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KiwiRail’s new Christchurch maintenance hub and state-of-the-art DM locomotives are an important step forward to deliver safe and reliable train services for our customers in the South Island, KiwiRail Chief Executive Peter Reidy says.
This afternoon, Minister for Rail Rt Hon Winston Peters officially opened the new Waltham Maintenance Hub in Christchurch, which was built with a $110 million Government investment.
The first of the new, low emission and more powerful DM locomotives, being built by Stadler in Spain, were also on display. The Government has invested $533m for 66 DM locomotives, 47 ($372m) of which will replace the aging South Island locomotive fleet.
Mr Reidy says the Waltham hub will provide a modern, safe environment for staff where maintenance on KiwiRail’s locomotives, wagons and passenger carriages used across the South Island will be carried out.
“The building will allow work on 24 different assets to be carried out at the same time, it has electronic safety systems to protect staff from any unplanned rail movements and is supported by enough solar panels to meet half of the site’s electricity needs.”
“Thanks to further significant Government support, we have ordered the new DM locomotives. Four have entered service in New Zealand now, with the rest to arrive in batches over the next two years.
“The Waltham hub and the DMs are a game changer for KiwiRail’s South Island operations. Waltham ensures our maintenance crews have the capability to move to the preventative asset management approach needed to deliver consistent reliability of service for our customers.
“More efficient maintenance, combined with more reliable locomotives will mean better and more timely services for our South Island customers. It is the crucial foundation that will allow us to get more of the island’s freight onto rail.”
The Waltham Maintenance Hub and DM locomotives are part of a $1.2 billion dollar Government investment in South Island rail since 2019.