The Kumeu-Riverhead

Riverhead, New Zealand

Riverhead is a small, historically predominantly working-class town located at the head of the Waitemata Harbour in the north-west of Auckland, New Zealand. The region around Riverhead and the neighbouring towns of Kumeu and Huapai is known for its vineyards...

 section was a short-lived railway line north-west of Auckland

Auckland

The Auckland metropolitan area , in the North Island of New Zealand, is the largest and most populous urban area in the country with residents, percent of the country's population. Auckland also has the largest Polynesian population of any city in the world...

, New Zealand

New Zealand

New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...

. It was built as part of the Kaipara-Riverhead Railway, which was isolated from the national railway network

Rail transport in New Zealand

Rail transport in New Zealand consists of a network of gauge railway lines in both the North and South Islands. Rail services are focused primarily on freight, particularly bulk freight, with limited passenger services on some lines...

 until 1881, just before closure of this section.

Construction

The Kaipara-Riverhead Railway was built to link the eastern Waitemata Harbour

Waitemata Harbour

The quite famous Waitemata Harbour is the main access by sea to Auckland, New Zealand. For this reason it is often referred to as Auckland Harbour, despite the fact that it is only one of two harbours surrounding the city, and is crossed by the Auckland Harbour Bridge. The Waitemata forms the north...

 at Riverhead with the western Kaipara Harbour

Kaipara Harbour

Kaipara Harbour is a large enclosed harbour estuary complex on the north western side of the North Island of New Zealand. The northern part of the harbour is administered by the Kaipara District and the southern part is administered by the Rodney District...

 at Helensville South, to provide more convenient access between the northern districts and Auckland and to improve export prospects for the timber industry in the Kaipara area. The first sod was turned on 31 August 1871 by the Auckland Provincial Council, but at the start of 1872 the national government took over the job. The railway was only 25 km long, and specific delays with acquiring rails and the general difficulties associated with the relative isolation of the time meant that construction dragged on for a few years. On 29 October 1875, it finally opened.

Brief operation and closure

The section had no intermediate stations, and operated for slightly less than six years. Construction of the North Auckland Line was proceeding steadily, and on 13 July 1881 it reached Kumeu from Auckland. The Kumeu-Riverhead section became the Riverhead branch, but it did not last even a week. Between Kumeu and Auckland the North Auckland Line was far superior to shipping, so the Riverhead branch closed on 18 July 1881.

The line today

Despite the line being closed for well over a century, some faint remnants still exist. The embankment on which it left Kumeu diverges from the North Auckland Line near the Kumeu River Number 1 bridge. Old Railway Road is on the formation of the line, and at the T-intersection with State Highway 16

New Zealand State Highway network

The New Zealand State Highway network is the major national highway network in New Zealand. Just under 100 roads in both the North and South Islands are State Highways...

the road ends and the formation continues straight ahead. At Riverhead no substantial relics remain.