Work starts today on $1m Wellington suburban station

Work started this morning on a $1million improvement to Wellington’s Pukerua Bay Station. The station will be temporarily closed for approximately two months while the old platform is demolished and a new one built in its place.

The work is necessary to accommodate the fleet of new Matangi trains arriving from mid-2010. Pukerua Bay Station is one of a number of stations around the region being upgraded as part of a wider improvement project for Wellington’s rail network.

Once complete, the new platform will be slighter higher, bringing it into line with other stations on the network. It will have safety features such as yellow tactile strips and the electrical ducting in place to support a real time passenger information system to be introduced in future by Greater Wellington Regional Council.

While the station is temporarily closed, passengers will be able to catch trains from other stations or use peak hour weekday shuttle services between Pukerua Bay and Plimmerton Stations.

As detailed last week, Wellington‘s $550m upgrade programme includes: A fleet of new electric trains – the Matangi trains Extension of electrification and double tracked lines to take commuter services to Waikanae; Installation of power supply equipment and railway signalling; Adding another line into Wellington Railway Station to reduce delays; Making the Johnsonville Line tunnels larger; and Improving a number of platform and station facilities.