South Island Railway Development

The administration of public facilities in the South Island was placed under the control of three Provincial Councils in 1853. By 1868, due mainly to geographical difficulties, there were 6 Provinces, with Marlborough, Westland and Southland being divided off Nelson, Canterbury and Otago respectively. Each Council was challenged by different drivers to best meet the needs in their particular area. There was however one common issue and that was transport, and in each case, railways provided the answer.

Canterbury was very quick in initiating an ambitious scheme of railway construction in order to have a reliable transport route from its productive lands to its capital, and then on to the port. Legislation was passed in 1860 authorising the first stages of construction, culminating in Amberley in the north and Rakaia in the south being connected to Christchurch from where there was a link to the port of Lyttelton, all being operational before the Provincial Governments were abolished in 1876. The design of this railway was much influenced by early english methods, with three members of the famous Stephenson family involved at various stages. Track was constructed to 5'3" gauge(also referred to as Irish or Broad gauge) and locomotives and rolling-stoch sourced from Melbourne, Australia where similar systems were already in operation. The crucial piece of railway was of course the Christchurch Lyttelton line which ensured efficient transport of goods and passengers between the the port and the provincial capital. The other two lines received the appropriate grand names of Great Northern Railway and Great Southern Railway.