.

Jackson said his company had received clear guidelines from KiwiRail and were seeking a detailed cost estimate to present to the Christchurch City Council for review. Overall, he said the scheme was low cost but high impact.

From Rolleston to central Christchurch an express train journey could take 20 minutes, he said, or 25 minutes from Rangiora.

Mainland Rail’s proposed Greater Christchurch route, including a new platform at Moorhouse Ave/Colombo St.

All three mayors from Greater Christchurch - commenting as part of a joint statement with Mainland Rail - welcomed the proposal.

Christchurch mayor Phil Mauger said it could bring the city real benefits.

“Anything that helps ease congestion, gets more people into the central city, and supports our events economy is worth taking a good look at. I’m looking forward to learning more as the proposal develops,” he said.

The DMUs had capacity for 223 passengers: 132 seated and 91 standing.

Selwyn mayor Sam Broughton described the idea as “really practical” and that his community often expressed a desire to use the train.

“It’s great to see this kind of initiative being driven privately, using existing infrastructure, and testing the waters for what could become a bigger part of our public transport network over time – all without adding extra burden to the ratepayer,” he said.

Rangiora’s train station was already ready to go, said Waimakariri mayor Dan Gordon.

“These plans are exciting, and I would certainly take the train to events at the stadium,” he said, adding that he was interested to know if other connections could be included in future if successful.

The proposal was unrelated to Environment Canterbury’s recent vote to approach KiwiRail about using the existing network for commuter rail between Rolleston, Christchurch and Rangiora.

Councillor Joe Davies, who put the matter on the agenda in early July, said he had no idea about Mainland Rail’s idea at the time, but hoped user data could help with a future commuter rail business case.

Jackson confirmed to The Press he saw the event express as a “live experiment” for future commuter rail.

Davies was one of many people who took to social media about the mysterious movements of some of Auckland Transport’s old Diesel Multiple Units (DMUs) in the last week.

A fleet of 10 DMUs - first built for passenger rail in Perth in the 1980s, before its network was electrified and bought by New Zealand Rail in 1993 - arrived in Picton from Auckland on Monday, ahead of the planned decommissioning of the Cook Strait rail ferry, Jackson said.

Each DMU could carry 223 passengers. Eight would be used for the express train while two would be for spare parts.

Jackson said the company also bought seven S-Carriages from KiwiRail (previously used on the Palmerston North to Wellington commuter route) which he said could be ideal for a longer distances, like a route from Ashburton.

The total passenger power was 19% of the stadium’s 30,000 capacity, he said.

While the event express was not yet a done deal, in mid-July Jackson registered the company Greater Christchurch Rail Ltd.

He did not comment on his aspirations for that company due to commercial sensitivity.

The Press previously reported that the council and Venues Ōtautahi were considering integrated ticketing - in which public transport costs are included in the price of the ticket for an event.

Giles Southwell, Environment Canterbury’s director of corporate and public transport services, said the council was pleased Mainland Rail was exploring options, but was not directly involved, as event services did not count as public transport.

“We wish them well with this, and with any other proposals they want to explore for the South Island. We’ve got a good relationship with Mainland Rail and will remain in contact with them as they develop their ideas further,” Southwell said.